How insurance recruiting works
Insurers and brokers start recruiting early in the school year and often review applications as they arrive, and actuarial hiring runs on exams as much as on the calendar. This guide covers the main roles, how to prepare, a plan for each class year, and what Upwind's catalog shows right now.1,32,15
Insurancein Upwind’s catalog
- Internship listings
- Full-time listings
- Employers
How insurance recruiting works
Most entry-level hiring runs through summer internships and rotational development programs. Liberty Mutual's internships are paid, 11-week assignments, Chubb's Associate Program is a two-year program in areas such as underwriting, claims and actuarial work, and Marsh pairs a 10-week summer internship with a two-year full-time development program.1,5,13
The season starts early and stays open. Liberty Mutual begins accepting applications for many programs in September and recruits on a rolling basis, with most interviews and decisions from late October through early spring. Career offices note that insurance hires early, with many programs opening between August and October.1,32
Brokers hire at scale too. Gallagher hosts more than 500 summer interns across more than 140 US offices, and says recruiting starts as early as September and roles fill quickly.14
Some employers limit how widely you can apply. Prudential allows up to three applications per recruiting season and may follow with a recorded video interview, and Aon lets a candidate be in its final round for only one position at a time.7,11
The main roles
Actuarial
Measure and price risk with math, statistics and financial theory.15
Actuaries usually hold a bachelor's degree, and BLS notes that programming, spreadsheets, databases and statistical tools matter alongside the math. Internships also help students choose among the practice areas, such as health, life, pension and casualty.15
Credentials come through professional exams. The Society of Actuaries' associate designation starts with the Probability (P) and Financial Mathematics (FM) exams, and the Casualty Actuarial Society's path for property and casualty work starts with its exams in probability and financial mathematics.20,23
Employers build programs around the exams. Travelers' Actuarial Leadership Development Program is a five-year rotation through areas such as pricing, reserving, ratemaking and predictive modeling, with reserved study time.4
Underwriting
Decide whether to insure a risk, and on what terms.16
Underwriters typically hold a bachelor's degree, and BLS notes that beginners usually work under senior underwriters for up to a year.16
The work is increasingly data-driven. In Insurance Journal, a WTW executive described data literacy, reading charts and interpreting data, as a skill underwriters need. Large carriers run dedicated programs: AIG offers a two-year underwriting program alongside its internships.27,6
Claims
Decide whether a claim is covered, and how much the insurer should pay.17
BLS notes that some claims jobs start with a high school diploma, though some employers prefer a bachelor's degree. Licensing rules for adjusters vary by state, and some states require prelicensing education or an exam.17
Texas's insurance department notes that some companies will pay for the licensing exam if you agree to work for them.19
Brokerage and risk management
Advise businesses on their risks and place their insurance.
Brokers hire client-facing staff: Marsh's client management track covers keeping existing clients, winning new business and servicing accounts.13
Brokers' calendars can split by role. Aon recruits actuarial interns and full-time hires in the fall and its other internships in January and February, and its internships are aimed at rising seniors.11,12
Sales and financial representatives
Sell policies as a company's agent, an independent agent or a broker.18
BLS distinguishes captive agents, who sell for one company, from independent agents and brokers, and notes that pay is often commission-based. Agents must be licensed in each state where they work, with separate licenses for life and health and for property and casualty.18
Know which kind of internship you are applying for. Northwestern Mutual runs two: a College Financial Representative internship that previews an independent-contractor advisor career and pays commission on sales, and a traditional 10-week corporate internship.9,10
What matters and how to prepare
An actuarial exam before you apply
Internships usually require at least one passed exam, and candidates need two passed exams before they can apply for the Society of Actuaries' educational-experience credits.28,21
Know the exam support
Employers may pay for exams and study materials or give paid study time. OneAmerica, for example, reimburses fees and materials and rewards passed exams.15,8
Spreadsheets and data
Actuarial work leans on programming, spreadsheets and statistical tools, and underwriting increasingly asks for data literacy.15,27
Know each program's GPA rule
Where a program states a minimum, it is set by that employer: Travelers' actuarial program, Chubb's Associate Program and Aon's internships each state a 3.0.4,5,11
A head start on the CPCU
The Institutes offers a collegiate certificate toward its CPCU designation, earned through two approved college courses and a free ethics course.24
Stories in the STAR format
Behavioral interviews ask how you handled real situations; the STAR method structures each answer as the situation, the task, the action you took and the result.33
Strategy and common mistakes
Strategy
Apply early in the fall
Rolling review means roles fill as the season goes on: Gallagher says its roles fill quickly once recruiting starts in September.14,1
Choose your applications
With Prudential's limit of three applications per season, and Aon's one final round at a time, pick the roles that fit before you apply.7,11
Bring numbers to the interview
Liberty Mutual advises having figures ready that show your impact, doing a mock interview, preparing questions, and reviewing the job description just before you start.2
Network steadily
Career offices describe insurance as a relationship-focused industry where regular networking pays off, and note that openings appear all year even though more come in the fall.32
Common mistakes
Waiting for spring
Many insurance programs open between August and October and review as applications arrive, so a spring search finds fewer openings.32,1
Confusing a sales internship with a corporate one
A financial representative internship can be commission-based and lead to an independent-contractor career. Read the posting to see which kind it is.10,18
Applying for actuarial roles without an exam
Actuarial internships usually expect at least one passed exam, so schedule one well before the fall you apply.28,22
Your plan by class year
First-year
Insurers run short exposure programs for first-years. The Hartford's Freshman Experience Program is for students in their first year of college, and Liberty Mutual's Discovery programs start as early as freshman year: its Spark Summit, for technology, and its Unite Summit, for actuarial science, analytics and finance, both take freshmen and sophomores.3,1
Look for a chapter of Gamma Iota Sigma, the collegiate organization for insurance, risk management and actuarial careers, which runs a conference and a career center.26
What to do this year
Apply to first-year programs
Check The Hartford's and Liberty Mutual's early-career pages for the Freshman Experience Program and the Spark and Unite summits, and apply to the one closest to the work you want. These are short programs for exploring the field and meeting the people in it.3,1
Ask a local independent agency for experience
Local agencies take students too. The independent agents' InVEST program publishes an internship guide for agencies that includes a customer-service role for high school or college students and a marketing-assistant role aimed at first- and second-year college students.25
Start on probability if actuarial work interests you
The first actuarial exams cover probability and financial mathematics, for both the Society of Actuaries and the Casualty Actuarial Society, so take the probability and statistics courses that lead to them early.20,23
Sophomore
The Hartford's Early Immersion Program is a two-day program of workshops, case studies and networking for sophomores.3
For actuarial students, this is the year to pass a first exam: career offices say internships usually expect at least one. The Probability and Financial Mathematics exams are offered several times a year.28,29,22
What to do this year
Apply to sophomore programs
Beyond The Hartford's Early Immersion Program, Liberty Mutual runs INSURE, an introduction to underwriting for sophomores, and Claim Your Career, a day-long preview of claims work for sophomores and juniors. Its Unite Summit still takes sophomores as well.3,1
Book your first actuarial exam
Pick a sitting for the Probability or Financial Mathematics exam well before the fall you apply for internships, since actuarial internships usually expect at least one passed exam.22,28
Learn the daily work at a local agency
A summer or part-time role at an independent agency teaches the routine of the business: InVEST's guide has interns preparing quotes, certificates of insurance and renewal proposals.25
Junior
The fall of junior year is the main internship window. Career offices advise applying early in the fall, and most actuarial internships are for students entering their junior or senior year.29,31
Windows open from midsummer: Prudential opens fall applications in July or August, and Liberty Mutual and Gallagher open in September. Some run later, such as Aon's non-actuarial internships in January and February and Prudential's spring cycle, which opens in January.7,1,14,11
What to do this year
Apply in the first weeks of the fall
Liberty Mutual and Gallagher open in September and review as applications arrive, and Gallagher says its roles fill quickly, so apply as soon as a program you want opens.1,14
Treat this summer's internship as your interview
The Hartford places juniors in its summer internships and sometimes offers full-time jobs to participants, and Liberty Mutual describes its internships as a clear path to a full-time role.3,1
Keep passing exams
For actuarial students, career offices advise passing two exams by the end of junior year.30
Senior and new grad
Apply for full-time roles in the fall of senior year. Rotational programs keep a longer window: The Hartford takes applications from September to April, and most Chubb Associate Program cohorts begin in February and June.29,3,5
Many employers expect actuarial hires to have passed one or two exams before graduation, and career offices advise passing two by the end of junior year.15,30
What to do this year
Turn your internship into an offer
If you interned, start with that employer: Liberty Mutual says nearly 90% of its eligible interns receive an offer to return or start full-time.1
Apply to rotational programs
Development programs take new graduates into specific tracks. The Hartford's full-time early-career programs take applications from September to April, and Chubb's Associate Program runs two years in areas such as underwriting, claims and actuarial work.3,5
Get licensed for sales or claims
Agents must be licensed in each state where they work, and some states require adjusters to pass an exam. Texas's insurance department notes that some companies pay for the licensing exam if you agree to work for them.18,17,19
What Upwind’s catalog shows
These figures come from a read of Upwind’s catalog on October 3, 2026. 16% of insurance listings state a deadline between October 2026 and March 2027; the rest don't state a deadline, say applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, or name a later date. November 2026 holds more of those deadlines than any other month: 49% of them.
When stated deadlines fall
Share of listings with a stated deadline between October 2026 and March 2027, by month.
| Month | Bar | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Oct | 38% | |
| Nov | 49% | |
| Dec | 14% | |
| Jan | 0% | |
| Feb | 0% | |
| Mar | 0% |
Read the chart alongside rolling review. Many insurers interview from late October into spring, so roles often start filling well before a stated deadline.1
The catalog files property and casualty insurers, life insurers, brokers and health insurers together under this field, which is why a health insurer appears among the employers below.
- Liberty Mutual
- Northwestern Mutual
- New York Life
- AIG
- Marsh McLennan Agency
- Humana
Counts are rounded down, and they count listings: one role posted in three cities is three listings. We can’t guarantee every listing is current, so confirm dates on the employer’s own site before you apply.
Sources
- Liberty Mutual. Internships, Apprenticeships and Discovery Programs at Liberty Mutual.
- Liberty Mutual. Interviewing tips & resources.
- The Hartford. Internships and Early Career Programs.
- Travelers. Actuarial Leadership Development Program (ALDP).
- Chubb. Chubb Associate Program (CAP).
- AIG. Students & Graduates.
- Prudential. Internship.
- OneAmerica Financial. Actuarial Programs.
- Northwestern Mutual. A Comprehensive Guide to the College Financial Representative Program. Published November 24, 2025.
- Northwestern Mutual. Navigating Your Future: Two Internship Paths at Northwestern Mutual. Published September 25, 2024.
- Aon. Early Careers at Aon: US FAQs.
- Aon. Early Careers at Aon: US Internships.
- Marsh. Risk and insurance Early Career Program, U.S. and Canada.
- Gallagher. Gallagher Careers: Students.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Actuaries: Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Insurance Underwriters: Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Claims Adjusters, Appraisers, Examiners, and Investigators: Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Insurance Sales Agents: Occupational Outlook Handbook.
- Texas Department of Insurance. Careers in insurance: How to become an insurance agent or adjuster.
- Society of Actuaries. Associate of the Society of Actuaries (ASA).
- Society of Actuaries. Validation by Educational Experience (VEE).
- Society of Actuaries. Exam Schedule.
- Casualty Actuarial Society. Credential Requirements.
- The Institutes. Collegiate Certificate Requirements.
- InVEST, Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America. Internship Guide by Position for Agencies or Companies.
- Gamma Iota Sigma. Gamma Iota Sigma.
- Insurance Journal. Surviving the 'Silver Tsunami': Closing the Talent, Skills Gap in Underwriting. Published December 20, 2024.
- The Ohio State University, Department of Mathematics. Actuarial Science Internships & Job Opportunities.
- University of Arizona, Department of Mathematics. Actuarial Science: Exams, Internships, and Planning.
- Illinois State University. Careers: Actuarial Science Major.
- Central College. Internships: Actuarial science.
- Appalachian State University, Brantley Risk & Insurance Center. Careers & Internships.
- University of Washington Career & Internship Center. STAR Method of Interviewing.