Certificate in Insurance
Establishing core competence in insurance practice.
The Certificate provides a grounding in basic insurance principles including the regulatory environment, key insurance disciplines and popular products. It is modular in structure enabling you to select units of study depending on your requirements. Suitable for staff in insurance companies, brokers and related organisations whether they are directly employed in insurance practise or are employed in support functions. Holders can apply to use the designation ‘Cert CII®’.
Qualifications offered by the CII are recognised throughout the insurance industry as an indication of commitment, knowledge and understanding. They underpin job-specific and at-work training, and help you to deliver a capable, professional service.
The Certificate in Insurance is a core qualification for insurance staff working across all sectors of the industry (and the logical progression from the introductory-level Foundation Insurance Test). It provides a grounding in basic insurance principles including the regulatory environment, key insurance disciplines and popular products. It supports role-specific learning which will assist you to develop relevant competences.
The Certificate is modular in structure, enabling you to select units of study according to your preference and career requirements. Each unit has a credit value and the accumulation of the stipulated number of credits leads to the award of the Certificate which will entitle you to apply to use the designation ‘Cert CII®’ (CII membership and Continuing Professional Development requirements apply).
Note: sector specific designations ‘Cert CII (London Market)’ and ‘Cert CII (Claims)’ are available to candidates completing the Certificate that have passed the Lloyd’s and London Market Introductory Test (LLMIT) or Insurance claims handling process (IF4) unit, respectively. Faculty membership requirements also apply.
Upon completion you will also satisfy the entry requirements of the next qualification in the framework of CII qualifications, the Diploma in Insurance, and will gain recognition for your accumulated credits.
Flexible and comprehensive
The Certificate is ideal for individuals working across a wide range of organisations and roles. It is suitable for staff within insurance companies, brokers and related organisations, whether they are directly involved in insurance practice or employed in support functions such as human resources, marketing, IT and finance.
By covering a broad range of core topics, the Certificate allows you to develop the knowledge and confidence you need before you begin to focus your subsequent studies and specialise according to your ambitions and career requirements. This qualification is the first step towards becoming professionally qualified and, as such, its value is widely recognised by employers throughout the insurance industry.
Importantly, the Certificate has been designed to assist you and your employer to comply with regulatory training and competence requirements.
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has stated that it is looking for employees to demonstrate that they are competent in the work they do, and thereafter to maintain this competence. This approach is designed to ensure that employees have the appropriate knowledge and skills to perform their role effectively, and the Certificate can play an important role in helping to meet the requirements by serving as an objective measurement of your technical awareness and understanding.
Given the regulatory context and ever higher consumer expectations, employers increasingly expect their staff to be qualified. They recognise that knowledgeable staff have a key role to play in raising and maintaining standards within their organisation.
Clearly, studying for the Certificate is essential for anyone intent on building a career in today’s insurance industry.
Insurance qualifications framework
For details on the full range of qualifications within the framework please see the Overview section or download the brochure.
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) accreditation
The QCA is responsible for standards in education and training. The Certificate in Insurance is accredited with the QCA as ‘CII Level 3 Certificate in Insurance’ and is included in the National Qualifications Framework. The Certificate is only accredited where it is completed using Certificate units IF1-IF7. For further information please refer to the QCA website at www.qca.org.uk
Funding may be available for candidates studying for qualifications listed in the National Qualifications Framework. For further details regarding funding, please refer to the Learning and Skills Council website at www.lsc.gov.uk
Note: For QCA accredited qualifications, ‘the regulatory authorities’ logo(s) on the certificate indicate that the qualification is accredited only for England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Why the Certificate in Insurance?
The Certificate delivers many advantages:
- Enhances your career prospects by demonstrating commitment to self-improvement: it is the starting point for anyone who is serious about a career in insurance.
- Can form part of an overall programme to meet the regulator’s training and competence requirements.
- Has no formal entry requirements so is open to anyone, irrespective of age, experience or educational background.
- Supports personalised learning programmes as you select the topics most appropriate to your role, rather than follow a rigid pre-set learning programme.
- Provides online exam sittings that enable you to enter for the exam when you are ready, with results provided instantaneously.
- A ‘Record of Achievement’ is awarded for each unit passed and a ‘Certificate in Insurance’ is awarded upon completion, providing portable and permanent evidence of learning undertaken.
- Upon completion you can apply to use the designation ‘Cert CII’ providing a means of demonstrating educational achievement to the public and to peers (CII membership and Continuing Professional Development requirements apply).
- Forms part of logical progression of CII qualifications. Having successfully completed the Certificate in Insurance you meet the entry criteria for the Diploma in Insurance and importantly, have credits that count towards this.
Is the Certificate in Insurance right for me?
The Certificate is open to anyone, irrespective of age, educational background or experience. It is suitable for a diverse range of people, including:
- Anyone wishing to gain a broad understanding of insurance principles, key disciplines and products.
- Employees who have no formal insurance qualifications but wish to objectively demonstrate insurance knowledge and understanding.
- Anyone working in specific technical claims handling or underwriting roles within a call or service centre environment.
- Insurance staff employed in support functions such as human resources, marketing, IT and finance, wishing to develop an understanding of the industry in which they work.
- Staff working for an organisation whose primary business is not insurance, but which offers insurance advice and products as part of its overall service to customers.
- Providers of services to insurers or insurance intermediaries.
- Staff needing evidence of achievement for the technical certificate requirement within foundation and advanced modern apprenticeships for insurance can use the CII’s Level 3 Certificate in Insurance for this purpose.
Your next step
Now that you have read about the Certificate in Insurance, gained an understanding of what it offers and decided that it meets your career development plans, it is time to finalise your entry.
This Certificate in Insurance section contains all the information you require to study for and complete this qualification. As you read through this, you will learn about the units on offer, the available learning materials, terms and conditions relating to entry, and the different ways you can enter.
Please take the time to read this, as it will help you choose the study programme that best fits your needs.
Prizes
Each year the CII may award a number of prizes for exceptional performance in its qualifications. These prizes cover a variety of situations, such as completing a qualification, the best performance in a single unit or certain groups of units, and exemplary performance by those working in certain sectors of the industry. The prizes are sponsored by a wide range of organisations within the insurance and financial services industry. Should you not wish your contact details to be given to the sponsor of a prize for which your exam performance may make you eligible, you should indicate this by ticking the appropriate box in the ‘Declarations’ section of the application form.
Certificate in Insurance prizes
- Certificate in Insurance - Worshipful Company of Insurers Prize £300
- IF7 - Healthcare insurance products - Healthcare Award £100
- IF1 and IF4 - [awarded to the UK candidate who achieves the best average results in units IF1 and IF4] - Cunningham Lindsey UK Faculty of Claims Prize £500
