For all of the prelicense students out there, this is for you! Whether you are studying in Oregon, or preparing for an insurance license exam in any Promissor state, you can be better prepared by reading this! I know…big words. But I guarantee that if you practice what I preach, you will stand a much better chance of passing on your first try! Ready? OK, here goes.
Make sure that you give yourself PLENTY of time to study before you test. Unless you’re one of those weird types that got an “A” in college courses without ever attending the class (by acing the assignments and the final), you are going to need to do some work before you sit for the exam. Generally thinking, most people need at least as many hours outside of the requirements as inside. This means that for most of you, you will need an additional 40-50 hours of study after you finish your state hourly requirements at ProSchools.
Put plenty of time in on the state statutes. They constitute roughly one-third of your exam if you are doing life and health or property and casualty. If you are doing life, health, property or casualty as a single line license, the code represents about one-half of your exam!
Make sure to concentrate on (for life and health students) the policies themselves, all provisions, options and riders for both parts of the test. They comprise roughly one-half of the national exam portion if you are getting licensed for both lines simultaneously. For P&C students, work on the commercial side a lot, know all liability sections very well, know your BOPs and other business contracts, and definitely work the code sets. That’s 85% of your test!
Work the code time-frames. Regardless of the test you are taking, all tests have commonalities. The insurance code is the insurance code; it doesn’t matter what line of insurance you are testing for. Everyone gets 30 or so code questions that apply to all lines plus the code applicable to your specific test. The best thing you can do is check out the “Test Content Outline” as published by Promissor. Click here for a link!
If you actually looked at the link above or have a copy of the Test Content Outline, make sure you check out the line of insurance that you are testing for. You’ll notice that there is a listing next to each section of the test that tells you how many questions you will be asked as well as what will be tested. This is important information…use it! If you have a limited amount of time to study, it makes sense to spend the time that you have on the larger parts of the exam.
Attend the review sessions given by the instructors. They have a pretty good idea of what you will see on the test. Every registered ProSchools student is welcome, and there is no additional charge. It’s a chance to get some questions answered, clarify any issues that you might have, and get a good head start on the test.
This next helpful hint may feel weird the first couple of times you try it, but trust me…it works! Try role-playing. I know, I know…many of you haven’t had a lot of experience with this kind of thing. So, here’s how to do it: find someone or something that can play with you; your spouse, significant other, your kid, roomie, dog, refrigerator, it doesn’t matter. As long as it will sit still for a while, you’ll be in good shape. Start using the information that you have learned. Sell them a policy, explain the riders and endorsements that are available. Talk about the conditions and exclusions. USE THE INFORMATION! If you do this a few times and really use the information, you’ll be amazed at what you can retain.
Here’s another idea…you can always talk or communicate with an instructor. With a real live voice, and in real-time! Friday mornings are always available if you need to talk, and you are welcome to call anytime and ask for me or someone else. We aim to please!
Now here’s something for you. If you have any ideas on what works, feel free to comment. Anything will do, no matter how strange others may think it is! If it worked for you, it just might work for someone else. Don’t be shy…let me know what you think. I will post the best responses I receive ASAP! Looking forward to seeing what you think!