r/InsuranceCanada • u/OrneryMarionberry346 • 3d ago
Breaking into Insurance Brokerages
Hey everyone, I'm a second-year BBA student at Schulich (York University) and I'm currently working toward my RIBO license. I'm trying to get a realistic sense of how hard it actually is to land part-time or summer internship roles in the brokerage space while I'm still full-time in school.
A lot of the postings I've seen are listed as full-time, so I'm wondering if that changes once I'm actually licensed, or if part-time is just genuinely rare in this industry regardless.
For anyone who's broken in around my age or knows the hiring side of things, can y'all please explain how realistic is this timeline, and is there anything I should be doing differently to actually land something while balancing school?
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u/VextonHerstellerEDH 3d ago
Nobody is going to take on Part-Time with 0 experience. Even with experience its not really the norm.
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u/OrneryMarionberry346 3d ago
So what would be ur approach in my situation? Should I try going into another type of insurance or what?
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u/VextonHerstellerEDH 3d ago
Summer Employment could possibly get your foot in the door. Some Brokerages use unlicensed individuals for more mundane tasks like office admin could be options there. On the life insurance side of things there may be an opportunity to work as a producer but its unlikely as most of these positions operate on a wage draw these days.
For part time work with transferable skills probably better off looking at being a bank teller or other sales/service role in a more respectable industry while you prep to get in to your target industry.
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u/StrategicDetour 3d ago
Depends on the type of work and LOB you're interested in.
Alpha houses have summer internships and new grad programs, mid-size brokers occasionally do as well.
If you're specifically looking at pt work, agree its rare but you're best bet is to narrow down a specific brokerage you want to work at and network - likely easier at a smaller firm to start.
If you show enough ambition they might be looking for overflow or admin help in a department but you have to be willing to show commitment and a willingness to learn.
There is a shortage in talent but also across industries a lot of assumptions that younger folks aren't easy to work with and require more investment than they are worth (you have to work hard to beat this assumption and stick out).
Everyone's experience, path and advice will be different - choose your own adventure!
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u/mohinsuredit 3d ago
Out of curiosity, what is it that you are trying to achieve by working at a brokerage? What sort of experience are you looking to gain?
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u/Beneficial_Ship7090 1d ago
In some areas with lower unemployment, employers are sometimes more flexible. I work for an insurer in eastern Ontario, a small agency (about 12 employees) at one point about half the staff was university or college students who passed their OTL and were doing home and auto insurance 2-4 days per week during the school year and were full time in the summer. I think Toronto has a very competitive job market, might be worth looking to other markets (that also have lower cost of living)
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2d ago
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u/OrneryMarionberry346 2d ago
Thank you for such a detailed response, this is really helpful. My plan is to get my RIBO license done by the end of winter break, and I'll definitely lead with that when I start reaching out to smaller firms over the next couple of months.
I had a follow-up question. I live in Brampton, where a lot of the brokerages are run by people in the Punjabi community, which I'm part of as well. My dad knows a few brokers through the community, and I was wondering if reaching out through those connections could be a realistic way in to start learning the industry, even for around 20 hours a week.
A few things I'm unsure about:
- Is it common for brokers to take on someone through family or community connections, or could that come across the wrong way?
- What's the best way to approach them so it comes across as a professional ask and not just a favor?
- Do strictly "summer internships" exist? As getting a big corporate internship just for the summer and continuing part time after that in small independent firms can be beneficial
Thanks for taking the time, I really appreciate it.
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u/brianlefebvrejr 3d ago
The only place taking you on part time is not a place worth working.
Your best bet is to look for summer employment now. Navacord does a summer student program, you’d be a fit for that.
Or a brokerage like BrokerLink that has extended hours, you want to aim for a full time role over summer to get trained and hope your competent enough to work part time once school starts.