Best programs to become an insurance claims and policy processing clerk
You do not need a college degree to become an insurance claims and policy processing clerk. BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. The field of study that leads most directly to this job is General Office Occupations and Clerical Services (IPEDS completions).
1 college program at 114 schools trains insurance claims and policy processing clerks, graduating 1,140 people a year (IPEDS completions). The job pays a median of $49,230 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About insurance claims and policy processing clerks
Process new insurance policies, modifications to existing policies, and claims forms. Obtain information from policyholders to verify the accuracy and completeness of information on claims forms, applications and related documents, and company records. Update existing policies and company records to reflect changes requested by policyholders and insurance company representatives.
Best programs to study to become an insurance claims and policy processing clerk
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 52.0408 | 1,140 | 100.0% | 114 | $25,993 | $9,500 |
Top 50 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
What insurance claims and policy processing clerks earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | $56,800 | 23,470 | 0.94× | 29 | 483 |
| Texas | $49,880 | 24,470 | 1.26× | 14 | 220 |
| Wisconsin | $49,170 | 5,140 | 1.27× | 11 | 73 |
| Washington | $60,220 | 3,730 | 0.76× | 10 | 64 |
| Pennsylvanialimited | $49,420 | 7,020 | 0.84× | 1 | 45 |
| Coloradomoderate | $58,660 | 1,380 | 0.35× | 4 | 32 |
| Arizonalimited | $50,530 | 8,350 | 1.87× | 2 | 26 |
| Georgiamoderate | $46,590 | 6,370 | 0.95× | 3 | 26 |
| Illinois | $48,440 | 9,060 | 1.08× | 5 | 26 |
| South Carolinalimited | $44,650 | 4,110 | 1.30× | 2 | 23 |
| New Mexicomoderate | $41,700 | 920 | 0.77× | 3 | 18 |
| New Yorklimited | $57,790 | 8,120 | 0.61× | 1 | 18 |
| Oregon | $50,890 | 2,640 | 0.97× | 5 | 18 |
| Minnesotalimited | $58,030 | 3,580 | 0.88× | 2 | 9 |
| Michiganlimited | $47,860 | 6,410 | 1.06× | 2 | 8 |
| Idaholimited | $47,200 | 580 | 0.49× | 1 | 7 |
| Massachusettsmoderate | $52,910 | 4,820 | 0.96× | 3 | 7 |
| Montanamoderate | $50,890 | 360 | 0.50× | 3 | 7 |
| Kansaslimited | $47,960 | 800 | 0.41× | 1 | 5 |
| West Virginialimited | $44,740 | 1,330 | 1.38× | 2 | 5 |
| Missourilimited | $46,010 | 4,510 | 1.11× | 1 | 3 |
| Rhode Islandlimited | — | 710 | 1.02× | 1 | 3 |
| Arkansaslimited | $45,220 | 1,500 | 0.83× | 1 | 2 |
| Iowalimited | $46,430 | 2,820 | 1.31× | 1 | 2 |
| South Dakotalimited | $45,610 | 1,020 | 1.62× | 1 | 2 |
| Louisianalimited | $46,800 | 1,740 | 0.65× | 1 | 1 |
| Nevadalimited | $48,300 | 2,880 | 1.35× | 1 | 1 |
| Ohiolimited | $48,380 | 11,160 | 1.46× | 1 | 1 |
| Wyominglimited | $46,870 | 170 | 0.44× | 1 | 1 |
Skills and knowledge
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- Prepare insurance claim forms or related documents, and review them for completeness.
- Calculate amount of claim.
- Post or attach information to claim file.
- Transmit claims for payment or further investigation.
- Contact insured or other involved persons to obtain missing information.
- Review insurance policy to determine coverage.
- Process and record new insurance policies and claims.
- Organize or work with detailed office or warehouse records, using computers to enter, access, search or retrieve data.
Skills
- Reading Comprehension3.5
- Speaking3.4
- Active Listening3.3
- Critical Thinking3.3
- Writing3.1
- Monitoring3.0
- Active Learning2.6
- Learning Strategies2.6
Knowledge areas
- Customer and Personal Service4.2
- Administrative3.9
- English Language3.6
- Computers and Electronics3.0
- Mathematics2.9
- Administration and Management2.4
Abilities
- Written Comprehension3.6
- Oral Comprehension3.6
- Oral Expression3.5
- Speech Clarity3.5
- Near Vision3.5
- Speech Recognition3.5
Core activities
- Working with Computers4.4
- Getting Information4.2
- Processing Information4.1
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates4.1
- Documenting/Recording Information4.1
- Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards4.0
How to get in
How to become an insurance claims and policy processing clerk
- Typical entry education
- High school diploma or equivalent
- On-the-job training
- Moderate-term on-the-job training
Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 1 majors mapped to Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks1 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 52.0408General Office Occupations and Clerical Services
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become an insurance claims and policy processing clerk?+
You do not need a college degree to become an insurance claims and policy processing clerk. BLS lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. The field of study that leads most directly to this job is General Office Occupations and Clerical Services (IPEDS completions).
Which college majors lead to becoming an insurance claims and policy processing clerk?+
The field of study that leads most directly to this job is General Office Occupations and Clerical Services (IPEDS completions). In all, the NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 1 program to this job, which graduates about 1,140 people a year.
How much do insurance claims and policy processing clerks earn?+
The median is $49,230 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $37,560 at the 10th percentile to $73,590 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for insurance claims and policy processing clerks growing?+
BLS projects a -3.7% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 20,300 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
114 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 1 program that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do insurance claims and policy processing clerks work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Claims Processor, Underwriting Assistant, Claims Technician (Claims Tech), Claims Representative (Claims Rep) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 43-9041.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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