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Risk Management and Insurance Minor

College of Management / Economics and Finance
Undergraduate minor

About The Program

The Risk Management and Insurance minor provides the student an in-depth study of the risk management process and the operational, legal, moral, and social issues surrounding the life, health, property, and casualty insurance industries along with the employee benefits area.

The financial consequences of being exposed to pure risk are explored for individuals and businesses. The tools for handling these exposures are critically analyzed along with the process of implementing financial and other strategies to prepare for possible outcomes. This minor introduces students to the risk management discipline and multiple career paths, including corporate risk manager, benefits manager, insurance agent/broker, underwriter, loss adjuster, consultant, and personal financial planner.

How to enroll

Current students: Declare this program

Once you’re admitted as an undergraduate student and have met any further admission requirements your chosen program may have, you may declare a major or declare an optional minor.

Future students: Apply now

Apply to Metropolitan State: Start the journey toward your Risk Management and Insurance Minor now. Learn about the steps to enroll or, if you have questions about what Metropolitan State can offer you, request information, visit campus or chat with an admissions counselor.

Get started on your Risk Management and Insurance Minor

Program eligibility requirements

You must earn a grade of S or C- or above in courses to be used to meet pre-requisites.

ACCT 210 Financial Accounting must be completed before admitted to the minor. Some required and elective courses for the minor may include pre-requisites in additional to or other than ACCT 210.

Courses and Requirements

SKIP TO COURSE REQUIREMENTS

At least 12 credits in the Minor Required Courses and Minor Electives must be completed at Metropolitan State. See also the COM policies page for requirements that are common to all programs.

Prerequisites

This minor is designed for College of Management majors and students who have satisfied prerequisites or equivalent.

This course in financial accounting acquaints students with the "language of business" and the concepts and practices of accounting in order to understand, interpret, and analyze the financial accounting reports of economic entities. Topics include: economic context of accounting; introduction to basic financial statements with emphasis on the statement of cash flows; measurement fundamentals; analysis of financial statements; cash; receivables; inventories; investments in equity and debt securities including Consolidations; long-lived assets; current and long-term liabilities; stockholders' equity; and time value of money concepts and computations for decision making: international accounting practices are incorporated into every topic. This is not a bookkeeping course.

Full course description for Financial Accounting

Requirements (4 Required Courses and 1 Elective Course)

+ Required (12 credits)

The course explores the risk management issues facing firms and individuals and examines how to protect firm value and personal wealth. It covers the areas of the general risk management process, property and liability insurance, life and health insurance, annuities and employee benefits. The insurance industry and regulatory concerns are also addressed. In addition, the course touches on some of the new products emerging in the risk management arena and how the insurance industry responds to them.

Full course description for Risk Management and Insurance

This course will provide students with a thorough understanding of life and health insurance and related coverages. Topics include: life insurance needs analysis, economics of life and health insurance, nature of life, health, and pension insurance, types of life insurance policies, policy and ownership analysis, life and health insurance contract analysis, organization of commercial and social insurance, laws and regulations of life, health, and pension insurance. The course provides valuable information for anyone interested in learning about personal and business insurance needs or considering possible careers in the financial services industry.

Full course description for Life and Health Insurance

This course is designed to provide instruction that will provide student with a thorough understanding of property and casualty insurance. Topics covered include fire, homeowners, dwelling, auto, business and professional liability, crime and fidelity, worker's compensation, and applications from a personal and commercial perspective. The insurance industry and regulatory concerns are also addressed in this course.

Full course description for Property and Casualty Insurance

This course reviews the purposes, philosophies and organization of the U.S. legal system. It provides an intensive study of the law which governs contracts for services, real estate, employment, insurance, trademark, patents and copyrights. Topics covered include legally binding contract requirements (offer and acceptance, legality of subject matter, capacity of parties and contractual consideration); circumstances which require a contract to be in writing; defenses for avoiding contractual liability; and legal remedies for breach of contract. It also focuses on the articles of the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), which govern the rights and obligations of parties to transactions involving the sale of goods (Article II), commercial paper such as checks, notes and drafts (Article II), and financing arrangements in which one party gives another a security interest in property (Article IX) and the effects of federal bankruptcy laws on these transactions.

Full course description for Business Law: UCC and Contracts

+ Elective: Take one of the following courses.

This course applies microeconomics principles to the health care services field. The role of consumer choice and firm behavior are examined in the markets for health insurance and health care. An understanding of the role of public and private financing and delivery systems is developed. The tools and techniques of economics are employed to facilitate policy, analytic and management decisions in the health care field.

Full course description for Health Economics

This course emphasizes the design, administration and communication of employee benefit plans to support organizational mission and goals. Students are taught to set program objectives, understand the dynamic regulatory environment which governs benefits, and learn basic design features for various benefits including medical/dental, life, disability, retirement and flexible benefit plans. The course also examines methods used to communicate and administer benefit programs.

Full course description for Employee Benefits Management

This course examines the principles and practices of successful sales management, applied within the context of a company's overall marketing strategy and focuses on the sales manager's leadership and administrative roles in planning and executing a business' sales programs. Topics include sales force organization, territory decisions, quota development, ethical and social responsibilities, recruiting, selecting, sales training, motivating, compensating, supervising, evaluating, and controlling a sales force.

Full course description for Sales and Sales Management

This course helps students understand the role of negotiations in purchasing goods and services to support manufacturing operations and service. Topics include: establishing negotiation objectives, analyzing and using various negotiating strategies and tactics, negotiating legally and ethically, and evaluating the effectiveness of negotiating policies, procedures and human resources.

Full course description for Professional Negotiations