Are you good at recognizing risks? Do you like to analyze and assess situations? Are you concerned about unnecessary property loss or personal injury? If so, you may enjoy a rewarding career as a risk, insurance, and/or safety management professional.

Join a high-demand, one-of-a-kind academic program that allows you to build a strong foundation in the science of risk, insurance, and safety management at Central Washington University. The program consists of two-degree types: a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) and a Bachelor of Applied Science (B.A.S.) to serve a diverse student population.

The RISM Program

We offer a four-year degree that equips students with professional skills, knowledge, and competencies expected of an entry level risk management professional in seven areas as defined by RIMS, the risk management society®: Core competencies (e.g., communication), Attributes (e.g., leadership, innovation), Organizational knowledge (e.g., strategy), Business knowledge (e.g., economics), Risk management knowledge (e.g., standards/frameworks), Technical skills (e.g., statistics, risk modification), and Management skills (e.g., planning). Additionally, CWU’s RISM degrees is delivered 100 percent online. Students also participate in an internship program that allows them to apply knowledge and skills learned in the classroom to real-world situations. Many internships ultimately lead to permanent employment offers upon graduation.

The RIMS Risk Management Professional Core Competency Model, ©RIMS, the risk management society®

The Profession

Risk management has been described as the process and discipline of assessing risk in order to make more informed decisions and to implement measures for balancing an organization’s desired levels of risk and reward. Demand has never been higher for Bachelor degree-level risk, insurance and safety management professionals who lead the development and implementation of risk management practices.

Sample Career Pathways

The U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics anticipates job growth in the field of risk management at about 19% through 2026. Overall employment of occupational health and safety professionals is projected to grow 6 percent from 2018 to 2028, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

• Safety Manager/Specialist
• Risk Manager/Analyst
• Workers’ Compensation Claims Manager
• Loss Prevention Representative
• Insurance Analyst
• Business Continuity Manager
• Underwriter (Risk Selection)

Salary

According to RIMS, the risk management society®, the median annual base salary for U.S. risk management professionals is $120,000. According to the Board of Certified Safety Professionals (BCSP), the salary of mid-career occupational safety professionals with a bachelor’s degree can range from $60,000 to $142,000 with a median salary of $94,000 per year.

Credentials

The BAS and BS in RISM degrees also meets the BCSP Qualified Academic Program (QAP) requirements, and hence our graduates are eligible to apply and secure the nationally recognized Graduate Safety Practitioner® (GSP®) designation upon graduation. The RISM curriculum will prepare and allow you to sit for the nationally recognized Associate in Risk Management (ARM™) and part of Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU®) designation exams immediately after completing the RISM courses. In addition, the SHM program has applied and received approval for three CWU courses SHM 450, SHM 451, and SHM 455 to be approved equivalent for the Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter (CPCU®) designation courses CPCU 551, CPCU 552, and a CPCU elective. If the graduates decide to pursue CPCU designation our students will already be ahead having completed three of the eight courses. The ARM/CPCU designations will be a vital, value-added component to your CWU degree. It will make you more attractive to employers and enhance your potential for career advancement.

Double Major

The degree is very flexible and allows students with careful planning, to add a double major without extending your graduation date. Some of the RISM major requirements overlap with the BS in Safety and Health Management degree.

Mission, Objectives, and Outcomes

Mission Statement

The Risk, Insurance, and Safety Management Program's mission is to provide an outstanding educational opportunity to its students and prepare them to be excellent, industry-ready risk, insurance, and safety management professionals who have the skills, competencies, and leadership capabilities to succeed in contemporary hazard risk, insurance, and safety management field.

Program Educational Objectives

1. Graduates will be employed in the risk, insurance, and safety management discipline, or a career of their choice upon graduation.
2. Graduates will be prepared to develop, implement, and manage risk, insurance, and safety management programs in a global and diverse economy.
3. Graduates will continue their life-long learning through contribution to professional societies and organizations, completion of technical training and certification, and individual professional development.
4. Graduates will act in an inclusive, professional and ethical manner.
5. Graduates will have good communication skills and are able to effectively work in interdisciplinary and cross-cultural teams.

Program Outcomes

General Skill Areas

1. Understand professional and ethical responsibilities.
2. Function effectively on multidisciplinary teams.
3. Communicate effectively in both oral and written forms.
4. Recognize the need to engage in life-long learning in a chosen professional career.

Technical Skill Areas

1. Describe the fundamental aspects of risk, insurance, and safety management.
2. Identify and apply standards, regulations, codes, and guidelines associated with the risk, insurance, and safety management disciplines.
3. Explain the purpose and operation of insurance.
4. Identify and describe key commercial and property liability risk exposures and control, and name the type of insurance policies and their limitations that address each of these loss exposures.
5. Examine, interpret, and apply data to manage hazards and risks.
6. Identify and describe various hazard and risk management techniques.
7. Define, describe, and apply broad business administration concepts associated with economics, accounting, marketing, organizational management, and human resource management.
8. Use the techniques, skills, and modern scientific and technical tools necessary for professional practice as it pertains to risk, insurance, and safety management.
9. Design and evaluate an organization’s risk and safety management system using ISO 45001.
10. Complete risk or safety management training by applying adult learning theories.
11. Conduct an incident investigation and analysis.
12. Use applied science knowledge and solve problems as it pertains to the practice of risk, insurance, and safety management disciplines.
13. Identify contemporary risk, insurance, and safety issues and the impacts of their solutions within a global and societal context.
14. Apply the principles of risk and safety management in a non-academic setting through an internship, cooperative, or supervised experience.