Public-sector insurance companies — Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), New India Assurance (NIACL), National Insurance (NIC), United India (UIIC) and others — recruit officers, development officers and assistants through their own exams.

Insurance exams look very similar to bank exams: a speed-based Prelims, a Mains with an insurance and financial awareness section, and an interview for officer posts. If you are preparing for banking, you are already 80% prepared for insurance.

Conducted byLIC, NIACL, NIC, UIIC & others

ModeOnline CBT + interview (officers)

FrequencyIrregular — when vacancies arise

EligibilityGraduation in any discipline

How it works

How Insurance selection works, step by step

Notification

Each company announces recruitment on its careers page. There is no fixed yearly calendar, so keep alerts on.

Prelims

A one-hour objective test with sectional timing (English, Reasoning, Quant). Qualifying in nature.

Mains

Objective sections including insurance and financial awareness; officer exams add a descriptive English paper.

Interview / language test

Officer posts have an interview; assistant posts have a regional language proficiency test.

Medical & joining

A pre-recruitment medical examination before the final appointment.

Exam pattern

Exam pattern: sections, questions, marks & time

LIC AAO

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Assistant Administrative Officer (Generalist and Specialist) at LIC — a well-paid officer post.

Prelims

Reasoning Ability 50% Quantitative Aptitude 50%

Section	Questions	Marks	Time
Reasoning Ability	35	35	20 min
Quantitative Aptitude	35	35	20 min
English Language (qualifying)	30	30	20 min
Total	100	70	60 min

English marks are qualifying and not added to the total.

Mains (objective)

Reasoning Ability 30% General Knowledge & Current Affairs 20% Data Analysis & Interpretation 30% Insurance & Financial Market Awareness 20%

Section	Questions	Marks	Time
Reasoning Ability	30	90	40 min
General Knowledge & Current Affairs	30	60	20 min
Data Analysis & Interpretation	30	90	40 min
Insurance & Financial Market Awareness	30	60	20 min
Total	120	300	2 hr

Plus a qualifying descriptive English paper (letter and essay). Followed by an interview and medical.

NIACL Assistant

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Assistant posts at New India Assurance, recruited state-wise.

Prelims

English Language 30% Reasoning Ability 35% Numerical Ability 35%

Section	Questions	Marks	Time
English Language	30	30	20 min
Reasoning Ability	35	35	20 min
Numerical Ability	35	35	20 min
Total	100	100	60 min

Mains covers Reasoning, English, General Awareness, Computer Knowledge and Quantitative Aptitude, followed by a regional language test.

LIC ADO

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Apprentice Development Officer — a field role building and managing LIC's agent network.

Prelims (Reasoning, Numerical Ability, English) followed by Mains with Reasoning & Numerical Ability, General Knowledge & Current Affairs, Insurance & Financial Marketing Awareness, and an interview.

Syllabus

Subjects and important topics

Reasoning

Puzzles & seating arrangementSyllogismInequalitiesBlood relationsCoding-decodingDirection senseOrder & ranking

Quantitative Aptitude / DI

SimplificationNumber seriesQuadratic equationsArithmetic word problemsData interpretation

English

Reading comprehensionCloze testError spottingPara jumblesFillersLetter & essay writing

Insurance & Financial Awareness

Basics of life & general insuranceIRDAI and regulationTypes of policiesInsurance termsFinancial marketsInsurance schemes of the governmentRecent developments in insurance

Strategy

How to prepare for Insurance exams

01Prepare alongside bank exams

The syllabus overlaps heavily with IBPS and SBI exams. Add the insurance awareness section and you are ready for both.

02Insurance awareness is easy marks

It's a small, finite syllabus. Two weeks of focused reading on insurance basics, IRDAI and recent news covers it.

03Watch for notifications

Insurance vacancies are not annual. Keep your preparation warm so you can take the exam whenever it's announced.

04Practise descriptive writing

Officer Mains has a descriptive English paper. Write one letter and one essay a week in the last month.

From the blog

Frequently asked questions about Insurance exams

Is the insurance exam syllabus the same as banking?

Mostly yes — Reasoning, Quant and English are the same. Insurance exams add an insurance and financial market awareness section.

Is there negative marking in LIC and NIACL exams?

Yes, typically one-fourth of the marks assigned to the question for each wrong answer. Check the notification for the exact rule.

Are insurance exams held every year?

No. Recruitment happens when vacancies arise, so the gap between notifications can be one to three years.

What is the difference between LIC AAO and LIC ADO?

AAO is an administrative officer role in an office; ADO is a field role focused on recruiting and developing insurance agents.

Exam patterns, marks and eligibility are based on the latest notifications available and can change from one cycle to the next. Always confirm the details in the official notification on licindia.in before you apply.

Practise for Insurance exams

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Insurance Exams 2026: Free Mock Tests

Insurance Exams: How They Work, Pattern, Subjects & Preparation

How Insurance selection works, step by step

Notification

Prelims

Mains

Interview / language test

Medical & joining

Exam pattern: sections, questions, marks & time

LIC AAO

NIACL Assistant

LIC ADO

Subjects and important topics

Reasoning

Quantitative Aptitude / DI

English

Insurance & Financial Awareness

How to prepare for Insurance exams

01Prepare alongside bank exams

02Insurance awareness is easy marks

03Watch for notifications

04Practise descriptive writing

Read next

Frequently asked questions about Insurance exams

Practise for Insurance exams