CEBS News

What To Do When You Don’t Pass Your CEBS Exam

Attempting something challenging and worthwhile takes a lot of courage. From the onset, you’re taking a risk. There’s a chance you might fail but, even if that happens, you know that you’ll grow on your journey. You’re dedicated and determined. You set out to achieve a goal, carefully plan a process to reach it, and diligently practice and monitor your progress.

Sometimes despite making a great effort, you don’t succeed on your first attempt. If you didn’t pass your Certified Employee Benefit Specialist® (CEBS®) exam, it can be upsetting and disheartening, but it doesn’t mean your goal is out of reach. Here are some tips to help you get prepared for a retake.

1. Don’t miss a page!

If it’s Assigned Reading, it could be on your CEBS exam! Revisit each module and make sure that you’ve read any required reading from both your Study Guide and textbook, as it’s all testable content. Skipping pages creates gaps in your knowledge and makes you less likely to pass. Bonus Tip: Take in-depth notes as you read. Pay attention to fine details as well as the big picture.

2. Let the Key Terms and Outline of Knowledge in each module guide your studies.

Be sure you can clearly define Key Terms in your own words and give examples. Review the Outline of Knowledge to ensure that you have mastered fine details related to important concepts and understand them in the context of the big picture.

3. Triple up on your review efforts.

Do three separate in-depth reviews of the modules that you need to master, spaced out over time. Insight from neuroscience shows that retrieving new knowledge multiple times over days or weeks leads to better learning and retention.

Also, make sure you access the 100-question online Practice Exam. Read each question slowly and carefully, and retake the Practice Exam as many times as you would like! Practice makes permanent!

4. Seek out a community of learners for support.

Discussing new content and ideas with others and asking questions helps you effectively apply what you’re learning. Consider forming a study group with colleagues pursuing their CEBS designation or signing up for a CEBS Online Study Group. We’re better together!

You have already learned a lot and, with a little more practice, you’ll master the content. We’re here to help, and we hope you keep trying. Take a deep breath and remember why you decided to begin your CEBS designation in the first place. Good luck with your exam retake! We look forward to welcoming you as a new CEBS graduate in the near future!

Questions? We’re here to help. Call (800) 449-2327, option 3, or email cebs@ifebp.org.

Congratulations to the Newest CEBS® Graduates!

Do you recognize anyone? Below are the most recent CEBS graduates. Be sure to celebrate your peers with a personal note or shout-out on social media, tagging #CEBSgoals. Earning the CEBS is a major career and personal achievement, and having peers recognize the work and demonstrated knowledge only sweetens the accomplishment.

Congrats to the newest CEBS grads!

John Boukouris, CEBS
Patrick Rodrigues, CEBS
Roni DeBock, CEBS
Tom Chipman, CEBS

Now picture yourself on this list! Continue on your journey to earning your CEBS designation.

Do you need guidance on your CEBS journey? Whether you’re about to take your first step or getting close to earning your designation, we’re here to help! Give us a call at (844) 809-2698 or email cancebs@ifebp.org.

Congratulations to the Newest CEBS® Graduates!

Do you recognize anyone? Below are the most recent CEBS graduates. Be sure to celebrate your peers with a personal note or shout-out on social media, tagging #CEBSgoals. Earning the CEBS is a major career and personal achievement, and having peers recognize the work and demonstrated knowledge only sweetens the accomplishment.

Congrats to the newest CEBS grads!

Alison Clearwater, CEBS
Anthony Armas, CEBS
Anthony D. Cellucci Jr., CEBS
Benjamin J. Letson, CEBS
Cara N. Seidlich, CEBS
Carla Campbell, CEBS
Carla R. Ross, CEBS
Carol A. Lewis, CEBS
Caroline Weis, CEBS
Carrie L. Starbuck, CEBS
Chanel Watkins, CEBS
Christina Reece, CEBS
Colin C. Orr, CEBS
Courtney Santeliz, CEBS
Daniel J. Conway, CEBS
Daniela Janceski, CEBS
Frances Jasmin, CEBS
Heather McQuillen, CEBS
Hilary F. Vatter, CEBS
Jennefir Pentangelo, CEBS
Jodi Stephens, CEBS
John R. Curran, CEBS
Katie Advent, CEBS
Kelly DiNardo, CEBS
Kristyn Lewis, CEBS
Leslie Brown, CEBS
Linda Piatek, CEBS
Lori Champion Brittain, CEBS
Margaret (Peggy) McHugh, CEBS
Maria Kim, CEBS
Matthew Butera, CEBS
Michael Fogleman, CEBS
Phil Borgman, CEBS
Scott A. Davis, CEBS
Shellie Peters, CEBS
Suzanne Bahary, CEBS
Tania Barfield, CEBS
Tanya T. Peterson, CEBS
Tara Donnelly, CEBS

Now picture yourself on this list! Continue on your journey to earning your CEBS designation.

Do you need guidance on your CEBS journey? Whether you’re about to take your first step or getting close to earning your designation, we’re here to help! Give us a call at (800) 449-2327, option 3, or email cebs@ifebp.org.

What’s Your CEBS Story? Nicholas Landry, CEBS

Earning your Certified Employee Benefit Specialist (CEBS) designation is a learning journey. Along the way, you acquire valuable employee benefits knowledge and relevant new skills. As you apply what you’ve learned to your work, you can forge a unique career pathway that is truly your own. Here’s a designee’s CEBS story.

A Chat with Nicholas Landry, CEBS

Nicholas Landry, CEBS
Senior Benefits Consultant
BFL CANADA

How Nicholas studied for his CEBS exam and applied what he learned to his work:

“Today’s curriculum is modern, with online study groups and study tools, such as live review sessions narrated by experienced benefits professionals. Having access to instructors has allowed me more opportunities for success. I appreciate that the new curriculum has become more accessible and streamlined for benefits professionals.”

Nicholas on professional growth with the CEBS designation:

“If your reason for attaining the CEBS designation is for a promotion, bonus or raise, I would humbly suggest that you are pursing this for the wrong reasons. 

My first experience with CEBS was when I was in my first role as a wholesaler for a major national insurer. Most of us neophytes were fresh-faced and straight out of university, all vying for head office management’s love and attention. Our corporate culture really promoted continuing education and pursuit of designations. We may have received a token amount of compensation for completing a course but earning a designation did separate oneself from the pack. Every year, the peer conversations would eventually lead to which designations you were pursuing. Management appreciated that you pursued a deeper understanding of concepts of insurance or government benefits, allowing you to be better in the field while trying to achieve more within your career. The real catalyst for me with CEBS was when one of our leading brokers successfully completed the CEBS program. Most of us had started or completed smaller designations or others specific to life insurance. The next logical step was CEBS or one of its specialty designations (GBA or RPA). Paraphrasing what our regional director told me, the CEBS designation was ‘The Big One.’ Together, we celebrated his accomplishment as his partner, but I was hooked!

The good news was just beginning for me. The quality of the content provided in the courses took me from being a competent broker to being the one you do not want to be up against in a competitive situation. I emerged from the courses speaking an entirely different language in relation to employee benefits, total compensation and total rewards. 

With more knowledge and experience, my problem-solving ability had grown immensely by applying the fundamental academic knowledge to real-life scenarios. I’ve been fortunate enough to apply the content by working with more challenging situations for plan sponsors. Often, being airdropped into unique scenarios where another broker with limited working knowledge has not satisfied the needs of the plan sponsor, anyone in the benefits practice can see challenges from another perspective thanks to the CEBS program. A colleague just recently passed his final exam to earn the CEBS designation, and I couldn’t have been happier for him. He’s chosen a path to be better than his competitors.

Although this ideology may be polarizing, the current employee benefits marketplace, for the most part, presents no inequality of opportunities. There is, however, an inequality of outcomes. The CEBS program has assured me that we are not equal in situation compared with non–designation holders. I would challenge the individuals reading this that if you are a passionate professional who adheres to a strong code of ethics, with the CEBS designation you, too, will separate yourself from the pack.”

Congratulations to the Newest CEBS® Graduates!

Do you recognize anyone? Below are the most recent CEBS graduates. Be sure to celebrate your peers with a personal note or shout-out on social media, tagging #CEBSgoals. Earning the CEBS is a major career and personal achievement, and having peers recognize the work and demonstrated knowledge only sweetens the accomplishment.  

Congrats to the newest CEBS grads!

Aleksandr A. Razloga, CEBS
Alexander Rohlfs, CEBS
Alexandra L. Then, CEBS
Amanda Dodell, CEBS
Amy Meadows, CEBS
Ana K. Torrescano, CEBS
Andres M. Alarcon, CEBS
Andrew Germann, CEBS
Andrew Logan MacQueen, CEBS
Andrew Pujol, CEBS
Angela Tang, CEBS
Baylee Landowski, CEBS
Brenn M. Ritchie, CEBS
Brittany Dickens, CEBS
Cara Holland, CEBS
Catherine Sheedy, CEBS
Charles Azu, Jr., CEBS
Cheryl B. Thomas, CEBS
Chip Weule, CEBS
Cody Kramschuster, CEBS
Daniel Kuosman, CEBS
Daniel Yager, CEBS
Diane R. Chopp, CEBS
Drew Danieley, CEBS
Emily E. Cronin, CEBS
Emily Livingston, CEBS
Emily Welch, CEBS
Erin Wolthusen, CEBS
Gina Pettigrano, CEBS
Grant Goff, CEBS
Haley A. Smith, CEBS
Jasmin Pierre-Paul, CEBS
Jason T. Stacy, CEBS
Jay (Shaya) Rose, CEBS
Jayson Curtis, CEBS
Jennifer Castellano, CEBS
Jennifer White, CEBS
Jessica L. Morrison, CEBS
Jessica Ropelato, CEBS
John Gobel, CEBS
Joseph Andreas, CEBS
Joseph Berumen, CEBS
Julie Fender, CEBS
Kellee Garcia, CEBS
Kenneth Miller, CEBS
Kimberly M. Johnson, CEBS
Kitty Stone, CEBS
Kristen Mills, CEBS
Kristina Quirante, CEBS
Laura Stucky, CEBS
Laurie Orazine Cooper, CEBS
Leah Marie Barraza, CEBS
Lisa Miller, CEBS
Lori A. Kischinevzky, CEBS
Lynn A. Waltermire, CEBS
Mark T. Myers, CEBS
Matthew Leff, CEBS
Matthew W. Richard, CEBS
Megan Jay, CEBS
Melissa D. Rayborn, CEBS
Melissa Fuesting, CEBS
Michael S. Lee, CEBS
Mikel Van Cleve, CEBS
Nan Morehouse, CEBS
Nancy Mathiesen, CEBS
Nari Shin, CEBS
Nicole Cecil, CEBS
Olivia Walty, CEBS
Patti Toller, CEBS
Rachal Stone, CEBS
Rebecca Kangas, CEBS
Regina Wasik, CEBS
Richard E. Childs, CEBS
Richard Walton, CEBS
Ryan O’Deen, CEBS
Ryan Pratt, CEBS
Samantha Brown, CEBS
Sarah E. Penheiter, CEBS
Sarah Giselman, CEBS
Shaun Hurm, CEBS
Spencer Kelly, CEBS
Stacey J. Barker, CEBS
Stephani Terhorst, CEBS
Stephanie Smitka, CEBS
Stephanie Spanja, CEBS
Sully Dawson, CEBS
Susan E. Flynn, CEBS
Suzanne L. Bondor, CEBS
Tammy Pitts, CEBS
Tammy Richardson, CEBS
Tara Molina, CEBS
Taylor Cherry, CEBS
Tom Byrne, CEBS
Walter Waldin, CEBS

Now picture yourself on this list! Continue on your journey to earning your CEBS designation.

Do you need guidance on your CEBS journey? Whether you’re about to take your first step or getting close to reaching your designation, we’re here to help! Give us a call at (800) 449-2327, option 3, or email cebs@ifebp.org.

Incoming—A New Generation of Industry Professionals

Employment for a number of positions in the employee benefits and related industries is projected to grow much faster than expected from 2020 to 2030, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Increased openings for financial managers, compensation and benefits specialists, actuaries, and risk managers are expected to result from retirements of seasoned professionals across the industries.

How will these positions be filled? Who will replace those leaving and how will they be prepared to meet the health and retirement plan needs of employees and clients? Today’s reality makes these questions even more important. The benefits landscape changes rapidly in “normal” times. The pandemic has elevated the importance of providing support for employees’ physical, emotional, mental and financial well-being, and the need for on-going education regarding benefits.

The future of the industry points to university students and early professionals. Gamma Iota Sigma, a professional fraternity with chapters in over 95 universities and more than 20 alumni groups, helps prepare students and recent graduates for careers in the benefits and related industries. Gamma Iota Sigma engages and connects top talent with the insurance industry through education, industry partnerships, and networking opportunities.

How can you help engage and prepare the industry’s future professionals?

• Reach out to universities and alumni groups, and offer to speak or attend their career fairs
• Share your story and experiences with these students
• Provide examples of positions available in the industry
• Help them understand the importance and satisfaction of this work
• Explain the value of professional designations like CEBS® that are available to help them prepare for and excel in these positions.

This is a great way to spotlight your organization and opportunities there, pay it forward and continue to support the benefits industry!

A Power Point presentation with specific information on the benefits of earning the CEBS designation as a student or early career professional is available for speaking events. Please contact Sandy Tellefson, CEBS, at sandyt@ifebp.org.

Sandy Tellefson, CEBS
Manager, Education Services CEBS/ISCEBS