The Vaughan Institute of

Risk Management

September 2024 Update

Working together to inspire and equip the next generation of Risk Management and Insurance leaders to make the world safer, smarter, and more secure.

With the start of the semester, we have hit the ground running! Take a look at what we've been up to at the Vaughan Institute!

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Key Performance Indicators

As of September 30, 2024

295 students enrolled in the RMI Program
Top five in the country in enrolled students
242 students enrolled in the RMI Major
34 Students enrolled in the RMI Certificate
18 Students enrolled in the UI's MBA Program with RMI focus
1 Student enrolled in the RMI PhD Program
81 Gamma Iota Sigma Members

"This year we boast a Top 10 Undergraduate Specialty Area: Risk Management and Insurance! This program was ranked #8 overall and #7 amongst public schools for Best Insurance Program in the country. This is yet another reminder that what we’re doing with our programs is making a difference for our students and our state, and people across the country are taking notice."

Tippie College of Business Dean Amy Kristof-Brown

For a full list of RMI rankings, click here!

2024 Insure Your Future Feedback

A special thanks to Holmes Murphy for providing this short video on several of our University of Iowa interns' experience with the Insure Your Future (IYF) internship program. A total of 10 of our 34 IYF University of Iowa students interned with Holmes Murphy this summer. A total of 24 employers provided their feedback recently with 100% rating the IYF program with 4 or 5 stars. 92% of the 2024 IYF cohort (who were all freshmen and sophomores) said they plan to return the industry for future internships this coming summer.

Insure Your Future Employer Feedback

"This is an amazing result and a testament to you [IEDA] and your team in being creative, innovative and tapping into what businesses really need – a workforce that is ready to take on the challenges of the next 50 years. I’m absolutely convinced these modest investments can have a significant impact on workforce readiness for Iowans."

Dan Houston

Chairman and CEO

Principal Financial Group

Interested in participating in next summer's IYF Program? Learn more here.

Vaughan Institute and Women in Business Collaboration

The Vaughan Institute is a proud sponsor of the University of Iowa's Women in Business organization. Earlier this month, Vaughan Institute Assistant Director Camille Bonar had the opportunity to speak at a general meeting to over 350+ women regarding the happenings of the Vaughan Institute and career opportunities in RMI! We look forward to collaborating more with this growing organization in the future!

Accelerate 2024

The Vaughan Institute of Risk Management was proud to be the primary sponsor of the GIA's 2024 Accelerate event. This event featured informative sessions on the intersection of risk, failure, and reward, as well as a student pitch presentation with the University of Iowa competing, as well as Iowa State University, and Drake University.

The University of Iowa's pitch team was excited to take home second place with their pitch on distracted driving. Congratulations to team members Will Eastman, Will Klein, and Kaitlyn Elliott. A special thank you to team mentor and Lightship Neuroscience co-founder, Zechari Tempesta, for his guidance and assistance throughout this process.

Gamma Iota Sigma Kick-Off at Pinseekers

Our Gamma Iota Sigma Chapter had a great kick-off to the school year at Pinseekers in Tiffin. The night started off with an overview of Tippie Career Services by TCS Director Cindy Meis, and a Story Lab workshop by Nick Westergaard. Later on in the evening, students had the opportunity to pitch themselves to ten employers who also attended the event:

Cottingham & Butler
State Farm
Lockton
Transamerica
TrueNorth Companies
RLI
Kunkel Inc.
Aflac
Holmes Murphy
GreatAmerica Financial Services

Thank you to everyone who attended the event ahead of the Risk Management and Insurance and Actuarial Sciences Career Fair!

RMI & Actuarial Sciences Career Fair

The RMI and Actuarial Sciences Career Fair was a success on Wednesday, September 18th with nearly 150 students and 41 employers! This event was a great opportunity for our students to learn about internships and full-time opportunities.

Fall 2024 Enterprise Risk Management Projects Launched

Lotus Fertility with Wellmark and Principal: Market insight on one of the first fertility insurance solutions and potential applications and considerations for health or disability insurance carriers
FM (formerly FM Global) and the University of UI Risk Management: (Collaboration with UI Risk Management Director Josey Bathke): De-identifed claims analysis and potential impact of new innovations to reduce or prevent claims for the University
TriStar third party administrator best practices and interviews with top industry consultants to better understand their decision-making process
Innovative Captive Strategies and UI Risk Management team: Exploring de-identified claims and the potential of a student-run captive lab at UI now that captives can be domiciled in Iowa
Lightship Neuroscience: Student research conducted using iPads on proprietary driving simulation software to understand the impact of distracted driving on younger drivers, and potential applications and considerations for carriers, brokers and regulators
Aflac: Understanding product purchasing and persistence factors. Our first collaboration between the Vaughan Institute and Business Analytics combining the best of both areas of expertise

Join us at these upcoming events

"A Day in the Future"

Now open to all RMI students!

Earn extra credit for your RMI classes!

This event will be limited to the first fifty registrants so don't wait! Plans are in the works for future treks to Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, and Chicago.

Vaughan Institute Student Scholarship Night

Save the Date

The Vaughan Institute Scholarship Night will take place Monday, October 28, 2024, from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. at the Bread Garden Ballroom. Student recipients must attend the social to receive their scholarship. Last school year we awarded over $70,000 to 80 students! Applications are due via email to camille-bonar@uiowa.edu by 8 a.m. October 11, 2024.

Interested in supporting a student scholarship? Email Meg Rife at megan.rife@foriowa.org.

Download the scholarship application here!

Welcome Martin Grace

New Head of Faculty Director for the

Vaughan Institute of Risk Management

Martin F. Grace, PhD.

What are your current research interests?

I am currently working on research devoted to the source of the high cost of insurance and natural disaster financing.

What would you tell someone new to the field of Risk Management and Insurance?

Risk Management is a dynamic field. Five years from now you will be doing something different than what you are doing now and 5 years after that, you will be probably doing something different too. While the principles are the same the risks evolve and make for new challenges over a career.

When you’re not researching or teaching, what can we catch you doing in your free time?

Reading and walking around Iowa City!

What most excites you about the Vaughan Institute?

Iowa is a an insurance powerhouse and the Vaughan Institute is uniquely placed to help develop insurance and risk management by educating great students and to provide impactful research that can transform the lives of people and make business and governments more resilient against risk.