Ah, Las Vegas. The city where the house always wins, unless the house suddenly realizes it has no insurance policy against the guy in cargo shorts who manages to win $40,000 at the blackjack table and then sues because his free shrimp cocktail was room-temperature. It’s the town where “risk management” usually means deciding whether to keep drinking after your 9th margarita or whether you can walk in heels down the Strip without falling into a decorative fountain.
And yet, in the most ironic twist since Taco Bell launched a diet menu, UNLV has decided to plant its academic flag in one of the most… practical fields imaginable: insurance and risk management. Yes, you read that right. The Lee Business School is launching Nevada’s first Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) in insurance and risk management. Because nothing says “Viva Las Vegas” like actuarial tables and deductible structures.
The program is now accepting applications for fall. Which means somewhere, a high school senior who thought they’d be majoring in hospitality and learning how to comp tourists buffet vouchers is now considering the sexy world of claims adjusters.
The Program: When Boring Meets Necessary
Let’s be real. Insurance has the same sex appeal as a dental cleaning. You need it, it’s good for you, and the second you stop paying attention to it, everything goes horribly wrong.
But UNLV is leaning into that practicality. The new BSBA covers everything you’d expect: underwriting, claims management, risk mitigation, commercial operations. It’s like training Jedi, except instead of light sabers you get spreadsheets, and instead of fighting Darth Vader you’re battling “uninsured motorist coverage.”
Courses will teach students to assess risk, protect assets, and minimize losses. Which is another way of saying: “We’re teaching you how to make money off other people’s worst days.” Flood? Fire? That cousin who insists on deep-frying a turkey in his garage? Congratulations — your degree just got relevant.
The Real Selling Point: Half the Industry Is Retiring
Apparently, half of all insurance professionals nationwide are going to retire in the next 10–15 years. Which makes sense. You can only say the phrase “Have you considered bundling your home and auto policies?” so many times before you’d rather move to Florida and yell at teenagers on golf carts.
This industry turnover is exactly why UNLV is swooping in. By the time today’s freshmen graduate, the field will be desperate for warm bodies who can spell “reinsurance.”
And with starting salaries in the $80,000–$100,000 range? Suddenly “boring but secure” starts to look like the sexiest gamble in town.
Scholarships: Risk Management, but Make It Subsidized
Here’s the part where Vegas actually knows how to play the odds. Thanks to a $5 million gift from the Nevada Surplus Lines Foundation (because nothing inspires generosity like unclaimed policies), students can get up to $20,000 in scholarships for their final two years.
That’s right. You can basically major in “being the person everyone hates when they file a claim” and walk away with less debt than if you’d majored in, say, interpretive dance.
The Las Vegas Advantage: Risk on the Strip
The program isn’t just about books. Students will be tossed straight into “experiential learning opportunities” — which in Vegas could mean anything from attending the Wholesale, Specialty & Surplus Lines Insurance Symposium (try fitting that title on a business card) to competing in the $10,000 Kerestesi Insurance Challenge.
Imagine being 21 years old, telling your friends: “Sorry, can’t go to the pool party at Mandalay Bay, I’ve got to run numbers on liability exposure for a fake trucking company.” Truly, the Vegas dream.
And thanks to mentorships with firms like Cragin & Pike and Philadelphia Insurance, students get to rub shoulders with the corporate equivalent of poker pros. Except instead of pocket aces, they’ve got actuarial tables.
“Our Economy Has to Be Insured”
That’s an actual quote from Chris Utterback, the inaugural director of the Kerestesi Center. He’s not wrong. Imagine trying to operate a casino without insurance. You’d last about five minutes, or until a bachelorette party from Iowa decided to start a fire with their novelty feather boas.
Insurance is the invisible glue that holds Las Vegas together. Behind every neon light is a policy covering electrical fires. Behind every Cirque du Soleil acrobat is a worker’s comp claim waiting to happen. Behind every sports bet is someone insuring against the Raiders actually winning.
So yeah, Utterback’s not exaggerating. Without insurance, Vegas collapses faster than a guy on Fremont Street after a yard-long margarita.
Communication Skills: Because Risk Isn’t Just Math
The program isn’t only about crunching numbers. Students will learn communication and negotiation skills. Because let’s face it: being able to say “I’m sorry, that’s not covered” in a way that doesn’t make someone throw a chair through your office window is a talent worth teaching.
John Starkey, associate director at the Kerestesi Center, says negotiation skills are vital. Which makes sense. Every insurance professional is basically a part-time hostage negotiator. Except instead of hostages, it’s your totaled Honda Civic.
But Let’s Be Honest: Insurance in Vegas Is Just Peak Irony
Can we all just pause and appreciate the irony here? Las Vegas — the global capital of reckless decision-making — is now home to a degree in risk management.
It’s like if New Orleans launched a program in temperance studies. Or if Florida started offering PhDs in structural integrity. Or if Congress rolled out a seminar on fiscal responsibility.
You can’t make this up. Vegas is literally the place people go when they want to ignore risk management. And now UNLV is training the very people who will politely tell those tourists: “Yes sir, you do in fact need trip insurance for your bachelor party, especially given the flamingo tattoo situation.”
Why This Degree Actually Matters
All jokes aside (not that we’ll stop), this degree is weirdly timely.
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Climate change? More floods, fires, hurricanes, hailstorms.
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AI? Who’s insuring the robot that just crashed your Tesla?
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Gig economy? Who’s covering the DoorDash guy who slipped on your unshoveled driveway?
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Vegas itself? Every casino is basically a glittering liability hazard with escalators, alcohol, and bad decisions.
The world is becoming riskier, not safer. And insurance — boring, unsexy, actuarial-table-obsessed insurance — is how we manage the chaos.
The Pitch to Students
So here’s the sell: forget the stereotypes about insurance being dull. This is actually one of the few industries where “recession-proof” isn’t just marketing. People can skip avocado toast, but they can’t skip auto coverage when they rear-end a Tesla Cybertruck.
UNLV is basically saying: “Hey, kids. Do you want to graduate, immediately get a stable job, and make six figures while your friends with film degrees move back in with their parents? Insurance is your move.”
And let’s be honest: if there’s any group of students who should understand risk, it’s the ones growing up in a city where ATM lines at casinos are longer than the TSA line at McCarran.
The Snarky Fine Print
Of course, let’s not kid ourselves. The program’s marketing makes it sound like you’ll walk straight into an $100,000 job where you spend your days heroically protecting society.
In reality? You’ll probably start in a cubicle, surrounded by stacks of policy paperwork, trying to explain to a guy named Randy why his jet ski accident isn’t covered because technically he was operating the vehicle inside his living room.
But hey — that’s still better than being a dealer on the Strip, where your retirement plan is “hope the guy from Oklahoma tips in chips instead of coupons.”
Final Thought: Risk, Meet Reward
UNLV’s insurance and risk management program is, on paper, exactly what Nevada needs. It’s practical. It’s forward-thinking. It fills a workforce gap. And it’s financially smart for students.
But let’s never lose sight of the irony: the same city that built its fortune convincing people to make the dumbest possible bets is now home to a degree in playing it safe.
Only in Vegas.