IRUA Scholars Program
The IRUA Scholars Committee is excited to announce that our 2025 summer programming is officially underway! Our two flagship Scholars programs – the Scholars Essay Program and the Intern Lunch & Learn – are back for another year offering member company interns and recent joiners some great opportunities for professional development. We look forward to seeing and hearing from the next generation of industry talent!
Intern Lunch & Learn
On Wednesday, June 25th, we will be hosting our annual Intern Lunch & Learn event at TransRe’s office in NYC (start time TBA). The event is free of cost, includes lunch, and will give interns a first-hand look at the reinsurance business from a panel of active practitioners while also enjoying an opportunity to ask questions and network with other interns and professionals. Virtual attendance will also be available.
To register, send an email with attendee’s name, email address, company name and attendance type (in-person or virtual) to Maria Sclafani, IRUA’s Executive Administrator, at mcs@irua.org.
Scholars Essay Program
The IRUA Scholars Committee invites interns and recently graduated employees of IRUA member companies to participate in our annual Scholars essay program. Participating scholars will submit a 3,000-4,000-word white paper on an industry-relevant topic of their choosing, with the winning entries earning monetary prizes to help offset their education expenses.
For the 2025 program, we welcome applications from individual authors as well as multiple individuals working together as co-authors, each of whom must meet the following eligibility criteria:
Interested individuals must complete and submit an application, available here.
Choice of topic is entirely up to the participant(s). Papers should provide a detailed explanation of the topic and its relevance to and (potential) impact on the reinsurance industry. Authors must cite all sources in footnotes and must have contractual right to use any graphics or images. Submitted work must be the authors’ own and not a product of generative AI. Papers must be submitted in Microsoft Word format by September 5th, 2025.
The IRUA Scholars Committee will review the submissions and determine the winning participants and the number and value of prizes to be awarded. Winners will be announced no later than mid-October 2025, and the grand prize winner will see their paper published on the IRUA’s website and made available to our community of subscribers.
The Scholars Awards program is funded by member contributions. If you have questions or wish to make a financial contribution please contact Executive Director, Jerry Wallis, at jwallis@irua.org.
In addition to the essay program, the Scholars Committee endeavors to build relationships with college/university risk management and insurance programs across the country with the goal of expanding exposure to career paths in the reinsurance industry. Specific mentorship programming is under development and we welcome hearing from students, alumni, educators and administrators as we build on our engagement. We are also continually building out our LinkedIn-based IRUA Scholars Alumni Group, a vehicle for young professionals who have completed an internship to stay engaged with reinsurance industry and job opportunities. To learn more about either initiative, contact Sam DeGiovanni at sam.degiovanni@ryansg.com.
Additional program information
► In 2024, a total of $13,500 was awarded among the top four authors.
►Participants can be working in any department at their employer/host company; however, the host company must be an IRUA member. Don’t know if your company is a member? Contact Jerry Wallis at jwallis@irua.org.
Deadlines: Application due date - As soon as you know you’d like to participate
► Essay due date: September 5, 2025
► Submission of application & essay: Application and Word-formatted essays are to be emailed to Maria Sclafani at mcs@irua.org and we will confirm receipt of applications and essays by return email.
A copy of the essay program’s eligibility criteria can be obtained by clicking on the link below. To download a Scholarship application, download from the link below and email it to Maria Sclafani in our administrative office at: mcs@irua.org.
Click HERE to download the application.
Click HERE to download the criteria.
NOTE: Specifics of the Scholars Program are subject to change at any time by either the Scholars Committee or the Board of Directors.