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Aetna, Cigna revamp recruitment efforts to attract more millennials

From internship programs to creative interviews, companies strive to appeal to graduates
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Major health insurance companies Aetna and Cigna are making a push toward hiring millennials, but convincing young people that the industry isn't as boring as perceived is not the easiest endeavor, according to the Hartford Courant.

In a survey conducted by the Courant, only 4 percent of people ages 18 to 34 listed the insurance field as one they would want to be in; 73 percent of young adults said insurance was boring; and 51 percent said the companies only care about making money. 

To overcome this challenge, insurers are getting creative in their efforts to attract new graduates and tap into their unique their skills once they are hired.

For example, one employee who joined Cigna in 2014 after graduating from Lehigh University told the newspaper that she was asked during her interview to build something with fellow job candidates using bags of pasta, marshmallows, jelly beans and licorice. After joining Cigna, she now works with software developers to advance virtual reality technologies that aid meditation. 

Cigna hired 380 graduates last year, 210 of which were former interns, the article says. 

Aetna is also taking the more fresh approach to its hiring practices, as millennials make up about 24 percent of its present workforce, according to the Courant.

Two years ago, the article says, the insurer conducted an overhaul on its university recruiting program. In 2015, Aetna had 164 college interns around the country, and offered jobs to nearly 80 percent of the students who were seniors, with 84 percent of those accepting. For non-graduates, about 60 percent who did an internship before their junior years agreed to come back the following summer.

To learn more:
- read the Hartford Courant article

Related Articles:
Healthcare employers optimistic on hiring, pay raises in 2015
What health insurers can do to draw millennial employees
Will Aetna be nabbing all the good employees with pay increase?