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How to become an actuary?
Share your journey & guide aspiring actuaries on their path.
Note: We've seen a lot of interest in this career, so we're looking for guidance from our community of professionals.
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4 answers
Dana Hunt
PwC | Partner, Insurance Risk & Capital Leader
10
Answers
San Antonio, Texas
Updated
Dana’s Answer
You have great advice from the first two responses. In addition to the advice so far, three more areas to consider:
1) Round out college courses in data science, cyber, cloud computing. These are so important to understand in today's business environment
2) Also take courses in college that grow your knowledge in the finance area (i.e., balance sheet management) and others to develop your business-sense.
3) Contact the student actuarial clubs at the colleges you are considering and inquire what career development exposures they foster.
Good luck
1) Round out college courses in data science, cyber, cloud computing. These are so important to understand in today's business environment
2) Also take courses in college that grow your knowledge in the finance area (i.e., balance sheet management) and others to develop your business-sense.
3) Contact the student actuarial clubs at the colleges you are considering and inquire what career development exposures they foster.
Good luck
Karin P.
Lecturer
375
Answers
Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Updated
Karin’s Answer
Hi there,
to become an actuary, you first need to earn a bachelors degree. It is recommended to major in something like math, statistics, finance, or business etc. You can study actuarial science, but opting for a more general math-heavy degree opens up more divers opportunities for you.
To become a full-fledged actuary, there are 10 exams to pass, and they are not easy. You start with the first 2 while you are still in school.
Experience is also very important, so you should do at least one internship before you graduate. Technical skills you need to practice are advanced Excel and some programming.
You then need to get an entry level job and keep taking exams to be certified. You'll learn a lot on the job under the tutelage of experienced actuaries, but you'll also have to keep studying for the exams. And so you work your way up......
I have attached some resources that explain all the steps and requirements in more detail
I hope this helps! Good luck!
KP
https://www.indeed.com/career/actuary
https://etchedactuarial.com/steps-to-becoming-an-actuary/
to become an actuary, you first need to earn a bachelors degree. It is recommended to major in something like math, statistics, finance, or business etc. You can study actuarial science, but opting for a more general math-heavy degree opens up more divers opportunities for you.
To become a full-fledged actuary, there are 10 exams to pass, and they are not easy. You start with the first 2 while you are still in school.
Experience is also very important, so you should do at least one internship before you graduate. Technical skills you need to practice are advanced Excel and some programming.
You then need to get an entry level job and keep taking exams to be certified. You'll learn a lot on the job under the tutelage of experienced actuaries, but you'll also have to keep studying for the exams. And so you work your way up......
I have attached some resources that explain all the steps and requirements in more detail
I hope this helps! Good luck!
KP
Karin recommends the following next steps:
Katrine F.
Actuarial Analyst
6
Answers
New York, New York
Updated
Katrine’s Answer
The previous responses are full of very helpful information and links on how to become an actuary. Below is information pertaining to my journey as a first-generation non-traditional college student.
When I first learned about actuarial science, I was a semester away from graduating from the local Community College with an associate degree in business administration and hadn’t decided on what major to pursue a bachelor’s degree in at the University I planned to transfer to. During a lunch break at work, I browsed the internet for articles to read while decompressing when I saw an article online with the title, “The Top 10 Happiest Careers,” and actuarial science was listed as one of them. The brief description resonated with me given I enjoy math and have a natural tendency to assess risk.
After doing more research about the career, its qualification requirements, and areas of practice, I felt it was a great fit for me to pursue. I reached out to advisors at both the Community College I was currently attending as well as an advisor at the University I was planning to enroll at upon graduating to ask about classes I could take at the Community College that would be transferrable and satisfy the core course requirements for the Actuarial Science program at the University. After learning that I would just need to complete the sequence of calculus courses (pre-calculus, calculus I, calculus II and calculus III) before transferring to the University. I did well in all the courses and transferred to the University. During my first semester at the University, I learned about the different minors that were available and decided to pursue one in Management Information Systems because I felt it would be helpful to have knowledge about how to use programs that work with large datasets.
When it came to applying for an internship opportunity, I put my organizational skills to work. I applied to as many actuarial internship opportunities as possible - 150 over the course of 3 months to be exact! I looked for opportunities on my own through job board apps and company websites as well as reached out to the University's Actuarial Student Professional Organization (a local chapter of Gamma Sigma Iota) and the Student Career Center. I kept track of my application efforts using an excel file that I created that listed important details like the name of the company, internship job title, job description, the link for the internship opportunity, application date, etc. which helped me keep track of interview dates, positions I wasn't considered for, conversations with recruiters for positions I was being considered for as well as conversation notes.
If it is possible for a student to attempt (and hopefully pass) an exam prior to graduating, it is encouraged -but it is not required. Candidates without a passed exam will not be looked at as less favorable by companies. It is possible to find an internship and/or a job upon graduating without a passed exam. Companies as well as organizations like the Actuarial Foundation, the Society of Actuaries (SOA), the Casualty Society of Actuaries (CAS), and the International Association of Black Actuaries (IABA) are working hard to identify and remediate the barriers that exist for those pursuing this profession. If you find yourself not having any exams passed or attempted by the time you graduate, do not be discouraged from pursuing this career or taking exams in the future! There are companies that will hire you without a passed exam because they are aware of and understand the barriers that exist for some students, and they are working hard to make this profession a more diverse, equitable and inclusive one.
Students can look into if their university has an Actuarial related Student Professional Organization or a local chapter of Gamma Sigma Iota (https://www.gammaiotasigma.org/find-a-chapter)
Make lots of friends along the way! College friendships can turn into life-long friendships. Having friends with the same major helps too (to ask questions about concepts that you may be struggling with, study with, ask for recommendations about classes and professors, etc.). There are a handful of students I met along my journey who I'm still in touch with get together on occasions.
Keep up the good work!
When I first learned about actuarial science, I was a semester away from graduating from the local Community College with an associate degree in business administration and hadn’t decided on what major to pursue a bachelor’s degree in at the University I planned to transfer to. During a lunch break at work, I browsed the internet for articles to read while decompressing when I saw an article online with the title, “The Top 10 Happiest Careers,” and actuarial science was listed as one of them. The brief description resonated with me given I enjoy math and have a natural tendency to assess risk.
After doing more research about the career, its qualification requirements, and areas of practice, I felt it was a great fit for me to pursue. I reached out to advisors at both the Community College I was currently attending as well as an advisor at the University I was planning to enroll at upon graduating to ask about classes I could take at the Community College that would be transferrable and satisfy the core course requirements for the Actuarial Science program at the University. After learning that I would just need to complete the sequence of calculus courses (pre-calculus, calculus I, calculus II and calculus III) before transferring to the University. I did well in all the courses and transferred to the University. During my first semester at the University, I learned about the different minors that were available and decided to pursue one in Management Information Systems because I felt it would be helpful to have knowledge about how to use programs that work with large datasets.
When it came to applying for an internship opportunity, I put my organizational skills to work. I applied to as many actuarial internship opportunities as possible - 150 over the course of 3 months to be exact! I looked for opportunities on my own through job board apps and company websites as well as reached out to the University's Actuarial Student Professional Organization (a local chapter of Gamma Sigma Iota) and the Student Career Center. I kept track of my application efforts using an excel file that I created that listed important details like the name of the company, internship job title, job description, the link for the internship opportunity, application date, etc. which helped me keep track of interview dates, positions I wasn't considered for, conversations with recruiters for positions I was being considered for as well as conversation notes.
If it is possible for a student to attempt (and hopefully pass) an exam prior to graduating, it is encouraged -but it is not required. Candidates without a passed exam will not be looked at as less favorable by companies. It is possible to find an internship and/or a job upon graduating without a passed exam. Companies as well as organizations like the Actuarial Foundation, the Society of Actuaries (SOA), the Casualty Society of Actuaries (CAS), and the International Association of Black Actuaries (IABA) are working hard to identify and remediate the barriers that exist for those pursuing this profession. If you find yourself not having any exams passed or attempted by the time you graduate, do not be discouraged from pursuing this career or taking exams in the future! There are companies that will hire you without a passed exam because they are aware of and understand the barriers that exist for some students, and they are working hard to make this profession a more diverse, equitable and inclusive one.
Katrine recommends the following next steps:
Jim Trotier
Consulting Actuary
2
Answers
Cleveland, Ohio
Updated
Jim’s Answer
The general path to becoming an actuary is (at least from my perspective, as a US pension actuarial consultant) is:
1) studying a mathematics or statistics program in college (some schools have actuarial science programs, but if not, many schools have minors in actuarial science) and if possible, take classes in Excel (or general computer programming) and also communication skills
2) look for internships/externships while in school with companies that employ actuaries. Think big insurance companies (both life insurers and casualty insurers, like the ones that provide car insurance) or pension consulting firms (some of the biggest are Aon, Willis Towers Watson, Mercer, Gallagher, and Milliman)
3) Study for and pass actuarial exams - the Society of Actuaries and the Casualty Actuarial Society administer preliminary actuarial exams that you can start taking while still in college. I'd recommend attempting to pass 1-2 exams by the time you graduate college because that will be viewed favorably when job-seeking.
4) get a job with one of those actuarial companies, depending on what type of actuarial work you want to do (life and casualty actuaries will have more computationally-intensive, internal work while pension consulting actuaries typically have to have more communications skills and understanding of business more broadly to consult with a wide range of client types).
5) Continue passing exams while learning on the job. I didn't know anything about pension plans before I started my career (I'd say 95% of the job had to be learned on the job rather than based on something I learned in college). Most actuarial firms give you time off to study for exams (and give you raises/bonuses for passing exams), so there is a big incentive to do so. Exams are tough and the whole process can usually take 7+ years (for those that are dedicated to passing exams - many people drop out after getting stuck on a tough exam).
Read more at https://www.beanactuary.org/
Research companies that hire actuaries and learn about the different types of actuarial work
Try to identify a practicing actuary in your network and connect with them to learn more about the job
Read more at the Society of Actuaries website: https://www.soa.org/
Read more at the Casualty Actuarial Society website: https://www.casact.org/
1) studying a mathematics or statistics program in college (some schools have actuarial science programs, but if not, many schools have minors in actuarial science) and if possible, take classes in Excel (or general computer programming) and also communication skills
2) look for internships/externships while in school with companies that employ actuaries. Think big insurance companies (both life insurers and casualty insurers, like the ones that provide car insurance) or pension consulting firms (some of the biggest are Aon, Willis Towers Watson, Mercer, Gallagher, and Milliman)
3) Study for and pass actuarial exams - the Society of Actuaries and the Casualty Actuarial Society administer preliminary actuarial exams that you can start taking while still in college. I'd recommend attempting to pass 1-2 exams by the time you graduate college because that will be viewed favorably when job-seeking.
4) get a job with one of those actuarial companies, depending on what type of actuarial work you want to do (life and casualty actuaries will have more computationally-intensive, internal work while pension consulting actuaries typically have to have more communications skills and understanding of business more broadly to consult with a wide range of client types).
5) Continue passing exams while learning on the job. I didn't know anything about pension plans before I started my career (I'd say 95% of the job had to be learned on the job rather than based on something I learned in college). Most actuarial firms give you time off to study for exams (and give you raises/bonuses for passing exams), so there is a big incentive to do so. Exams are tough and the whole process can usually take 7+ years (for those that are dedicated to passing exams - many people drop out after getting stuck on a tough exam).
Jim recommends the following next steps: