The class Financial Math (that directly correlates to exam FM) is one of the main reasons for people opting out of actuarial science majors. I had to take it twice and my tip for passing it is to study the different applications of each unit rather than just the formulas. The formula sheet they provide with you on the official website wont do anything in helping you with the questions they give you on exam FM and you need to know how aspect of each unit works. There are practice problems from previous exams online that give exact scenarios that will match the ones that will most likely match the ones you see on the exam. That for me has been the most stressful process of this so far.
Thank you for sharing this! The essence of decision taking under risk and uncertainty is that a study in 'actuarial science' - even better when combined with other (non-)statistical studies - really can 'help' you. Actuarial science is first of all a 'help' and not a 'goal'. It's not about 'doing calculations', as anyone can use a wide range of available complex algorithms of stat-packages and apply these to find/construct solutions or take decisions. What you (hopefully) learn in actuarial science, is what the initial beliefs, axioms, short-comings, benefits and application-areas in a wide range of algorithms and models in essence are. This knowledge is what really 'counts' and distinguish you from the average number/chart-advisors. As an actuary you can help people to 'understand' the challenge/problem and help them to become aware of the consequences and risks of a decision to be made. The calculation itself is the less interesting part of the advice. Computers take much better care of calculations, than we can. It's not about 'making a calculation', it's about 'knowing to make which calculation and apply which model'. It's also about knowing and explaining the risks of the calculation model you used to make sure that the people you advice are fully aware of their 'beliefs' and 'possible consequences' of their decision and the decision is taken on basis of scientific 'sound' arguments. Success with being an actuary. It's fun!
Let me explain about the new SOA exams structure (as per August 2019). 1. Exam P -> Exam P (Probability) 2. Exam FM -> Exam FM (Financial Mathematics) 3. Exam MFE -> Exam IFM (Investment and Financial Market) 4. Exam C -> Exam STAM (Short-term Actuarial Mathematics) 5. Exam MLC -> Exam LTAM (Long-term Actuarial Mathematics) 6. VEE Applied Statistics -> Exam SRM (Statistical Risk Modeling) and VEE Mathematical Statistics 7. (nothing) -> Exam PA (Predictive Analytics) 8. VEE Corporate Finance -> VEE Accounting and Finance 9. VEE Economics -> VEE Economics Not only do the names change, but the syllabi are also dynamically changing. Update (June of 2020): - Most entry-level actuarial jobs require at least 2 exams, usually P and FM. Full-time actuaries often take study leaves (and still get paid) to prepare for their exams. They get bonuses for every exam they pass, and their exam fee is typically reimbursed by their company. - In term of calculus, I’d say the double integration from Calculus II is necessary for P and STAM as multivariate probability theories often rely on these theories. FM is mostly applied algebra and some easy calculus. IFM consists of option pricing, which is based on the Black-Scholes formula and partial differential equation. But it is not strictly required to understand how to derive the formula. Understanding how to use the formula is recommended though. P.s. the actuarial courses in my alma mater had Calculus III as prerequisite, so actuarial science graduates are assumed to know even more advanced calculus, such as the Green’s theorem, Stokes’ theorem, and the terrifying divergence theorem. But, it’s rather useless to know these if it’s not required.
Yet, Google states that they do not listen in on us. I have talked out loud about a few careers and it showed up on my phone in minutes. Did not need a search, it searched by eavesdropping.
I might add that yes at the lower levels you will predominantly be running existing models to produce results, but like anything you get more and more responsibility as you get experience. Eventually you are expected to build these mathematical, statistical, deterministic, stochastic etc models and analyse the output and write full reports, but you need time seeing how other people have done it and getting a feel for things first. You're right it is spreadsheet heavy (at least at the moment), but there is a big move away to more FinTech based solutions, with SQL, SAS, R, Python, Data Bricks, PowerBI/Tableau, Pricing software like Monteux and cash flow projection software like Prophet slowly becoming more standard as companies who adopt these software are getting a competitive advantage, putting pressure on other companies to keep up. I guess all i'm saying is, it's not all spreadsheets and no math. It's like anything, being a doctor you're not going to be using your knowledge every day, most days it will be same old, but the time you do need to use your knowledge, knowing your shit is seriously important and that's really what you're paid for.
Hi Evan, As someone entering the field... What programs are best these days. I get the burntout math study path I've studied 400 hrs so far. I'm learning SQL and micro/macro eco on my own.
Great video. I have been an actuary for 20 years. I have never used pure math on the job. However, math teaches one to become analytical and unbiased. A good actuary becomes incredibly analytical and is able to solve very complex problems faced by their clients. The solutions to these problems may not require pure math. But they do require very strong analytical thinking. Additionally, a good actuary will be able to argue his/her position using analysis and facts. And a great actuary will be able to effectively communicate their findings to their clients. This is hardly a typical corporate job. And this is why the actuarial profession is often ranked among the best jobs in America. Actuaries can become essential to managing the risk of their clients, and in the process become key parts of a business. It all begins with solid math training. That's not to say other careers can't become actuaries. They can. It's just that a math degree is a good base for that analytical thinking ultimately required for the job.
Since software applications are a huge deal in the actual job, do you think that an A level student shout part-take in subjects such as ICT due to the practical use of those application seem to bite in future? Or would you recommend computer science instead?
@@amirsaid575 No to the first. Maybe to the second. I'm an actuary, and my job includes coding, but probably a minority of actuaries code. Excel skills are a minimum requirement. If I was to recommend any language to learn, right now I would recommend R.
I love seeing videos like this that take a realistic approach to what the early steps to becoming an actuary is like. I’m majoring in statistics but have an emphasis in actuarial science and a minor in mathematics. I decided to just join together stats, actuarial science, and math so I would have a strong basis to pursue jobs besides an actuary if I find I don’t care for it.
As someone working as an actuary, you don't use a lot of statistics in your work. I've very rarely actually used statistical distributions in our modelling. Although the knowledge it helpful to understand the models and build them if needed.
@@tokikg7534 we mainly use empirical distributions. Still need the stats/programming skills to process the data. Applied math helps me in my job by simplifying things (ex. if you have a bunch of tables you have to multiply and add elements together, you can probably make it more streamlined with matrix algebra). Since many of us work with high dimensional data, there is opportunity to do advanced statistical modeling, but it's often easier and more practical to use simple math, and it doesn't sacrifice much accuracy. There is a big push in healthcare and p&c companies to use those tools though
I just accepted a job as a trainee actuary. I'm glad I watched this video. I will still go ahead with the job, but it's nice to know what I'm getting myself into in real terms. Thank you for making this.
@@memesmymommade8570 nah I left to take a career in coding. It suited me better personally. Actuary is pretty broad and what one person does might be very different from another. My experience in the first few years was tracking market trends for reporting and learning the rules and regulations involved with our customers' plans so that we could ensure they are maintained, and how to implement these rules in the planning tools our team used (mostly excel based). Most of my day to day was updating and automating excel sheets to apply actuarial rules which I found very enjoyable. Beyond that I was focused on getting through the actuarial exams and getting qualified. The exams were very tough but the content was interesting. I will say this, if I had stayed in actuary I would feel far more confident in having a job this time next week than I do in software these days. :P
Hey Bri, I'm a single-major math bachelor's who has been thinking of going into Actuarial purely because I didn't know what else I could do with a math degree, and I appreciate your video - especially talking about the burnout. I've only taken two actuarial exams (and only passed one) and I'm already having second thoughts because I really value my free time - getting home from work and not having to do anything else. I'm glad to hear that others feel - not necessarily the same, but similar. I may be re-orienting to go into data science. It seems like some of the same skills I wanted to develop as an actuary, but less intense. Thanks for posting!
I am a practicing actuary, and the LAST thing I would want would be an intern doing mathematical calculations. Can almost guarantee that the real actuaries gave you bean-counting types of tasks because they did not want to have to go behind you and fix everything. Good video otherwise
@zeuperm very very little calculus, but some. Some regression, complex algebra, graphing, and good old arithmetic. Mind you that i work in insurance, so I'm sure that consulting actuaries do much more elaborate setups. I am more of an actuarial coding specialist because i mostly code and then export my findings.
@@evertonwood I am currently excelling in statistics and I have been hunting for a job that has overlap, what path would you recommend I take for majors in order to become an actuary.
@@michaelaz531 honestly, i would recommend computer science and study for the actuary exams separately from your school curriculum. Computer coding skills are the deciding factors when hiring new actuary candidates
@@ryanredsox3475 I am most comfortable using R. I would suggest learning BOTH Python and R. My boss allows us maximum flexibility with the coding tools we choose to use.
Thanks for the video! I’m a math major in my first year of college and have been giving some hard thought on going in an actuarial science direction, and I’ve been talking with some professors and they said we should be getting an actuarial science minor here in the next year or two so I think I might add that on!
I am currently studying in high school and will turning into college soon and I’m considering about studying actuarial science, but I heard many people talked about actuarial science is for crazy and it really sounds crazy after watching the video But much appreciate for the video!
KAI LE I wouldn’t let people discourage you. The exams are hard, but the actual job is very similar to a finance job. It’s got some stress but it’s a typical 9-5, so you will be home every evening. You can leave work when you leave the office. It also pays very nicely. I live in Tennessee, have passed 2 exams, and have a year of internship experience. My starting salary offer was 65k with 32 days of PTO (some are company holidays, about 23 are my choice) and the health benefits are good.
It's interesting the different experience you had from me. I agree it's Excel, Excel, Excel. I work as an actuarial analyst for a consulting firm. It is a very applied mathematics but I find I use math quite a bit. It's not crazy calculus but I do a lot of math including Lognormal distributions, Poisson distributions, complex weighting and a lot of problem solving. It's interesting because I work in a smaller firm (8 actuarial staff in the whole firm) so less stuff is automated. In school I minored in Finance with my degree (From my school it was Mathematics with an emphasis in actuarial science). I wouldn't suggest a double major to anyone because once you are in the field what maters is exams and experience. I definitely know it's not for everyone but I love my job as an actuary.
thanks for letting us know, i want a job that's purely math and found out about Actuarial Science and thought it would be good but good thing I found this video
Definitely REALLY useful video! I wish I knew this when I in school. Imo actuarial field is kind of a tight circle, hard to get in. I would HIGHLY recommend getting actuarial internship for people who want a job in actuarial dept after graduation. Because without experience, it's really hard to enter regardless of how many exams you have. Programming is actually used much more than math in my experience. Knowing excel, SQL, SASS or even Python will definitely go a long way. Just my thought 👍🏻🤓
hello there, I would like to ask if knowing Python and R is good enough to get an entry level actuarial job after graduation. Is Excel a must or are companies lenient and let you pick it up as you go?
I studied Actuarial Sciences, double majored in mathematics and minored in economics. Mathematics has helped me to improve my actuarial skills quite lot. I am taking the exams now
Your number 1 and 10 contradict a bit there haha. I’d say you’d be better off turning your “extra class a semester” into study time to try to pass an actuary exam. One more actuary exam means way more than a double major. A minor in statistics on the other hand was very easy, don’t even remember if I needed an additional class. But if you think you get burned out taking the exams during school, trust me it gets much worse when you’re a decade removed from college. Here’s what I wish I knew when I was deciding to become an actuary: 1. Getting an internship in college is way more important than even your gpa. I was very naive when I was in school and didn’t know the importance and always just treated my schoolwork as number 1, but if you don’t plan for your future and be proactive/aggressive towards getting an internship while at school, it will be extremely difficult to get into the actuarial profession. It took me years after school before I was able to get my foot in the door. 2. This may sound cynical but - on the whole - the exams are a bit of an scam. “Actuarial Science” spans so many disciplines, and the vast majority of the topics on the exams I’ve taken so far I’m quite confident I will never ever need to know for my career. To be somewhat fair to the Societies, they have been changing exams probably in part to deal with some of this. But I truly believe that the profession would make much more sense if you only had to pass a few exams that were very tailored to specific disciplines. And if you want to switch disciplines, then yea you gotta pass another test but at least you didn’t spend a year passing a test on material you’d never use. For example, I passed MFE a few years ago. And I know they’ve changed that exam since then, but pricing derivatives will just never be useful in my line of work. Also, because I never use it, I’ve forgotten it almost entirely. If I pass my fifth actuarial exam (which will be about 10 days from now), I will only then be finally able to actually study the material that is really relevant to my work.
I was once in an environment doing software quality assurance related to actuarial products, and the bookpiles I found there certainly made my appetite whet! On the surface, it looks like really obscure stuff, but once you persisted and did it for a certain period of time, things were beautiful! Although I am a hands-on software practioner, the actuarial stuff was really interesting.
This is great cause a couple years after college(math & psych degree) I was thinking of doing actuary. Even started studying for the first exam. But this shows me I was probably right and wouldn't have liked the job.
Actuarial science is hard. I’m taking theory of interest to prepare me for financial math exam and this class is so hard!! The professor gives us questions that are so difficult compared to the practice questions
I majored in math, but probability is probably my weakest mathematical ability. That's why I'm in accounting now. But I still dabble in physics and math as a hobby.
@@ThriveNow123 I'm finished now but the last courses I took were cost accounting and oil and gas upstream accounting. I think most people take cost accounting early in their college careers but I didn't.
The second half of your video reminds me A LOT of my profession, accounting. They are pretty similar in some ways, namely in that doing the actual work doesn't require you to be amazing at math and excel is your God. I've thought about switching over to actuarial work but in addition to the math demands I don't think actuaries make much more than accountants in the long run, in the short run actuaries make more money than accountants but it's about the same in the long run plus there is more different types of jobs for accountants. Actuaries predominantly work in insurance and pensions in corporate. But really it's about passion, be an actuary if your passionate about math and insurance. Be an accountant and later on a CPA if your passionate about business and investigations.
@@mohdjufri9452 UiTM Shah Alam.. Btw, im not working yet.. And the only experience i've got is from my internship at zakat.. So, i must adapt my actuarial knowledge and try to fit it according to shariah law.. And it is not easy..😅
Right now I'm finishing up my bachelor's degree in mathematics and have the choice between a master's in Actuarial Science And Financial Engineering or one in Applied Mathematics (which sounds more appealing to me and I can elect a lot of the same classes as the other major). I want to widen my skill set and not really narrow my path for the future. The problem is that I really don't know what the career possibilities are if I get my degree in applied math. My number one motives for wanting to become an actuary (and that I am also looking for in other jobs) are the nice balance of work and life (when you don't have to worry about the exams of course) and the nice compensation. I am really into data analysis. But, I heard that the job market for data analysts is very unstable. At the same time I also fear that the analysis that actuaries do is very repetitive and dull (I do not know if that is true). I would love to have a job in which I set up statistical models for different things. What do you think the best job for me would be?
actuary work is simply not boring if you enjoy problem solving, if you want to have a competitive advantage for becoming an actuary make sure the Masters of actuarial science includes the part 1 subjects minimum, as you'll probably want to get at least your part 2 done, having some experience with coding is also pretty much a given
I’m a qualified actuary and have worked in valuations, research and development and now marketing. Actuaries are branching out into many different fields. In South Africa, you can now qualify as a Banking actuary. I think there’s a lot of variety. Not to mention the differences between short term insurance and long term insurance work.
I am an actuarial science major. I have just started my freshman year. This video was very helpful. Thank you! I’m actually taking a computer science class that is centered on Microsoft Excel so I am definitely going to become proficient in it by the time I graduate and at least I know it will be useful.
Thanks for posting this video and sharing your experience. I'm a Mathematics graduate as well with a Bachelor degree in Applied Mathematics and I'm currently in my first year of master's studies, also Applied Mathematics. When I graduated I was immediately called in an insurance company and they offered me internship in actuarial science. Now it is very hard to get a job here where I live and when I researched and found out that there are only 12 actuaries in the entire country I accepted it right away. I've been an intern for 6 months now and I am actually working closely with 1/12 actuaries and it really threw me off how little math I used and how much I needed excel spreadsheet knowledge. I have doubts, is this what I want to do my entire life, be stuck on a computer working in excel, should have I chosen another field, so I want to ask, if there are any actuaries here, does it get more interesting in time, will I use more of my mathematics knowledge?
I wish this video is closed-captioned for a deaf community since I myself am deaf who is very interested in Actuary. In fact, I am studying actuarial science and planning on taking the exam P soon.
Since software applications are a huge deal in the actual job, do you think that an A level student shout part-take in subjects such as ICT due to the practical use of those application seem to bite in future? Or would you recommend computer science instead?
@@leonenkola1251 It's definitely a plus if you take some programming courses. The whole world is all about AI, data science, etc. With ICT background, it is more likely for you to stand out. I know Python is heat these days. Regarding choosing b/t computer science vs aci sci, it's up to your interest. As Brian mentioned, there's no difference from other analytics jobs. Just it's in the insurance industry, it happens to be called actuary. If you would like to apply some statistical analytics skills and also get the business insights out of it, Aci Sci is a pretty good option.
As an actuary working in P&C, I agree and disagree with this video. The work is very different for different kinds of actuaries (Pension, Life, Consulting, P&C, etc.) For aspiring actuaries (especially in P&C), I would recommend learning how to code (R, SQL, SAS..). Other than that, I do agree that it is definitely not necessary to major in Actuarial Maths but being surrounded by people going through the same things as you do helps a lot.
@@paulinewachira5839 hmmm i'd say internships but given that you're a senior i dont know if you'll be able to get any after you graduate. other than that, apply to all kinds of jobs. most people just stick with the one they get after graduating! also depends on how many exams you have, say you have 2 exams and you start a job in P&C and end up realizing that it's not what you want to do, you still have time to try a different job! hope that helps :)
Seems like you had a hard time coming up with 10 things. Some have nothing to do with actuarial science in particular, but just getting a college degree. When you say "Like any other corporate job" you, of course, mean what you envision other corporate jobs to be like, since you had not had any of those other corporate jobs, right? Sorry it wasn't what you thought it would be, but internships pretty much imply very entry level work. Yes! Spreadsheets, spreadsheets, spreadsheets. Because we do probably a million calculations a day. Yes, a lot of the formulas are already programmed into the sheet, but you still have to know what is going on. If something changes and the formula ends up incorrect, you have to know how to fix it. When I write the excel formula, it's a mathematical calculation. You have to know what to put in it. Without the calculation power of Excel, it would take forever to get the stuff completed. Exams are tough. They get harder. Not only do they get more expensive, but they get longer. The last ones are 4 hours long. If you want to know about becoming an actuary, talk to someone with more than 10 weeks of experience who decide to quit. ActuarialOutpost.com and Beanactuary.org are a couple of excellent websites to find out information and discuss with people who know about the profession. Also look at soa.org and casact.org. Those are the actuarial societies that give the exams. He mentioned retirement as the internship (SOA), but there are all kinds of different actuarial jobs life, health, pension, casualty (home, car, auto, professional liability, workers compensation), etc. It's a pretty broad field.
As an actuarial science in Malaysia,i am not suggesting people study this course because there are very rare job opportunities in ASEAN. Furthermore, the exam fees and stress can be a huge burden for u.
Hi , then would you recommend taking applied Mathematics major rather than actuarial science in Malaysia? I'm confused and quite stressed as there are veryyyy less people taking applied Mathematics compared to actuarial science in my university.
I’m expected to graduate in May of 2020 and this is so true I’ll be graduating with a bachelors in risk management, finance, and actuarial science, because it’s so easy to double major. My college reimburses you for the P and FM exam. I’ve failed both exams my first attempt ☹️ I’ll be taking them again soon. The exams are now $250, wish they still were $150 and you only need to pass those 2 to be certified you don’t need 5 anymore.☹️
I am a retired actuary FSA (Fellow of the Society of Actuaries), I did get a BS in actuarial science but as a double major with financial accounting, just did a accounting degree with my electives being math. But a degree in actuarial science is a waste! Actuarial jobs are only from exams and experience. The degree does little to prepare for exams. They are very brutal, better to get a more generally useful degree and then get work as an “actuarial student “. Usually the company will then pay exam fees, books, often exam courses and may very well have bonuses for each exam passed
Actuary has reached its matured phase long time ago. What companies do now is just to copy each others models and introduced little improvements here and there. That means the models you been using might be from the 80s and some of it can be found in spreadsheets and computer software written in COBOL and FORTRAN. Hahaha 😁
so what you mean is it’s not that wanted for the next couple yrs or what you’re saying is it’s not as hard and complex as it was ? please elaborate more because i’m considering taking this career
Great debrief! I would mention that burnout isn’t unique to actuarial sciences, but the loss of enthusiasm can impact other courses too of course. University is a learning experience in many ways, and may be a good time to change paths or find some way to regenerate the enthusiasm. Excel (64 bit) is so much better today than in the past allowing some seriously powerful number crunching. The pivot table and chart functionalities have vastly improved in terms of stability but we always find ways to push the limits further when analyzing larger quantities of data, for which powerBI or SAS may be helpful too :-)
I think you could break into the field! If you are able to pass 2 exams on your own time and then apply for a position, your prior experience would probably be looked on nicely. It’s really a puzzle solving job, which engineers do a lot of that. Actuaries just do more puzzle solving with excel, vba, python, etc. So if you have the two exams, some puzzle solving experience and some coding experience that’s great!
Hey! I found this video quite helpful. If anyone can help me please feel free to comment down below So I am a CA student (India) also known as CPA, and i was thinking of joining Actuarial Sciences major through MBA course. Although I was a science student till school but joined CA in the same delusion that the maths used would be calculus, derivatives or theorems but it was statistics. I will start my articleship next year in Canada and have also decided to join a University which offers Actuarial Sciences. Do i have to clear all the exams in order to become an Actuary? Are exams taken from an independent professional body or does the college take them indivially? Should I pursue Actuarial Sciences? And if yes, then which colleges or University should i join? Should I do major in Actuarial Sciences while doing my articleship or complete my CA first? I would be grateful if you helped me even a bit... Thanks!!!!!!!
Sorry I could no where help you out with your doubt but I myself have a doubt , if you could just solve it . so I am 12th commerce student I an really interested in number of things like computer maths and statistics economics , all tighter something like fintech. But let me tell I am very weak at accounting . so what should I pursue like go for BCA which is computer application includes coding which help as a actuarial science if I make it fix to pursue or economic or statistics . also some guidance about CA as a weak student like me . belonging from financially lower background family will I need a lot of money to do actuarial science like what figure it would be . I KNOW THEY ARE ARE LOT OF QUESTION BUT JUST A CONFUSED child like you might be somewhere when you were in this initial stages . I would be very grateful if you help me out .!!
@@joshepjane2162 yes, actuarial sciences requires a lot of money, the exams itself are very expensive and difficult while the coaching and books have their own heavy expenses. In comparison, CA requires very little money but is equally difficult, and can easily self study or watch free videos for various subject. Even if you are weak in accounts you can crack CA exams, all you have to do is work hard! Also, you could specialize in Income tax or audit in articleship if you want to deal lesser with accounts, although accounts are the basis of CA and it is every day thing for CAs. So if you don't like accounts I would suggest you not to go for it.
As pointed out in the vid his experience was that during his internship maths was not really used extensively and that being an actuary is like a normal corporate job. Is this true for most actuaries or are there actuaries that use a ton of (applied)math?
lol. The end was great...He talks about actuarial science (I noticed he wasn't to hot on it with his facial expressions). Anyways, near the end he said that he went on a different route other than actuarial science. So ironic, don't you think?1
I am planning to do actuarial science, I will be completing my high school next year. I am confused either should I take the actuarial science degree itself or shall I do the alternative which is doing major in mathematics or statistics, but the exams will be tougher with doing major in mathematics
if you are completely sure that you want to become an actuary,go for the actuarial science degree.if you're not too sure about actuarial science and want to keep you options open,then i would suggest you go for a math degree.
This is so helpful! I am considering this job and was thinking maybe the maths idea was too much. Knowing it's more statistics definitely helped. Can I know if there are any possible exemptions you can get from getting masters?
Hey man, I just finished my bachelor's majoring in Math. stats and also planning to take act. Science exams..how to become a student member and also how to find an internship for yourself.
Myolwa Sive most internships will want you to have 1-2 exams already passed(or that you are actively studying for the exams) and some prior experience (not necessarily related to the role but they want to know you can competently work in a business environment)
@@scwmrtrn1366 I'm just joking around i haven't done an internship yet so i can't say it's too bad and it's a sequence under a mathematics degree at my school so if i don't like it, i can just fall back on my math degree and go do something else. Internships are kinda hard to find
Could you please do a video on the different math major concentrations and what they waxh lead too in graduate school or a video on which graduate degrees you can do with a math degree
If I were to become an actuary, what would be the best major? I was thinking about majoring in statistics and finance, minoring in economics, and taking a few computer science electives. I have already taken in depth Algebra 2 courses and AP Calculus as well. What do you think is best?
The class Financial Math (that directly correlates to exam FM) is one of the main reasons for people opting out of actuarial science majors. I had to take it twice and my tip for passing it is to study the different applications of each unit rather than just the formulas. The formula sheet they provide with you on the official website wont do anything in helping you with the questions they give you on exam FM and you need to know how aspect of each unit works. There are practice problems from previous exams online that give exact scenarios that will match the ones that will most likely match the ones you see on the exam. That for me has been the most stressful process of this so far.
Thank you for sharing this! The essence of decision taking under risk and uncertainty is that a study in 'actuarial science' - even better when combined with other (non-)statistical studies - really can 'help' you.
Actuarial science is first of all a 'help' and not a 'goal'. It's not about 'doing calculations', as anyone can use a wide range of available complex algorithms of stat-packages and apply these to find/construct solutions or take decisions.
What you (hopefully) learn in actuarial science, is what the initial beliefs, axioms, short-comings, benefits and application-areas in a wide range of algorithms and models in essence are. This knowledge is what really 'counts' and distinguish you from the average number/chart-advisors. As an actuary you can help people to 'understand' the challenge/problem and help them to become aware of the consequences and risks of a decision to be made.
The calculation itself is the less interesting part of the advice. Computers take much better care of calculations, than we can. It's not about 'making a calculation', it's about 'knowing to make which calculation and apply which model'. It's also about knowing and explaining the risks of the calculation model you used to make sure that the people you advice are fully aware of their 'beliefs' and 'possible consequences' of their decision and the decision is taken on basis of scientific 'sound' arguments.
Success with being an actuary. It's fun!
thanks for your insight comment!
Thanks for your comment, greetings from Chile.
Let me explain about the new SOA exams structure (as per August 2019).
1. Exam P -> Exam P (Probability)
2. Exam FM -> Exam FM (Financial Mathematics)
3. Exam MFE -> Exam IFM (Investment and Financial Market)
4. Exam C -> Exam STAM (Short-term Actuarial Mathematics)
5. Exam MLC -> Exam LTAM (Long-term Actuarial Mathematics)
6. VEE Applied Statistics -> Exam SRM (Statistical Risk Modeling) and VEE Mathematical Statistics
7. (nothing) -> Exam PA (Predictive Analytics)
8. VEE Corporate Finance -> VEE Accounting and Finance
9. VEE Economics -> VEE Economics
Not only do the names change, but the syllabi are also dynamically changing.
Update (June of 2020):
- Most entry-level actuarial jobs require at least 2 exams, usually P and FM. Full-time actuaries often take study leaves (and still get paid) to prepare for their exams. They get bonuses for every exam they pass, and their exam fee is typically reimbursed by their company.
- In term of calculus, I’d say the double integration from Calculus II is necessary for P and STAM as multivariate probability theories often rely on these theories. FM is mostly applied algebra and some easy calculus. IFM consists of option pricing, which is based on the Black-Scholes formula and partial differential equation. But it is not strictly required to understand how to derive the formula. Understanding how to use the formula is recommended though.
P.s. the actuarial courses in my alma mater had Calculus III as prerequisite, so actuarial science graduates are assumed to know even more advanced calculus, such as the Green’s theorem, Stokes’ theorem, and the terrifying divergence theorem. But, it’s rather useless to know these if it’s not required.
Thanks for that! I really appreciate you letting viewers (and me) know of the changes. Have a great day.
Thanks for this
How about the registration fees?
GODBOY NJOH you can check out SOA website. First 3 papers are $225 each and LTAM is $375
Wilson Jonathan so which are needed to get a job, and which are to advance your career?
Do I have to do all the exams?
my sister just talked about actuarial science yesterday and this suddenly is recommended today oof
The phones are always listening
Your FBI agent is doing his job right
Ikr i was just talking to my mum about taking actuarial science as a future degree prospect and this popped up in my recommendations the next day!
Yet, Google states that they do not listen in on us. I have talked out loud about a few careers and it showed up on my phone in minutes. Did not need a search, it searched by eavesdropping.
Big Brother is WATCHING you
Those exams, man. WHEW! Word problems phrased imprecisely sometimes, vague, etc.
I might add that yes at the lower levels you will predominantly be running existing models to produce results, but like anything you get more and more responsibility as you get experience. Eventually you are expected to build these mathematical, statistical, deterministic, stochastic etc models and analyse the output and write full reports, but you need time seeing how other people have done it and getting a feel for things first. You're right it is spreadsheet heavy (at least at the moment), but there is a big move away to more FinTech based solutions, with SQL, SAS, R, Python, Data Bricks, PowerBI/Tableau, Pricing software like Monteux and cash flow projection software like Prophet slowly becoming more standard as companies who adopt these software are getting a competitive advantage, putting pressure on other companies to keep up. I guess all i'm saying is, it's not all spreadsheets and no math. It's like anything, being a doctor you're not going to be using your knowledge every day, most days it will be same old, but the time you do need to use your knowledge, knowing your shit is seriously important and that's really what you're paid for.
Hi Evan,
As someone entering the field... What programs are best these days. I get the burntout math study path I've studied 400 hrs so far. I'm learning SQL and micro/macro eco on my own.
Great video. I have been an actuary for 20 years. I have never used pure math on the job. However, math teaches one to become analytical and unbiased. A good actuary becomes incredibly analytical and is able to solve very complex problems faced by their clients. The solutions to these problems may not require pure math. But they do require very strong analytical thinking. Additionally, a good actuary will be able to argue his/her position using analysis and facts. And a great actuary will be able to effectively communicate their findings to their clients. This is hardly a typical corporate job. And this is why the actuarial profession is often ranked among the best jobs in America. Actuaries can become essential to managing the risk of their clients, and in the process become key parts of a business. It all begins with solid math training. That's not to say other careers can't become actuaries. They can. It's just that a math degree is a good base for that analytical thinking ultimately required for the job.
Since software applications are a huge deal in the actual job, do you think that an A level student shout part-take in subjects such as ICT due to the practical use of those application seem to bite in future? Or would you recommend computer science instead?
Hei. As an actuary yourself do you need to master programming? Does your job include coding?
Could I become an actuary with a accounting major and actuarial sciences minor?
@@amirsaid575 No to the first. Maybe to the second. I'm an actuary, and my job includes coding, but probably a minority of actuaries code. Excel skills are a minimum requirement. If I was to recommend any language to learn, right now I would recommend R.
Leone Nkola I would recommend SAS, R or Python in addition to Excel.
10 Tips and Tricks for Actuarial Science Majors!
ua-cam.com/video/G5Nw3Jfjc9c/v-deo.html
3:51 Lol
I love seeing videos like this that take a realistic approach to what the early steps to becoming an actuary is like. I’m majoring in statistics but have an emphasis in actuarial science and a minor in mathematics. I decided to just join together stats, actuarial science, and math so I would have a strong basis to pursue jobs besides an actuary if I find I don’t care for it.
As someone working as an actuary, you don't use a lot of statistics in your work. I've very rarely actually used statistical distributions in our modelling. Although the knowledge it helpful to understand the models and build them if needed.
Really? That’s really surprising, what do you mainly use in your modelling then?
@@tokikg7534 the math is very very very basic, unfortunately.
@@Grim_Reaper_from_Hell That sounds crazy, because actuaries learn a lot of math/statistics.
@@tokikg7534 we mainly use empirical distributions. Still need the stats/programming skills to process the data. Applied math helps me in my job by simplifying things (ex. if you have a bunch of tables you have to multiply and add elements together, you can probably make it more streamlined with matrix algebra). Since many of us work with high dimensional data, there is opportunity to do advanced statistical modeling, but it's often easier and more practical to use simple math, and it doesn't sacrifice much accuracy. There is a big push in healthcare and p&c companies to use those tools though
Patrick N Ah I see, thank you.
I just accepted a job as a trainee actuary. I'm glad I watched this video. I will still go ahead with the job, but it's nice to know what I'm getting myself into in real terms. Thank you for making this.
Thanks for watching and best of luck with your job!
Are you still in this career? How’s it going I wanna do this but I’m worried it’s not what I expect
@@memesmymommade8570 nah I left to take a career in coding. It suited me better personally. Actuary is pretty broad and what one person does might be very different from another. My experience in the first few years was tracking market trends for reporting and learning the rules and regulations involved with our customers' plans so that we could ensure they are maintained, and how to implement these rules in the planning tools our team used (mostly excel based). Most of my day to day was updating and automating excel sheets to apply actuarial rules which I found very enjoyable. Beyond that I was focused on getting through the actuarial exams and getting qualified. The exams were very tough but the content was interesting.
I will say this, if I had stayed in actuary I would feel far more confident in having a job this time next week than I do in software these days. :P
Your english is easy to understand.. Thank you!!
You're welcome 😊
Am actually in my second year...very helpful...thanks
Thanks very much for watching. Best of luck to you!
Hi, do you regret taking actuarial science? Because I'm thinking of tsking it but I'm not sure. Thanks!
@@iwantbaos no i'm just happy that i passed, even the pure math itself doesn't really involved in counting that much, they're focus in theories
@@rinyeongi6322 thank you so much!
Hey Bri, I'm a single-major math bachelor's who has been thinking of going into Actuarial purely because I didn't know what else I could do with a math degree, and I appreciate your video - especially talking about the burnout. I've only taken two actuarial exams (and only passed one) and I'm already having second thoughts because I really value my free time - getting home from work and not having to do anything else. I'm glad to hear that others feel - not necessarily the same, but similar. I may be re-orienting to go into data science. It seems like some of the same skills I wanted to develop as an actuary, but less intense. Thanks for posting!
I am a practicing actuary, and the LAST thing I would want would be an intern doing mathematical calculations. Can almost guarantee that the real actuaries gave you bean-counting types of tasks because they did not want to have to go behind you and fix everything. Good video otherwise
@zeuperm very very little calculus, but some. Some regression, complex algebra, graphing, and good old arithmetic. Mind you that i work in insurance, so I'm sure that consulting actuaries do much more elaborate setups. I am more of an actuarial coding specialist because i mostly code and then export my findings.
@@evertonwood I am currently excelling in statistics and I have been hunting for a job that has overlap, what path would you recommend I take for majors in order to become an actuary.
@@michaelaz531 honestly, i would recommend computer science and study for the actuary exams separately from your school curriculum. Computer coding skills are the deciding factors when hiring new actuary candidates
@@evertonwood What programming languages do you use most on the job?
@@ryanredsox3475 I am most comfortable using R. I would suggest learning BOTH Python and R. My boss allows us maximum flexibility with the coding tools we choose to use.
Thanks for the video! I’m a math major in my first year of college and have been giving some hard thought on going in an actuarial science direction, and I’ve been talking with some professors and they said we should be getting an actuarial science minor here in the next year or two so I think I might add that on!
I am currently studying in high school and will turning into college soon and I’m considering about studying actuarial science, but I heard many people talked about actuarial science is for crazy and it really sounds crazy after watching the video
But much appreciate for the video!
KAI LE I wouldn’t let people discourage you. The exams are hard, but the actual job is very similar to a finance job. It’s got some stress but it’s a typical 9-5, so you will be home every evening. You can leave work when you leave the office. It also pays very nicely. I live in Tennessee, have passed 2 exams, and have a year of internship experience. My starting salary offer was 65k with 32 days of PTO (some are company holidays, about 23 are my choice) and the health benefits are good.
It's interesting the different experience you had from me. I agree it's Excel, Excel, Excel. I work as an actuarial analyst for a consulting firm. It is a very applied mathematics but I find I use math quite a bit. It's not crazy calculus but I do a lot of math including Lognormal distributions, Poisson distributions, complex weighting and a lot of problem solving. It's interesting because I work in a smaller firm (8 actuarial staff in the whole firm) so less stuff is automated.
In school I minored in Finance with my degree (From my school it was Mathematics with an emphasis in actuarial science). I wouldn't suggest a double major to anyone because once you are in the field what maters is exams and experience. I definitely know it's not for everyone but I love my job as an actuary.
thanks for letting us know, i want a job that's purely math and found out about Actuarial Science and thought it would be good but good thing I found this video
Thank You, so useful
Greetings from Italy☀️
Glad to hear it! Have a wonderful day.
Definitely REALLY useful video! I wish I knew this when I in school. Imo actuarial field is kind of a tight circle, hard to get in. I would HIGHLY recommend getting actuarial internship for people who want a job in actuarial dept after graduation. Because without experience, it's really hard to enter regardless of how many exams you have. Programming is actually used much more than math in my experience. Knowing excel, SQL, SASS or even Python will definitely go a long way.
Just my thought 👍🏻🤓
Good to know
hello there, I would like to ask if knowing Python and R is good enough to get an entry level actuarial job after graduation. Is Excel a must or are companies lenient and let you pick it up as you go?
I studied Actuarial Sciences, double majored in mathematics and minored in economics. Mathematics has helped me to improve my actuarial skills quite lot. I am taking the exams now
Tell me your results please .. I wish you best luck
ezgi uçar in my city I don’t think have any testing center do that exams. Even university in my city no that actuary science major
Your number 1 and 10 contradict a bit there haha. I’d say you’d be better off turning your “extra class a semester” into study time to try to pass an actuary exam. One more actuary exam means way more than a double major. A minor in statistics on the other hand was very easy, don’t even remember if I needed an additional class. But if you think you get burned out taking the exams during school, trust me it gets much worse when you’re a decade removed from college.
Here’s what I wish I knew when I was deciding to become an actuary:
1. Getting an internship in college is way more important than even your gpa. I was very naive when I was in school and didn’t know the importance and always just treated my schoolwork as number 1, but if you don’t plan for your future and be proactive/aggressive towards getting an internship while at school, it will be extremely difficult to get into the actuarial profession. It took me years after school before I was able to get my foot in the door.
2. This may sound cynical but - on the whole - the exams are a bit of an scam. “Actuarial Science” spans so many disciplines, and the vast majority of the topics on the exams I’ve taken so far I’m quite confident I will never ever need to know for my career. To be somewhat fair to the Societies, they have been changing exams probably in part to deal with some of this. But I truly believe that the profession would make much more sense if you only had to pass a few exams that were very tailored to specific disciplines. And if you want to switch disciplines, then yea you gotta pass another test but at least you didn’t spend a year passing a test on material you’d never use. For example, I passed MFE a few years ago. And I know they’ve changed that exam since then, but pricing derivatives will just never be useful in my line of work. Also, because I never use it, I’ve forgotten it almost entirely. If I pass my fifth actuarial exam (which will be about 10 days from now), I will only then be finally able to actually study the material that is really relevant to my work.
Wow! I go to Penn State too. I’m planning on majoring in act sci and minoring in statistics. Your video helps a lot, thank you!
this somehow ended up in my recommendations.....how did they know my major?????????
Spooky... but glad to have you here!
Cool story bro, you're changing the world
Glad you think so!
Glad you think so!
Thank you for the vedio. Actually I'm working as a p&c actuary for about 11 years and I almost agree with you.
I was once in an environment doing software quality assurance related to actuarial products, and the bookpiles I found there certainly made my appetite whet! On the surface, it looks like really obscure stuff, but once you persisted and did it for a certain period of time, things were beautiful! Although I am a hands-on software practioner, the actuarial stuff was really interesting.
This is great cause a couple years after college(math & psych degree) I was thinking of doing actuary. Even started studying for the first exam. But this shows me I was probably right and wouldn't have liked the job.
I'm just one opinion so maybe ask around :). Thanks for watching!
Getting an internship in this field especially in Kenya 😭😭😭😭😭paying for these papers without a job is hard
Yeah. If I knew about the cost of professional exams before I think I would switch courses.
Amakev 254 how much for the exam? If you dont mind telling me
@@nursyazatulazlin3146 around an average of 250$
Per exam so count 15*250
Pam Dagger did you get the internship?
Thanks alot man I'm also gonna study actuary after high school
Best of luck to you!
@@BriTheMathGuy thanks man just subscribed to you!
Actuarial science is hard. I’m taking theory of interest to prepare me for financial math exam and this class is so hard!! The professor gives us questions that are so difficult compared to the practice questions
Isn't that just any questions teacher ask
@@rinyeongi6322 😆😂
I majored in math, but probability is probably my weakest mathematical ability. That's why I'm in accounting now. But I still dabble in physics and math as a hobby.
Eyyyyy Same man! Which accounting course you doing?
@@ThriveNow123 I'm finished now but the last courses I took were cost accounting and oil and gas upstream accounting. I think most people take cost accounting early in their college careers but I didn't.
The second half of your video reminds me A LOT of my profession, accounting. They are pretty similar in some ways, namely in that doing the actual work doesn't require you to be amazing at math and excel is your God.
I've thought about switching over to actuarial work but in addition to the math demands I don't think actuaries make much more than accountants in the long run, in the short run actuaries make more money than accountants but it's about the same in the long run plus there is more different types of jobs for accountants. Actuaries predominantly work in insurance and pensions in corporate.
But really it's about passion, be an actuary if your passionate about math and insurance. Be an accountant and later on a CPA if your passionate about business and investigations.
Thanks for your second point. That actually helped me a lot to know that.
Glad to help! Have a nice day.
Thank you very much brother, your clip was very helpful. Appreciate it.👍
No problem 👍
I'm still confused whether I want to pursue a career in finance or become an actuary. Can I become an actuary with a finance major?
Yes you can
Beautiful video
Thank you! Cheers!
My expectation: lot of math, calculation, with complete data
The truth: so much coding (i hate it), problem solving with incomplete data..😥
where did u do ur actuarial science degree?
@@mohdjufri9452 UiTM Shah Alam.. Btw, im not working yet.. And the only experience i've got is from my internship at zakat.. So, i must adapt my actuarial knowledge and try to fit it according to shariah law.. And it is not easy..😅
@@faishalfaiz6495 Yep, college is great at not teaching you about incomplete data. Regardless of what field you go into.
Bang,Actuary banyak peluang pekerjaan tak Bang?
faishal faiz haiiii wah wah can u tell ke more abt that course :)
Right now I'm finishing up my bachelor's degree in mathematics and have the choice between a master's in Actuarial Science And Financial Engineering or one in Applied Mathematics (which sounds more appealing to me and I can elect a lot of the same classes as the other major). I want to widen my skill set and not really narrow my path for the future. The problem is that I really don't know what the career possibilities are if I get my degree in applied math. My number one motives for wanting to become an actuary (and that I am also looking for in other jobs) are the nice balance of work and life (when you don't have to worry about the exams of course) and the nice compensation. I am really into data analysis. But, I heard that the job market for data analysts is very unstable. At the same time I also fear that the analysis that actuaries do is very repetitive and dull (I do not know if that is true). I would love to have a job in which I set up statistical models for different things.
What do you think the best job for me would be?
actuary work is simply not boring if you enjoy problem solving, if you want to have a competitive advantage for becoming an actuary make sure the Masters of actuarial science includes the part 1 subjects minimum, as you'll probably want to get at least your part 2 done, having some experience with coding is also pretty much a given
Data analysis (predictive analytics) is the hottest actuarial field
I’m a qualified actuary and have worked in valuations, research and development and now marketing. Actuaries are branching out into many different fields. In South Africa, you can now qualify as a Banking actuary. I think there’s a lot of variety. Not to mention the differences between short term insurance and long term insurance work.
I wish I know the answer for your question, because it's my question too.
I am an actuarial science major. I have just started my freshman year. This video was very helpful. Thank you! I’m actually taking a computer science class that is centered on Microsoft Excel so I am definitely going to become proficient in it by the time I graduate and at least I know it will be useful.
I was homeschooled so yep I am struggling and thinking of becoming an actuary.
Best of luck!
Thanks for posting this video and sharing your experience. I'm a Mathematics graduate as well with a Bachelor degree in Applied Mathematics and I'm currently in my first year of master's studies, also Applied Mathematics. When I graduated I was immediately called in an insurance company and they offered me internship in actuarial science. Now it is very hard to get a job here where I live and when I researched and found out that there are only 12 actuaries in the entire country I accepted it right away. I've been an intern for 6 months now and I am actually working closely with 1/12 actuaries and it really threw me off how little math I used and how much I needed excel spreadsheet knowledge. I have doubts, is this what I want to do my entire life, be stuck on a computer working in excel, should have I chosen another field, so I want to ask, if there are any actuaries here, does it get more interesting in time, will I use more of my mathematics knowledge?
Hey 3 years later what are your results, did it get any less boring? 😅
Love this guy
Thanks for viewing :)
I wish this video is closed-captioned for a deaf community since I myself am deaf who is very interested in Actuary. In fact, I am studying actuarial science and planning on taking the exam P soon.
Good luck! I am about to take my first class to study for exam P (this spring). Hopefully, all goes well for you!
Cannot agree any more! I'm doing actuarial analyst work
Since software applications are a huge deal in the actual job, do you think that an A level student shout part-take in subjects such as ICT due to the practical use of those application seem to bite in future? Or would you recommend computer science instead?
@@leonenkola1251 It's definitely a plus if you take some programming courses. The whole world is all about AI, data science, etc. With ICT background, it is more likely for you to stand out. I know Python is heat these days. Regarding choosing b/t computer science vs aci sci, it's up to your interest. As Brian mentioned, there's no difference from other analytics jobs. Just it's in the insurance industry, it happens to be called actuary. If you would like to apply some statistical analytics skills and also get the business insights out of it, Aci Sci is a pretty good option.
As an actuary working in P&C, I agree and disagree with this video. The work is very different for different kinds of actuaries (Pension, Life, Consulting, P&C, etc.) For aspiring actuaries (especially in P&C), I would recommend learning how to code (R, SQL, SAS..). Other than that, I do agree that it is definitely not necessary to major in Actuarial Maths but being surrounded by people going through the same things as you do helps a lot.
i am a senior pursuing actuarial science .what is the best strategy to use while deciding the type of an actuary i wanna be?
@@paulinewachira5839 hmmm i'd say internships but given that you're a senior i dont know if you'll be able to get any after you graduate. other than that, apply to all kinds of jobs. most people just stick with the one they get after graduating! also depends on how many exams you have, say you have 2 exams and you start a job in P&C and end up realizing that it's not what you want to do, you still have time to try a different job! hope that helps :)
@@ValeriyaKissie this is quite helpful.thank you
Yup plan on becoming an actuary or a pharmacist.
Best of luck and have a great day!
Thanks, very instructive. Love the video
This is correct but six figures
Thank you for this video bro, this is verry helpful For me ,
Very glad to hear it!
Seems like you had a hard time coming up with 10 things. Some have nothing to do with actuarial science in particular, but just getting a college degree.
When you say "Like any other corporate job" you, of course, mean what you envision other corporate jobs to be like, since you had not had any of those other corporate jobs, right?
Sorry it wasn't what you thought it would be, but internships pretty much imply very entry level work.
Yes! Spreadsheets, spreadsheets, spreadsheets. Because we do probably a million calculations a day. Yes, a lot of the formulas are already programmed into the sheet, but you still have to know what is going on. If something changes and the formula ends up incorrect, you have to know how to fix it. When I write the excel formula, it's a mathematical calculation. You have to know what to put in it. Without the calculation power of Excel, it would take forever to get the stuff completed.
Exams are tough. They get harder. Not only do they get more expensive, but they get longer. The last ones are 4 hours long.
If you want to know about becoming an actuary, talk to someone with more than 10 weeks of experience who decide to quit.
ActuarialOutpost.com and
Beanactuary.org
are a couple of excellent websites to find out information and discuss with people who know about the profession.
Also look at soa.org and casact.org. Those are the actuarial societies that give the exams.
He mentioned retirement as the internship (SOA), but there are all kinds of different actuarial jobs life, health, pension, casualty (home, car, auto, professional liability, workers compensation), etc. It's a pretty broad field.
Everything you say here is 100% accurate, great video!
Thanks very much! Have a wonderful day.
As an actuarial science in Malaysia,i am not suggesting people study this course because there are very rare job opportunities in ASEAN. Furthermore, the exam fees and stress can be a huge burden for u.
Can i ask, where did u do your study?
Hi , then would you recommend taking applied Mathematics major rather than actuarial science in Malaysia? I'm confused and quite stressed as there are veryyyy less people taking applied Mathematics compared to actuarial science in my university.
Saya bingung sekali di indonesia malah tinggi sekali score untuk masuk aktuaria, orang2 pandai berbondong masuk situ
AMAZING vedio GR8 CONTENT 💯
Thanks very much!
I’m expected to graduate in May of 2020 and this is so true I’ll be graduating with a bachelors in risk management, finance, and actuarial science, because it’s so easy to double major. My college reimburses you for the P and FM exam. I’ve failed both exams my first attempt ☹️ I’ll be taking them again soon. The exams are now $250, wish they still were $150 and you only need to pass those 2 to be certified you don’t need 5 anymore.☹️
Jasmine Vargas
Hey sister. Am also gonna graduate soon. Please tell me about these P and FM exams.
Koech Job they’re hard, I failed both. I’m about to take the second attempt
I’m not sure how tight your budget is but buying ADAPT for even just 30 days might be really helpful. Good luck on your next attempt!
Which country?
Nqobile Nzimande probably not in Africa
Good stuff bro, Thanks!
I am a retired actuary FSA (Fellow of the Society of Actuaries), I did get a BS in actuarial science but as a double major with financial accounting, just did a accounting degree with my electives being math. But a degree in actuarial science is a waste! Actuarial jobs are only from exams and experience. The degree does little to prepare for exams. They are very brutal, better to get a more generally useful degree and then get work as an “actuarial student “. Usually the company will then pay exam fees, books, often exam courses and may very well have bonuses for each exam passed
This may have been true when you did it. But at least the Temple program is 100% geared towards the exams. (Apart from the Lib Arts requirements etc.)
Same in STEM. Huge lack of online courses that are cheap. Same for medical lab clinical science
Thanks very much for watching and sharing. Have a nice day!
Closely guarded secrets.
Actuary has reached its matured phase long time ago. What companies do now is just to copy each others models and introduced little improvements here and there. That means the models you been using might be from the 80s and some of it can be found in spreadsheets and computer software written in COBOL and FORTRAN. Hahaha 😁
so what you mean is it’s not that wanted for the next couple yrs or what you’re saying is it’s not as hard and complex as it was ? please elaborate more because i’m considering taking this career
Great debrief!
I would mention that burnout isn’t unique to actuarial sciences, but the loss of enthusiasm can impact other courses too of course. University is a learning experience in many ways, and may be a good time to change paths or find some way to regenerate the enthusiasm.
Excel (64 bit) is so much better today than in the past allowing some seriously powerful number crunching. The pivot table and chart functionalities have vastly improved in terms of stability but we always find ways to push the limits further when analyzing larger quantities of data, for which powerBI or SAS may be helpful too :-)
Similar to Pilot exams. Difficult to pass, rarely use it due to technology onboard plane.
Interesting to hear. Thanks for watching!
Im an actuary ASA but i d recommend to look more into Data Science: Actuary with all those exams and the passing rate is a nightmare ...
40% passing rate is nothing.
JEE passing rate is 1%.
@kiwibrown engineering entrance exam in india
Appreciate the info!
If one is going to take an extra 30 credits, it's probably more advantageous to get a master's degree instead of a double major
Tnx so much that was helpful
I’m double majoring in actuarial science and risk management & insurance through the Wisconsin School of Business. And they reimburse for passed exams
I did the same exact thing. Best of luck to you.
Justin Koenig thank you!
Thanks this video made me want to be an actuary more
Great, best of luck to you!
Hello Sir, I completed my engineering and now i am thinking of pursuing actuarial science.. So does past experience affect this?
Same situation here.
Past experience is the only guide to the future
I think you could break into the field! If you are able to pass 2 exams on your own time and then apply for a position, your prior experience would probably be looked on nicely. It’s really a puzzle solving job, which engineers do a lot of that. Actuaries just do more puzzle solving with excel, vba, python, etc. So if you have the two exams, some puzzle solving experience and some coding experience that’s great!
INTERESTING
So relatable when he said 2:42 maths person 😂😂🙋🏻♀️
Mathematicians unite :)
Hey! I found this video quite helpful.
If anyone can help me please feel free to comment down below
So I am a CA student (India) also known as CPA, and i was thinking of joining Actuarial Sciences major through MBA course. Although I was a science student till school but joined CA in the same delusion that the maths used would be calculus, derivatives or theorems but it was statistics. I will start my articleship next year in Canada and have also decided to join a University which offers Actuarial Sciences.
Do i have to clear all the exams in order to become an Actuary?
Are exams taken from an independent professional body or does the college take them indivially?
Should I pursue Actuarial Sciences? And if yes, then which colleges or University should i join?
Should I do major in Actuarial Sciences while doing my articleship or complete my CA first?
I would be grateful if you helped me even a bit... Thanks!!!!!!!
Sorry I could no where help you out with your doubt but I myself have a doubt , if you could just solve it . so I am 12th commerce student I an really interested in number of things like computer maths and statistics economics , all tighter something like fintech. But let me tell I am very weak at accounting . so what should I pursue like go for BCA which is computer application includes coding which help as a actuarial science if I make it fix to pursue or economic or statistics . also some guidance about CA as a weak student like me . belonging from financially lower background family will I need a lot of money to do actuarial science like what figure it would be . I KNOW THEY ARE ARE LOT OF QUESTION BUT JUST A CONFUSED child like you might be somewhere when you were in this initial stages . I would be very grateful if you help me out .!!
@@joshepjane2162 yes, actuarial sciences requires a lot of money, the exams itself are very expensive and difficult while the coaching and books have their own heavy expenses. In comparison, CA requires very little money but is equally difficult, and can easily self study or watch free videos for various subject. Even if you are weak in accounts you can crack CA exams, all you have to do is work hard! Also, you could specialize in Income tax or audit in articleship if you want to deal lesser with accounts, although accounts are the basis of CA and it is every day thing for CAs. So if you don't like accounts I would suggest you not to go for it.
I wish i met this video earlier,,, currently in second year 🙃☝🏻
You got this!
What is the required math knowledge? Basic/advanced statistics, linear algebra, calculus, etc?
Essentially those! I would add probability theory (if you don't count that as advanced statistics) and financial mathematics.
BriTheMathGuy is it necessary to master these beforehand? Or is it part of the curriculum?
As pointed out in the vid his experience was that during his internship maths was not really used extensively and that being an actuary is like a normal corporate job. Is this true for most actuaries or are there actuaries that use a ton of (applied)math?
Thanks for commenting. Would love to hear what some people in the field think of this question.
I'm currently a math/economics/data science triple major and I'm wondering how much overlap does actuarial science have with data science?
Thank you!
You're welcome!
In my final year. Thanks for this video🤗
You're welcome! Best of luck with your last year!
lol. The end was great...He talks about actuarial science (I noticed he wasn't to hot on it with his facial expressions). Anyways, near the end he said that he went on a different route other than actuarial science. So ironic, don't you think?1
Thanks for sharing the whole lot of experience. It was unexpectedly helpful. Gr8 job u have done.
I really like this video, I wish we could be in touch because I am a college student and I intend to major in actuary
I am planning to do actuarial science, I will be completing my high school next year. I am confused either should I take the actuarial science degree itself or shall I do the alternative which is doing major in mathematics or statistics, but the exams will be tougher with doing major in mathematics
if you are completely sure that you want to become an actuary,go for the actuarial science degree.if you're not too sure about actuarial science and want to keep you options open,then i would suggest you go for a math degree.
Thank you for your video
You're welcome! Have a nice day.
I wish I knew you were such a Killjoy before I clicked on your video!!! 😁😆😆😆😅😅🤣😂🙃🙃😉
I wonder if there's more math in being an economist.
This is so helpful! I am considering this job and was thinking maybe the maths idea was too much. Knowing it's more statistics definitely helped. Can I know if there are any possible exemptions you can get from getting masters?
Yes, you get a few exemptions, starting when you are doing your undergrad. The number depends on which University you are attending.
Had my first degree in Industrial mathematics but i have been thinking of doing my masters in actuarial science
Thank
You.
You're welcome. Have a great day!
I've done this course in Kenya but no internships no jobs
Whaat so what do you do currently.... Can you get job in another country tz or ug maybe😯
Hey man, I just finished my bachelor's majoring in Math. stats and also planning to take act. Science exams..how to become a student member and also how to find an internship for yourself.
Myolwa Sive most internships will want you to have 1-2 exams already passed(or that you are actively studying for the exams) and some prior experience (not necessarily related to the role but they want to know you can competently work in a business environment)
Thanks alot for sharing this information with us.
You're very welcome! Have a great day.
Do you have any videos on what accountants do?
It's too late for me!!!! I've already passed an exam😢I'm too far in.
Congratulations on passing your exam!
@@BriTheMathGuy thanks alot man. I did fm and I'll going for p next. Trying to get an internship
Jaycee Williams do you regret?
@@scwmrtrn1366 I'm just joking around i haven't done an internship yet so i can't say it's too bad and it's a sequence under a mathematics degree at my school so if i don't like it, i can just fall back on my math degree and go do something else. Internships are kinda hard to find
Jaycee Williams i know it good luck dude
Just started my studies, I hope this helps.
Best of luck to you!
Thank you
You're very welcome. Have a great day!
Could you please do a video on the different math major concentrations and what they waxh lead too in graduate school or a video on which graduate degrees you can do with a math degree
So I am also like you who more into pure mathematics. But I am struck in my carrier. What is your carrier goal then? To become who?
From which field?
I wished I knew that I could CLEP up to 90 credits for my bachelor's degree. This would had help me graduate free of loans. Oh well.
If I were to become an actuary, what would be the best major? I was thinking about majoring in statistics and finance, minoring in economics, and taking a few computer science electives. I have already taken in depth Algebra 2 courses and AP Calculus as well. What do you think is best?
Thank you sir, this is helpful.
Glad you think so! Have a great day.