<p>I don't know much about it, but it sounds really interesting. Does anyone have any information on the major and if it produces good jobs? Also are you able to meet the basic requirements for med school while working on this major?</p>
<p>[Be</a> an Actuary](<a href=“http://www.beanactuary.com%5DBe”>http://www.beanactuary.com) can help you.</p>
<p>Note that you do not have to major in actuarial science, though many seeking that career major in applied math or statistics and add appropriate electives.</p>
<p>If you are interested in med school, then do not major in actuarial science. Instead go to a pre-med program and study for actuarial exams on the side.</p>
<p>^Study for actuarial exams side-by-side? Won’t that kill her?</p>
<p>Keep in mind the road to becoming a fully fledged actuary is very tedious and time-consuming. But yes, it’ll be worth it.</p>
<p>What is it you want to know, exactly?</p>
<p>While I think having a variety of skills is useful, I also think if you’re trying to prepare for both an actuarial career and a medical career you’ll likely just fail at both.</p>
<p>It is likely not that hard to take the pre-med courses around a math, statistics, or actuarial science major. But the likely issue is in choosing extracurriculars and internships where the student may not have time for both (and medical schools may not like seeing a pre-med splitting time with some other pre-professional activity).</p>
<p>@ ucbalumnus</p>
<p>Aren’t med schools looking for well-rounded applicants?</p>
<p>OK: Spending time playing violin for a local orchestra.
Not OK: Internships related to actuarial science.</p>
<p>???</p>
<p>I’m not suggesting that the poster pursue an actuarial and medical career at the same time. I simply meant that if she’s interested in becoming an actuary, she should try her hand at the exams first, before fully committing to an actuarial science major. </p>
<p>If she becomes an act sci major, then later on realizing she can’t finish the exams, then she is basically out of options, since med school will hardly be impressed with an act sci degree. </p>
<p>An act sci major with no exams is worth less than the value of the paper the diploma is printed on.</p>
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<p>I don’t know about that statement. An Actuarial Science major is basically a Math/Stats major and with the right electives can be very marketable.</p>
<p>Math major here!</p>
<p>Perhaps I was a bit too harsh, however I can’t think of a single advantage an act sci major would have over a math/stat major ** outside of the insurance industry **. After all, many people still do not know what actuaries are/do.</p>
<p>How long until the actuary field becomes the new nursing/JD/PharmD that is swamped with oversaturation of labor?</p>
<p>I generally agree with MaxwellsDemon. An ActSci major with no exams will not result in an actuarial job until exams are passed, and it will be a very hard sell in other jobs. Most employers have no idea what an actuary is and have no interest in hiring one for non-actuarial work. If you make it to the interview stage you’ll end up having to explain what an actuary is, why you didn’t become one, and why you didn’t pass any exams. If you’re the only applicant, you’ll still get the job. . . but you won’t be the only applicant.</p>
<p>It’s not a kiss of death, but you’d be much better off with a stats degree. Frankly, in the US you’re better off with a stats degree, period. Skip the actsci major. Even going back for a Masters is only suggested in very specific circumstances.</p>
<p>To Gravenworld, entry level actuarial work has been completely saturated for a few years now. Credentialed and experienced actuaries, on the other hand, are very hard to come by. There are lots of jobs in my specialty that go unfilled.</p>
<p>As an entry level candidate myself, I definitely feel that the profession at the entry level is starting to become over saturated. The industry is starting to attract a lot of college students who are good at math and are looking for a steady paycheck. </p>
<p>@Emergent: There are specific instances where an act sci degree is appropriate, that is if you are certain you want to become an actuary. For someone that is on the fence, you are definitely better off with stats.</p>
<p>I was thinking that any Math or Stats major should always have a “plan B”.</p>
<p>@maxwell’s demon:</p>
<p>Then someone who wants to be an actuary should major in actuarial science because of the more crowded applicant field these days? </p>
<p>Do resume scanning bots looking for “math” or “statistics” usually overlook “actuarial science” and even send it to the bit bucket?</p>
<p>Does ActSci lack something that is automatically presumed to be part of stat or math?</p>
<p>As strange as it sounds, Ive heard some actuaries in hiring positions say theyd prefer candidates with broader backgrounds than they believe an Act Sci degree provides. However, there are also actuaries that think highly of it, and there are many people in hiring positions that dont care. For many actuaries the particular college degree is relatively unimportant.</p>
<p>IMHO you avoid an Act Sci degree for your sake, not theirs. Comparing the areas of statistics, biostatistics, data mining and actuarial work, the quality of jobs varies a lot more within them than between them. A good stat job is better than a crappy Act Sci job, and vice versa. Try to graduate with as many doors open as you can, so that youll be picking between offers, instead of hoping for one.</p>
<p>If youre already in an Act Sci program, do well in your coursework and graduate with plenty of exams and youll be fine. Im just saying that one huge advantage of the actuarial career path in the US is that it is flexible in what background is required. Very few careers are like that and I suggest students take advantage of it.</p>
<p>@DTBTSE</p>
<p>Yes, in my opinion, if you want to be an actuary an actuarial science major is a good option, but by no means the only one.</p>
<p>The biggest advantage of an act sci major is that classes are specifically geared towards passing exams. I have friends at other schools who didn’t pass P until their junior year because they had to self study. I passed P my freshman year, two weeks after my final exam. </p>
<p>There are other benefits that vary from program to program, such as: exam fee reimbursements, actuarial speakers, actuarial career receptions, alumni networking, campus recruiting etc. These are things that a math and stat department will not have. </p>
<p>As for job hunting, most entry level actuarial positions will have recruiters looking at the top CAE schools for actuarial science majors. So, don’t worry about resume scanning bots. </p>
<p>In terms what act sci degrees lacks in comparison to stats/math degree? Well, you won’t have as many options for career paths once you graduate. But pre-med/pre-law majors suffer a similar problem. It comes down to how confident you are that actuarial science is the right career for you. </p>
<p>Another thing is that math/stats courses will focus more on theory. All math majors will have to run into real analysis or some other type of proofs class. Act sci majors don’t. We are taught what’s on the exams, period. If its not on the test, you will not learn it. Some people who are extremely intellectually curious about advanced pure math/stats concepts will be disappointed.</p>
<p>“Another thing is that math/stats courses will focus more on theory. All math majors will have to run into real analysis or some other type of proofs class. Act sci majors don’t. We are taught what’s on the exams, period. If its not on the test, you will not learn it. Some people who are extremely intellectually curious about advanced pure math/stats concepts will be disappointed.” </p>
<p>I find it strange in the US that an act sci major is like this. Where I’m from a math major is built into an act sci major. Stuff like real analysis, abstract algebra and linear algebra are compulsory. You also have to choose from a list that contains complex analysis, topology and PDE among other things.</p>
<p>@764764:</p>
<p>I have heard of a least one college that back in the 19th century had required all students to have taken all courses offered in order to graduate. In other words, no majors, unless perhaps each student was to write papers on a subject of his choice.</p>
<p>@Maxwell’sDemon:</p>
<p>An ActSci program sounds more like job-training than education. But then, in today’s world where are we supposed to get job-training? </p>
<p>Would a degree in business or math be feasible if one were to take the actuarial courses along side, or would that be too difficult to manage?</p>
<p>Not just in the 19th century. Today, St. John’s College has a core (“great books”) curriculum that is the entire curriculum.</p>