<p>I was considering a job into actuary. Anyone know from experience how hard the exams are? Is it mainly just practicing and studying (like the SAT) or just like critical thinking? </p>
<p>A little background: I'm pretty decent at math. Currently a sophomore in Algebra 2.
Algebra is my thing. Always get As in it. (Alg 1 and 2)
Geometry isn't my thing. Got a C+ final grade.
Don't know about calc yet. </p>
<p>Any recommendations at all to what to do? Take a course at CC or something? </p>
<p>What does the exams consist of? Calc, Stat, etc?</p>
<p>There are internships available to check out the field. </p>
<p>I disagree that the exams will be easy if you take a class. You will need far more prep time to pass than a regular class. The director of actuarial science at our university advises us to plan on 200 hours of prep time in addition to a class. 300 without a class.</p>
<p>Click on each exam and scroll down to “Past Exam Questions and Solutions”.</p>
<p>From what I’ve heard on ActuarialOutpost, you will definitely need to spend some serious time studying, especially for later exams after you are working.</p>
<p>Of course you are not guaranteed a job. No one is. </p>
<p>As for the outlook, the BLS states this:
Employment is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations. Competition for jobs will be keen as the number of qualified candidates is expected to exceed the number of positions available.</p>
<p>sounds like you are pretty young, so i’m gonna offer you some advice i was able to pick up as i was looking for majors especially in business school. I don’t mean this in any degrading form.</p>
<p>To succeed in actuary, you can’t just be decent at math, you have to be great at it. And in reality, you are not suppose to be great at math, you are suppose to be skilled in analytical thinking and problem solving. that’s what people that are great at math can do. They can use the tools they learned, which are most of the time very basic, and apply it to new concept and learn more. for example, geometry is building on the foundation of Algebra, you said you were good at algebra but hated geometry, that just means you learned the subject but not the concept or the thought process that alegbra was trying to teach you. you realized this when you get to college that most of the subjects you learned are really teaching you how to think and not the actual content. </p>
<p>To really be good at math, up to the standard of actuary, you have to be at a level where you look a new concept and understand its basic meaning almost immediatly.
that’s when you can have a really good understanding of statics and all else that is involved in actuary. you can’t force yourself to learn these things, it needs to come naturally. acutary is not easy, that’s why it’s easy to find a job, there is a demand out there for it. every company need a underwriter. If everyone that’s decent at math can study and pass actuary, then we would all do it and get big pay check 5 years out of school. but that is unfortunatly, not the case. </p>
<p>I would dare to say that math majors won’t be success in actuary becuase they may lack that kind of thought process that is involved.</p>
<p>the actuary science majors i know are all hard working, extrememly competitive and brilliant. </p>
<p>if you think that you, go for it. But with every college plan, you have have a plan B and plan C. think about this when you are picking classes. IF this doesn’t work out, where do i go next?</p>
You would dare to be wrong. From the BLS:
“Usually, actuaries earn an undergraduate degree in mathematics, statistics, or actuarial science, or a business-related field such as finance, economics, or business.”</p>
<p>Yes but along that line it has to be stressed that actuarial science is not a business major either. People looking for a business school experience should not choose act-sci. It’s an applied mathematics degree with a pretty rigorous examination process.</p>
My DH was a math major in those days, earning a 3.9 gpa and graduated summa cum laude. He had a job waiting for him. Today, he uses those specific skills that were once tested less and less. But that’s because his job entails being able to explain complicated concepts to clients in language they can understand. It’s as much problem solving as anything. Actuarial work combines both math and legal jargon. There are very few people who achieve at his level which is why the pay is so good.</p>
<p>If you’re only in HS, there’s no need to worry about college majors and ultimately careers. There’s plenty of time for that. If you’re good in math, keep it up. There are many opportunities that use math and not everyone can claim it’s their best subject.</p>
<p>Oh I see. ipam45, are you pursuing a career in actuary?
I am still considering this career. Although I’m young, I like to have my opinions open. Anyone here want to tell their experience with the examinations and college life if you’re pursuing a career in actuary.</p>
<p>No, I’m a finance and international business major with a minor in MIS and German. I’m very interested in the concepts and theory (Risk management and analysis, specifically) in actuary, but just do not have that ability to practice it. i wish i did :p</p>
<p>I think it’s fantastic that you are looking into a specific major at your age instead of just saying “i want to study business or engineering” and i encourage you to keep doing that. talk to some actuaries and ask for their opinion. i think they would know better than all of us here. </p>
<p>and to clarify what i meant before is not that math people cannot be actuaries…infact i agree, a lot of them do. but what i was going towards was that just because you are great at math, doesn’t mean you can do actuary. </p>
<p>In reply to winbacker, i completely agreed. My university has moved the actuary program from the business school to engineering school and Liberal Arts (Math Department) so students start their first two years in Engineering school or LA learning math and then Junior and Senior level they are back (somewhat) in business school to finish off the degree. We are not sure what that degres is, whether it’s from the business school or somewhere else. It’s all part of the revamping of their curriculum that the Carlson School of Management and University of Minnesota is going through. </p>
<p>I believe it depends on the amount of tests. Usually they can earn anywhere from $50,000 to $400,000 depending on the time they were there and the amount of tests they have passed.</p>
<p>ipam, thank you for your response. I’ll definitely ask some actuaries. Hopefully this will be the “right” career for me even though I don’t have the strongest skills in math.</p>
<p>The salaries for actuaries does not equal investment banking. Here is a link with average salary data for actuaries depending on time in the field and number of exams passed. </p>
