<p>I've just been accepted into Berkeley, and if I go there, I plan on majoring in mathematics/statistics, because these are two common majors for those who are pursuing a career as an actuary. My only concern, though, is that because of the lack of specificity for actuarial science, would it be difficult for me to prepare for such a career at Berkeley? I saw that there's an Actuarial Club there, which was encouraging, but are there specific.classes that are associated with actuarial science? Are there other available resources? I really want to go to Berkeley, but because of living in NJ, I want to make absolutely certain that Berkeley can be an ideal place for preparing for my future, especially when I'm 2500 miles away from home, and can go to Pitt or Purdue and major in actuarial science at a far cheaper price.</p>
<p>It is definitely possible for people who major in Applied Mathematics or Statistics to go into the actuarial profession. For Applied Mathematics you must complete three additional courses to create an applied cluster. One of those clusters is Actuarial Science. You can see what kind of jobs people get who major in Applied Mathematics or Statistics at the two bottom links.</p>
<p>Wow, thanks! I really appreciate this, because I wasn’t expecting a response that helpful. I do have a follow-up question: If I put Statistics as my intended major on the application, would it be any more difficult to choose Applied Math instead, because there was no indication of it on the application? </p>
<p>It doesn’t matter what you put on the application at all. You could have even put Integrative Biology, Middle Eastern Studies, or Sociology on your application and it wouldn’t have made a difference. All of the new admits to the College of Letters and Science are actually undeclared. You are soon going to choose your class schedule for the fall semester and you should choose according to your interests, actuarial science. It shouldn’t matter whether you pick statistics or applied mathematics, or mathematics, or operations research. These majors all have the same pre reqs pretty much. So basically, I advise not to really care about which major you choose right now, but rather be more concerned with the classes you choose.</p>
<p>Math, Applied Math, and Statistics are all in the College of Letters and Science, so freshman applicants apply just to the College of Letters and Science (intended major does not affect selection) and those admitted enter as undeclared. None of these three majors is capped, so you can just declare after passing the prerequisites (although the Math Department recommends that only those who get at least a B- in Math 53, 54, and 55 declare the Math or Applied Math major).</p>
<p>If you look around the [Be</a> an Actuary](<a href=“http://www.beanactuary.com%5DBe”>http://www.beanactuary.com) site, you will find the “Validation by Educational Experience” (VEE) course list for many universities, including Berkeley (and Purdue and Pittsburgh). You should be able to easily include the courses fulfilling the VEE requirements, along with other course work recommended by that site, alongside a Math, Applied Math, or Statistics major.</p>
<p>Note that the Operations Research and Management Science major in the College of Letters and Science is capped, and you have to apply to declare it. The Industrial Engineering and Operations Research major is in the College of Engineering, so you have to apply to switch to it.</p>