<p>So, were you someone who just sat in front of the computer for 40 hours a day doing rote excel work? If not, why has R&D been farmed to Asia?</p>
<p>It’s not about rote work, it’s about wage differences. It’s stupid beyond all thought to think that doing non-rote work somehow absolves you of the pressures of globalization.</p>
<p>If all you’ve got left is to call my thoughts “stupid beyond all thought”, then I’m quite comfortable with the case as it stands.</p>
<p>Worrying about outsourcing is not a good reason reason to not become an actuary; if you arent capable of making yourself valuable to your employer in your field, then youll end up on the sidelines one way or another wherever you go. </p>
<p>However, the last thing I want to do is make it sound like everyone (or even most people) should actually become actuaries. </p>
<p>Here are a few good reasons not to become an actuary:</p>
<p>Its a small field and can have supply-demand issues. Most of the time theres a shortage of qualified workers, but theres almost never a shortage of entry level people. This means it can be hard to break into. This is especially true right now if you spend any time reading the Actuarial Outpost (AO) career section, youll see plenty of examples. Of course, whether its worse than anywhere else is hard to measure.</p>
<p>You have trouble with very difficult tests. The initial actuarial exams are a bit easier than graduate level qualifying exams in quantitative subjects. The middle range actuarial exams are more difficult than qualifying exams. The final actuarial exams are (at least the SOA tests) 6 hour sit down, hand written tests that involve knowing thousands of pages of material (sometimes 5,000+) and memorizing tremendous amounts of information. Theyre hard to compare to other tests.</p>
<p>Ultimately how far you go in this career depends on both a broad but typical set of job-related skills, and on passing those exams. Some actuaries manage to get by with a minimum of the former; all need the later.</p>
<p>You dont like sitting in front of a computer, or you dont like office life. It seems obvious, but youd be surprised. There are people who fight tooth and nail to break into actuarial work and then find the cubicle lifestyle unbearable. A friend who was pre-med had a class with someone who quit their first actuarial job to become a vet she called it lifeless. I love my job, but the sedentary lifestyle is an issue .</p>
<p>There are certainly more than these, but they are probably a good place to start.</p>
<p>Thanks for the great thread advice everyone!
I’ll be entering college as a math major and I will take a few courses in actuarial science for the first two or even three threads.
Much appreciated!</p>
<p>I’ll jump in. I’m not an actuary, but I married one (insert joke here). Wife knew since high school that she wanted to be an actuary. She dual-majored in math and computer science. I don’t think her school had an actuarial major, and in hindsight it really didn’t matter. She got her advanced math education, passed her first exam during college, and easily got a job with a major insurance company. </p>
<p>Even if you know for sure that you want to be an actuary, you do not need to major in actuarial science. You can major in math, applied math, etc., maybe take some actuarial courses, take an exam, and see if you like the career. Check out beanactuary.org.</p>
<p>As for those exams, you have no idea how hard they are. Imagine some of the hardest exams you have heard about (bar exam, etc.). Now imagine passing 8-10 of them. And like Emergent said, they do get progressively harder. Wife has been stuck the final one for 10 years. Failed it 7 times.</p>
<p>Thanks for the insight Chardo!</p>
<p>I have a question for everyone whose posted in the thread- When should I take my first exam? Is there a level of math I should feel comfortable with before taking exam #1?
I just got my AP scores back and I got a 5 on AP Calc BC, but the program at Macaulay requires all math majors to take an honors track in math which requires me to take Calc 1 Honors at the school taught by the head of the department. I’ll have Calc 1 done by semester one, calc 2 by second semester and hopefully I can take an intro to probability/stats course here?
My school offers 1 credit courses for the first few exams so I want to know when I should take those.</p>
<p>Everyones advice is extremely appreciated!</p>
<p>Emergent</p>
<p>I had a quick question: Where did you go to college and what was your major? Do you think majoring in actuarial science rather than economics/finance is better or worse for job prospects?</p>
<p>Hey! I actually completely dropped my idea of doing anything in actuarial science/the business world and now I’m majoring in math and econ.</p>
<p>Good call. I am currently working as an actuary, and many of my coworkers were math/econ double majors. Even if it’s not what you want to do, it’s good to know you can still make it if you change your mind.</p>
<p>Just want to reiterate: anyone interested in it should try the first couple exams once they finish a year of calculus and a semester of probability. That’s really all the background you need to self-study the the first-couple exams. These exams are likely more difficult than any math exams in your school, perhaps significantly. That said, an aspiring actuary should find the first two only moderately difficult at most after spending good amount of time on it. If you find them difficult still, that’s a bad sign because they are supposed to be piece of cake compared to subsequent ones. </p>
<p>800 on SAT I/II mean absolutely nothing. It’s a very poor basis to use.</p>
<p>Hi, i am an international student. This fall i am going to enroll in a US college majoring in Business(Finance) and Mathematics. I am also planning to take actuarial science exam studying myself because the college does not have that degree. I love mathematics and i have nice background on A-level math, statistics, economics, business . I think i can do because i am also going to take actuarial science related majors i.e finance and math in college. The problem is can i take exam without attending any university on actuarial science? Also, do i get recognition if i passed most exam without attending actuarial science degree from university? Does the certificate/degree of US actuarial science is renowned across the globe especially south asia? How much each exam paper cost? Does i get good jobs if i passed most exam studying myself?</p>