How to Become an Actuary?

Actuaries are professional that use their statistical and mathematical techniques to quantify uncertain events, risks. Actuaries domains include Valuations, Risk Management, Advisory, Designing (Pricing, reserving) of insurance products and much more. Actuary can work in insurance or non insurance industry. Ability to make sense of data is our strongest point.

This article is for people aspiring to become an Actuary. There is hardly adequate information available on internet, so I am writing this here to give you all the information in one place. This article relates to students who are aspiring to do actuarial science from Indian or UK institute. Let’s get started

1.     Complete 10+2 Education in Commerce/Science/Arts

   

      2.    You should preferably take maths as one of the subjects. This is not mandatory but I generally do not recommend to take up this course if you haven’t studied maths in 10+2. You can join only if you are willing to put in huge efforts to study maths in very short period of time.

      3.    I am assuming you are in India. There are two institutes from which you can write exams to become an Actuary. One is Indian institute, Institute of Actuaries of India and other is Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, UK.

      4.    Both institutes have Exam centres in major cities of India. Exam Pattern of Both institutes are same. Syllabus of both institute is exactly same.

      5.    In Both Institute there are 15 odd exams which you need to pass to be called an Actuary. Exams are held every 6 month and you may opt for max 3 subjects randomly choose. There are 4 groups consisting of total 15 subjects

i.             Core Technical (CT) – 9 subjects

ii.            Core Application (CA) – 3 subjects

iii.          Specialist Technical (ST) – chose any 2 subjects among available options

iv.           Specialist Application (SA) – Choose any 1 among available options

      6.    To be able to write exam of Indian Institute, you need to pass ACET (Actuarial Common Entrance Test). This is held twice every year, majorly June and December. This is online Exam consisting of Least Maths and Stats required to give further Exams.

      7.    To be able to write exam of UK Institute, You need to score 80+ in Maths in 12^th (10+2) Exams OR Graduate with atleast 55% aggregate OR MBA in Finance. If you don’t meet the criteria then you may sit for CT1 exam as Non-Member. If you pass CT1 Exam, you get membership of UK institute. There is no separate exam for entry in Uk institute like ACET.

      8.    Once you pass ACET or meet criteria for UK institute, you need to take membership of the institute by paying membership fees.

      9.    Now, you are all set to write the exams.

      10. First exam that you should preferably take is CT1 and/or CT3.

      11.  Also Note, You may simultaneously hold membership of both the Institutes. If you pass any exam from Indian Institute then you get exemption for same exam in UK and if you pass any particular paper from UK institute then you get exemption from India. Once You clear all 15 exams, You will be called an Actuary. You need to have atleast 3 years of work experience by the time you clear all your exam. Start working after clearing 3-4 exams.

Any more Question? Do comment.

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Also Read - ACET

IS THIS A DEAD END OF FRESHERS JOB IN ACTUARIAL? PART-2

Continued from PART 1

Before complaining you should understand, why companies should hire you?

There are many other students who are seeking the same job. How will you stand differentiated among others?

You should have a few things on your CV which gives you edge over others. Any Intern-ship experience, Proficiency in Visual Basics, R, SAS, SQL etc will help you a lot. It’s difficult to learn all these softwares by the time you graduate but at least Visual Basics is must. Writing/Modifying Macros is most important part of work.

Have you ever thought of going through Insurance Act before going for a Job Interview in Insurance Company Or Going through AS15(R) before you go for a job interview which requires employment benefits valuation? Just think, a small point which says “Expert Knowledge of Insurance Act (Amended)/AS15(R)” will stand out on your CV.

So these are small things that make you unique. When you are seeking a JOB, you need to seek it smartly.

Which Actuarial Papers do I need to get a Job?

Well there is no hard and fast rule but CT1 and CT3 is must. CT5/CT6 is required based on kind of work company does. More papers might be required by few companies. So it’s all subjective to companies. 3-4 papers is ideal.

What if there are no VACANCIES in insurance sector?

This is a bad question as they frequently arise. Indian Insurance companies are growing and they are continuously expanding their team. More and More Vacancies to come up as this sector expands more. This is the right time to start.

Are there opportunities outside insurance?

Yes, A lot. We make sense out of numbers and we can do some really great work in Analytics, Big Data. In recent report of Forbes, It has rated “Data Scientist” as no 1 job in the world. Why don’t we conquer this specific industry as early as possible? Companies require people who are good at maths and number crunching. You can definitely prove you are if you have taken your actuarial exams pretty seriously.

In Analytics, We read huge amount of data with us and try to predict future events and lot of other required information.

These is amazing scope in Risk Management too. Lately, I have seen some companies hiring actuarial students in risk management team.

Maximum opportunities today are in Pensions and other Employee benefits valuation in accordance with AS15(R) and IAS19 which mandates actuarial certification of the report. There is a huge scope in domestic market plus huge amount of work from outside is being outsourced in India this day due to availability of man power in our country.

More the number of students available, more the amount of work coming in India from International market. So lot of people joining in is definitely not a bad news till an extent.

In Short,

- Decide on a field where you want to work

- Make good CV

- Have soft skills and communication skills

- Search at right place.

If you follow this and if you are talented, I am sure you will get a job soon. Plus being into actuarial always be ready to relocate to major city like Mumbai.

Also note, if you have passed exams but your communication skills are not good then sadly but hardly any company would hire you. Companies hire not because they are generous and want to give you a way to earn but to get their work done. So any lack of required talent will result in rejection. When you seek something, you have to dance on the tune of the one who give (At least in Domestic companies, agreed?). There cant be a place for everyone and anyone, You should be ready to make your own space.

So stop complaining, Start searching!

At the end, as always, I advise to stop working for others and start working for yourself. It will take double efforts but then rewards will be more then double. Be your own BOSS! Be an ENTREPRENEUR! 

Good Luck!

Do share if you like!

Also Read - Actuarial Jobs - Myths Busted

IS THIS A DEAD END OF FRESHERS JOB IN ACTUARIAL? PART-1

No, it’s a fresh new start. Profession has just started to mushroom in India. 

Actuaries in India has conventionally worked in Insurance Sector Only. Most of them are employed in this field and still many actuaries working in Indian insurance companies are NRIs. There are as many as 8 companies as per my knowledge who are seeking actuaries but they are unable to find any. So basically, the only field where actuaries are employed is still looking for actuaries. It hasn't got sufficient numbers yet. This is about Fellow Actuaries.

OK, let’s agree fresher are not getting jobs these days. But… Are they really looking for jobs in right place? I see lot of things missing from young students. Everyone is complaining, No one is actually thinking where the problem is. I graduated few years back and all my batch-mates who were into actuarial got jobs within 4-5 months of graduation. I got one within few days, which I quit after 3 months to have my own set-up.

First of all, who in India recruit actuarial Professionals? 

1.     Life Insurance

2.     General Insurance

3.     Health Insurance

4.     Reinsurance Companies

5.     Pension Funds

6.     Consultants

7.     Investments

8.     Government

9.     Academics

10.Risk Management

(Source : IAI)

Now, Let’s note a few quick things you should do, to find right opportunities at right time

1.     Clean, Updated Linked In account is a must.

2.     Just having a linked In Account won’t do.  What you need to do is, make a list of Fellows and follow them on linked In. (Don’t send them annoying messages, seeking a job desperately :p). Likewise Make a list of Insurance companies and Multinational Consultancies working in India. Make sure to have connect with all of them.

3.     Do check Institute’s career page to get a note of vacancies.

4.     Look for jobs posted in various portals like (iimjobs, monster, Naukri etc)

5.     Join Facebook Groups. I frequently see some jobs posting in my Facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/actuary.aspirants)

Is this Enough? Definitely No.

Most important thing is to have a Neat and Clean, Small and presentable CV.

Things to note while making a CV

-    Freshers CV should not be of More than 1 page.

-    Never Ever write Career Objective in it.

  -    Never Ever Write “Curriculum Vitae” in bold on the  top. Instead use the space to write your name.

  -    Write Only Contact no. and Email ID below your  Name on the top of page.

  -    Start with Most relevant qualification and recent    one. Old ones to be followed in order.

  -    Soft Skills Acquired

  -    Achievements, if any.

  -    Personal Details (Marital Status, Languages known,    Age, Address etc). Don’t write too many.

  -    If Possible, Do give reference of any notable person who knows you personally.

-    Font should be small and simple. Highlight important things efficiently.

These point should help you to prepare an apt CV.

Continue Reading … Part 2 

Do share if you like!
Also Read - Actuarial Jobs - Myths Busted

ACET Coaching

FUTURE TRACK has started with coaching session for upcoming ACET exam to be held in May/June 2016.

Schedule for the same can be noted from this link - Coaching Schedule

Coaching session in Classrooms will be conducted in Mumbai, Delhi and Jaipur. I will be teaching in Mumbai.

Syllabus for ACET might change for this coming exam and syllabus will be covered accordingly.

IAI has not yet announced Exam schedule for next ACET Exam.

Also Read - Difference Between Qualified Actuary and Partly Qualified Actuary

18th Global Conference Of Actuaries - Takeaways

It was very refreshing and enriching to attend 18th Global Conference of Actuaries(GCA), organised by Institute of Actuaries of India(IAI). The event was Attended by Officials of Actuarial Institutes of India, UK and others along with many fellows, Associates, Students and many other Delegates. IRDA cheif and its Chief Actuary were among prime speakers. IFoA president and Director were among the very happening people I met.

IFoA officials themselves hosted very enriching students event on both the days of Conference.

Various speakers presented papers on various topics including regulatory, corporate and economical changes. Topics discussed includes Life Insurance, Pensions, General Insurance and more importantly Analytics. I saw many people pitching analytics as very important feild for Actuaries in coming days.

I have been talking about this in my past. This is the only way out to solve the issue of lack of jobs. We need to get into fields which are called "Non Traditional". Analytics is FUTURE. No company will be able to survive the competition without it. This is right time we Actuaries make our space in the industry. We are apt people to understand this field better than anyone else. All students who are finding it difficult to get a job in " Actuarial" should go for "Analytics" as next best option. Insurance Industry has limited space to absorb each and everyone.

In an informal conversation with IAI president Rajesh Dalmia during dinner, He told me that experience in any profile which requires "QUANT" will be considered in "3 year mandatory Work Experience" required to become fellow.

Hope this will break the ice. Do Share.

Also read - Actuarial Jobs - Myths Busted

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