First things first. Its Actuary.  A  C  T  U  A  R  Y . Not Actuarian. Not Actuarist. Definitely not Actuarial. Or any other version you can come up with. Call me an Actuary or call me Mister. Nothing else is acceptable. Get it right, right now.

Okay one more time. The profession is called the Actuarial profession. The practitioner is called an Actuary.

A C T U A R Y.

 

Now for the Faqs
 

1. What is an actuary?
2. What do actuaries do?
3. What do you do?
4. What do your other actuarial friends do?
5. Where do actuaries work?
6. How do you become an actuary?
7. Why should you consider becoming one?
8. What are the pre-reqs to becoming one - education / personal attributes?
9. Is it a recognised / respected profession?
10. How many are there?
11. When and How did it start?
12. Why is it needed?
13. What are the employment  opportunities / Which fields can they work in?
14. What is the salary range for an Actuary?
15. How many kinds of Actuaries can there be i.e speciality?
16. Is it like an MBA?
17. So how does it differ from a CFA?
18. Is the degree offered by Universities everywhere - where?
 
 
 
 

1. What is an actuary?

As a rule we are good with numbers. Not equations or theories or proofs. Just numbers.  Although in the course of our educations we end up studying hundreds of equations and theories and proofs but in the end it all boils downs to numbers.

Our is not the only profession with a stranglehold on numbers.  But we specialize in distant numbers. Numbers that are in the future or numbers that have not been realized as yet.  The biggest problem with the future is that its uncertain. Although actuaries are not magicians or palm readers they understand uncertainity. They are trained to evaluate uncertain future events and their financial impact.

Traditionally Actuaries worked with insurance companies. Twenty years ago an actuary was the person who could explain social security, life insurance, health insurance, casuality insurance, pension and annuities in one breath. Now he or she can also explain what's happening to the stock and bond markets, where you should investment your money and why is it such a bad idea to convert everything you have to gold and bury it in your backyard.
 
 
 

2. What do actuaries do?

Actuaries generally work within three fields. They work with insurance companies and decide what would be the right rates to charge for life, health and casualty insurance.  They also work with employers to decide what would be your employee benefits and how much of your retirement benefits you have to pay for. Finally they work with the government to determine what kind of a social safety net can the government afford to provide to its citizens.

However actuaries are not just limited to the above three fields. They also manage investment portfolios, they assist in designing and operating risk management programs. They work as teachers, software developers, business analysts, chief financial officers, chief information officers and a lot more.

What you end up doing and where you end up working depends on what interests you and what you want to do in the long run. There are no limits or boundaries.
 
 
 

3. What do you do?

I do a number of things. I worked for six years during which
 

I have worked with pensions and employee benefits plans on how much money they need now to pay the benefits they owe to their employees in the future

• I have worked with insurance companies and insurance brokers and advised them on information technology (IT) and systems

• I have designed and implemented financial accounting systems for non insurance enterprises

• I have managed teams of upto 15 people working together on IT projects lasting more than 2 years.

• I have worked with small startups and advised them on organizational structure and employee incentives

• I have worked with the risk management team of a large investment bank

 
 

4. What do your other actuarial friends do?

Very few friends and even fewer who are actuaries. Mainly because there are just a handful of us in a locality. One of my closest professional colleague runs the largest management consulting organization in his country. Another runs an insurance company. Yet another is a senior manager with a large insurance company. While the youngest has just started working as a software developer.  Our ages range between 39 years and 21 years.
 
 
 
 


5. Where do actuaries work?
 

1. With Insurance (Life, Casualty and Reinsurance) companies
2. As consulting actuaries with consulting organizations
3. With Pension funds and employee benefit trusts
4. With the government
5. For themselves
6. With software development setups
7. Within the investment management field
8. With investment banks and other financial institutions

 
 

6. How do you become an actuary?

With much difficulty.   You generally appear in a series of professional membership exams. You pass all of the exams between six and ten years. You fulfill the membership requirements and behold! You are an actuary.

It's a lot more difficult than above. Check out the actuarial organizations listed under online resources. Write to one of the organizations telling them about your interest and they will get back to you.
 
 
 
 
 

7. Why should you consider becoming one?

If you like maths and you think you are above average than that is one good reason.  If you like interacting with people that is another good reason.  If you like responsibility and

 

 

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