Tell me about becoming an actuary...

[javaj]

I've been contemplating a career change for a few years now. A little background -- my undergrad is in Electrical Engineering, I have a master's in Computer Science. I have been a systems and software engineer for about 9 years.

Does anyone have any advice about becoming an actuary? How difficult are the exams? How difficult is it to get a job as an actuary once you achieve associateship? Or do you start looking for a job right after the first exam? SOA or CAS -- what is the difference? Any information would be great.

Thanks!

 

[almacdonald]

All I know is that I took 1/2 of an actuarial science class in university and decided the was WAAAYYYY too much calculus involved for my simple geologist's brain. You sound like you might have a grasp on thost pesky transforms and triple integrals though!

 

[salmoneous]

Hey, if I can get through the exams (SOA) they can't be too tough, right? Basically, you need to be a good test taker, have been a good student (most successful actuaries were probably 3.8+ students in college - maybe translates to something lower for an EE at a top school) and be willing to put in the time. Time's the tough one for switching into the profession. It's not that hard to find the time to study when you are right out of college. But once people get married, have families, etc. it becomes a lot tougher.

The profession is designed for people to be taking exams while gaining work experience. You rarely see people take a bunch of exams then get a job - such a person would be in a over-qualified under-experienced mismatch. Possible? Yes, but uncommon.

You could normally start looking for a job after one exam, but you look like a more serious candidate after two. The problem is you would probably be taking a career step backwards if you moved to an intro actuarial job. As I said, the profession is designed around on-the-job learning. There aren't a lot of opportunities to start an a non entry-level spot.

Jobs are very easy to get. But the profession is small with a limited number of employers. So getting a job in a specific location can be very hard.

Anything else you want to know, just ask. Oh, and as for the calculus thing, we don't actually use that on the job. Just part of the hoops you have to jump through as part of the exam/weeding-out process.

 

[luv2nascar]

I hear their BRUTAL from fellow co-workers.

 

[javaj]

salmoneous,

Thanks for the info! I did consider that any career change at this point would be a step back, not to mention a paycut. I just want a job that I don't dread going to everyday. I also tried to take into consideration new careers that I could possibly be back at the place I'm at in just a few years.

Do you have any tips on good test study material? And I know that it'll differ for each person, but what is the average amount of study time for each test? i.e. 3 hours a day for 2 months, or ?

Just trying to decide which exam to register for first, and for which session. I missed the registration deadline for the Fall 2006 Probability exam, but the Financial Math registration deadline is this Friday. I'm not sure I'll have enough time to study between now and the Nov 8th exam, so I'm hesitating.

I have always been a good test taker, I hope I haven't lost it

Hey, if I can get through the exams (SOA) they can't be too tough, right? Basically, you need to be a good test taker, have been a good student (most successful actuaries were probably 3.8+ students in college - maybe translates to something lower for an EE at a top school) and be willing to put in the time. Time's the tough one for switching into the profession. It's not that hard to find the time to study when you are right out of college. But once people get married, have families, etc. it becomes a lot tougher.

The profession is designed for people to be taking exams while gaining work experience. You rarely see people take a bunch of exams then get a job - such a person would be in a over-qualified under-experienced mismatch. Possible? Yes, but uncommon.

You could normally start looking for a job after one exam, but you look like a more serious candidate after two. The problem is you would probably be taking a career step backwards if you moved to an intro actuarial job. As I said, the profession is designed around on-the-job learning. There aren't a lot of opportunities to start an a non entry-level spot.

Jobs are very easy to get. But the profession is small with a limited number of employers. So getting a job in a specific location can be very hard.

Anything else you want to know, just ask. Oh, and as for the calculus thing, we don't actually use that on the job. Just part of the hoops you have to jump through as part of the exam/weeding-out process.

 

[salmoneous]

I'm probably not the best person to ask these sorts of questions, but here goes…

Officially, you need several hundred hours of study time for an exam and the 6-7 weeks or so between now and November 8th isn't nearly enough time - you should be more than half way through the material by now.

My highly opinionated opinion? If you are the kind of person who will get through the exams relatively easily and if you are the kind of person who will be a really good actuary, then you can cram the next 6-7 weeks and pass a financial math exam. And if you're not the kind of person who will breeze through the exams and go on to be a good actuary, why bother? Pick a different profession.

Ballpark study amount? This is a WAG (what you will learn to call a careful actuarial estimation) but figure an hour a night each weeknight, plus a solid 8-hour day on one of the days each weekend, plus a block of 5 days of intense study leading up to the exam.

There are several companies that make good study guides. I'm far enough removed from the exams that I wouldn't want to give a recommendation, but there should be message boards on the SOA site (www.soa.org ) where the highly neurotic actuarial students hang out. They can give you much better information about study guides - and anything else you want to know.

 

[javaj]

salmoneous,

I really appreciate your reply! I value both the official answer and your opinion

I've browsed the Probability and Financial Math "sample" exams and I am actually getting excited at the prospect of taking exams, is that sick?! The only thing I'm worried about now is your suggestion of 5 full days of study before the exam -- I am running low on vacation days this year. But I'll check the message boards to find good study aides, thanks!

 

[golfgal]

I have this picture in my head of actuaries sitting in the basement of a building, no windows, overhead lightbulb, no cover, just the lightbulb, with slide rulers running hot. . Sorry, but you know how visions just pop in your head with certain words.