What is an Actuary?
Actuaries are the experts in Actuarial Science and perform financial analysis to identify and gauge risk in financial services by making use of various statistical and financial models.
What is the need for an actuary?
In today’s world, there is so much integration between the financial systems prevalent in various parts of the world and there is the underlying economic risk associated with this. In addition, people are also more open towards doing investment and making use of financial services and insurance. Considering that all the people do not possess sound financial knowledge, there is a need for knowledge of actuarial science and people who are actuaries. Actuaries perform the highly rewarding and regarded job of offering expert advice to people regarding financial services and investments. People pursuing actuarial careers specialize in the minimization of risk, hence making the future bright for the clients.
What kind of education and skills are required to become an actuary?
The duties and responsibilities of an actuary specializing in actuarial science include the detailed financial and risk analysis to the point of quantifying the risk. In addition, they are also required to employ financial and statistical modeling techniques for forecasting the future of financial instruments and come up with possible scenarios and then mitigate risk for these. The job of an actuary is more of a macro level one and requires more expertise. For this purpose, actuaries require thorough knowledge of computers, mathematics, statistics and finance. These skills can be obtained with an actuarial science degree or by enrolling into a highly advanced actuarial science degree programs. While there are many universities that offer these degrees on campus, there are others offering an online actuarial degree so that you may also pursue your actuarial careers side by side.
What do I need to do to become an Actuary?
There is a certification one needs to acquire before being called a professional actuary. While there is a preliminary examination for actuary that you need to clear followed by a validation of experience, in order to become a certified professional actuary, you need to fulfill the requirements for obtaining certification for an Associate and ultimately a Fellow. Obtaining these certifications take a step further in being an expert of actuarial science and also make you a member of one of the actuary societies. The largest society of its kind in this regard is the Society of Actuaries. There are also other societies and you can become a part of them according to your chosen field of practice as an actuary.
What are the prospects if I become an Actuary?
The job of an actuary is among the top ten highest paid jobs in the US. This is a fabulous job not just in terms of the financial compensation but also in terms of regard by the people. An annual income of between $120,000 and $275,000 can be expected when working as an actuary. Those who hold advanced degree in actuarial science have great prospects for making their way to the top and have a shining career.