How to Become an Actuary
With the significant attraction that actuarial careers hold in the eyes of people, this career certainly has great appeal, and there are many who wish to be associated with it. Actuarial science is a rather hard and challenging field and requires a lot of hard work and dedication after which you can become an actuary and pursue your career as a professional and be rewarded for your dedication and commitment.
How can one become an actuary?
There are various levels you need to go through to pursue actuary as a career and there are also requirements that need to be fulfilled and exams that are to be taken. It is after all this that you become a professional actuary. After giving the initial exams, there are requirements associated with getting the Associateship and then the Fellowship, which then ultimately makes you a professional Actuary. Depending upon the field of financial services or insurance you wish to pursue, you will become part of the related society for actuaries and then will have to fulfill their requirements to pursue your career in actuarial science. For example, those wishing to pursue a career in insurance related to damages and compensation for them would get certification from the Casualty Actuarial Society.
What kind of college and school education do I need?
There are many courses that one needs to take in order to become an actuary in the future. These are mainly related to mathematics, statistics, and financial risk and modeling. If someone wishes to get a degree in actuarial science, it is important to have the background knowledge at the school and college level, with respect to selection of courses. If you aspire to have a career in actuarial science, the best courses to choose in high school include those related to mathematics, statistics and any advanced placement courses related to finance and economics. These are excellent in giving you the background knowledge. To hone your mathematical skills from the very beginning, you can ask for recommendations regarding advanced courses in mathematics. Any other courses in communication skills will also prove to be useful for you in the future.
Do I need a university degree?
People who have a graduate degree especially in mathematics, economics or statistics are very likely to become actuaries in the future. You can start with getting a bachelor’s degree in one of the subjects like finance, mathematics, statistics, and economics and even in actuarial science. Once you have acquired the basic knowledge that comes as a part of these degrees, you can even pursue a master’s degree in actuarial science. While these degree programs are not essential requirements for being an actuary, they do give you an edge and set you above the level of other actuaries with only basic certifications. Almost 95% of the actuaries today have the commonality of being graduates in mathematics, statistics or economics. In the middle of your career, you can also enroll in actuarial science degree programs, which will help you in moving up the career ladder.