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How to Become an Actuary? CareerBuilder Videos from funza Academy. - YouTube
Channel: funza Academy
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In the course of your life, you may make several
big investments.
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There will be a time when you buy your first
home or first car.
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A fact of life HOWEVER is that BAD THINGS
do happen to people.
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And when they happen, recovering can take
time and money.
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So you could return home one evening to find
your house burnt down.
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This can be devastating.
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Rebuilding the house can take lots of money.
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Money you may not have.
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Thankfully we have ways to recover from such
big expenses.
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One solution is called INSURANCE.
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By paying the insurance company a small amount
every month, a large chunk of your costs are
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taken care of when bad things happen.
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By insuring your property, you are transferring
YOUR RISK to the insurance company.
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And just like you, there would be thousands
of other customers doing the same thing.
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This means that the insurance company has
a lot of risk on its hands.
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Why would it want to take on so much risk?
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One reason is because NOT everyone would have
their car stolen or their house burnt down.
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Thus the insurance company is taking in a
lot of small amounts and distributing only
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a FEW large ones.
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So how does the insurance company predict
the likelihood of someone's car being stolen
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or house burning down?
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How does the company decide what premiums
to charge a customer?
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These, are just SOME of the questions tackled,
by an Actuary, the subject of this session.
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An actuary is a business professional who
uses his or her broad knowledge of math, finance
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and business to study uncertain future events.
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And this profession has CONSISTENTLY ranked
as one of the MOST DESIRABLE in various studies
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over the years.
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As the previous example demonstrates, actuaries
may work in insurance companies.
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They may also advice companies on issues such
as mergers and acquisitions.
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Actuaries may also be involved in the pricing
and management of large investments particularly
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in reducing the risks of investments.
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They may also be also involved in the design
of retirement or pension funds.
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They are also involved in healthcare finance.
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The skills you will gain as an actuary will
be invaluable in your future career, whether
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that is as an actuary or not.
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Many actuaries change practice area and career
paths.
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They may move into teaching, alternative risk
roles, consultancy, career advisers – the
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list is endless.
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So what skills do actuaries possess that make
them such a valuable resource?
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Actuaries have specialized mathematical knowledge.
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Some of their strong areas are Calculus , statistics
and probability.
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They have good domain knowledge in the areas
of finance, accounting and economics.
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They also have strong computer skills.
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They are comfortable with programming, database
manipulation and statistical analysis software
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for example.
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Actuaries are also motivated people with good
problem solving skills.
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So how do you go about becoming an actuary?
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Let me assume that you are a high school student.
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Firstly, you should have a love for mathematics
and be good at it.
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Computer science is another subject you should
be fond of and be good at.
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Once you finish metric or grade 12, you could
earn an undergraduate degree in statistics,
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mathematics, finance or actuarial science.
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Please note you could also pursue other relevant
undergraduate courses.
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They key however is for you to have an interest
in, and an aptitude for, math and a desire
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to put math skills to use in a business context.
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Before becoming a fully qualified actuary,
individuals must pass certification examinations
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given by actuarial societies.
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Some of these exams can be taken while you
are still in college.
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In fact, some companies expect students to
have passed at least 1 actuarial exam in addition
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to getting a degree.
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After graduation, many students obtain jobs
as entry-level actuaries and work through
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the remaining certification exams while simultaneously
gaining experience in the work place.
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Many employers help by paying the examination
fees and providing study time.
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Passing these exams will help you become an
associate or fellow of the actuarial society.
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This can normally take between 5 to 8 years.
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As in all our videos, I suggest that you talk
to actuaries or visit a college close by and
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talk to professors and students to learn more
about this role.
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So this brings us to the end of this session.
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I hope you found it useful.
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Good luck.
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