Start your career in Actuarial Science

A brief introduction

Actuarial science is the discipline that applies mathematical and statistical methods to assess risk in insurance, finance and other industries and professions. Acturians are experts who are qualified in this field through extreme training and experience. In numerous nations, statisticians must exhibit their fitness by passing a progression of thorough expert examinations.

In the late seventeenth century, Actuarial science was first recognised as a formal mathematical discipline. Due to the sudden boom in the insurance market and demand for long-term insurance coverage such as burial, life insurance, and annuities, the study of the Actuarial Science took a centre stage.

Actuarial science incorporates various interrelated subjects, including arithmetic, probability theory, statistics, finance, economics, and computer science. Earlier, Actuaries would put into use of deterministic models in the construction of tables and premiums. However, in the past three decades due to complete digital transformation usage of stochastic actuarial models has become more prevalent.

How to Kickstart your career in Actuarial Science?

There are various universities that offer a college class and postgraduate courses in actuarial sciences. The qualified age is 18 years or more and for the individuals who have a strong background in statistics and maths. Candidates should hold an undergraduate degree in Commerce stream. An aspirant can take these following exams to pursue a course in Actuarial Science.

• Actuarial science entrance exam

• Institute of Actuaries of India entrance exam

• Actuarial Society of India entrance exam

• Top Actuarial Science Colleges in India

There are a few schools in India that have a course in Actuarial science. One can settle on a B.A. in Insurance, Bachelors in Statistics or Bachelor of Science in Actuarial science. There are postgraduate courses like the M.S.C. in Actuarial science, Master's program in Insurance Business, M.B.A. in Actuarial science, Postgraduate certificate in Actuarial science, and some more.

One has to appear for 15 papers (necessary) – 9 papers in Core Technological (CT) series, 3 papers in Core Application (CA) series, 2 out of 8 papers in Special Technological (ST) Stage and 1 final jurisdiction based paper in Specialist Application (SA) Stage out of the available papers, not corresponding with the ST papers to become a professional in Actuarial Science.

Roles and Responsibilities

Actuaries assess, oversee and advise on financial risks. They utilize their insight into business and financial aspects, together with their in-depth knowledge of probability theory, statistics and investment theory, to give vital, business and financial guidance.

The centre of actuarial work is related to pensions and insurance, and most of the professionals begin their career in this two fields, however, after gaining some experience they move across different domains of their choice.

Day-to-day responsibility of an Actuarial professional includes-

• Developing new financial products

• Conducting valuations of assets and liabilities

• Advising on investment strategies and assessing the profitability of an investment’s portfolio

• Analysing risks related to locations for catastrophe claims

• Measuring, monitoring and mitigating portfolio and enterprise risks

• Overseeing asset and liability modelling, product development and profit testing

• Preparing presentations, reports, valuations and quarterly updates

Scope of Actuarial Science in India

With the rise in quality of living in India, most of the citizens are keen on availing the various insurance schemes, be it life insurance, medical insurance, pension schemes, and even insurance on the products that we buy. In such a scenario, there ought to be a rise in demand of Actuaries.  Even though Actuarial science is a relatively new profession which can let you earn a handsome salary even being a fresher. Entry-level salary is somewhere around Rs. 8 lakh per annum. The scope for growth is high and one can move across fields of their choice easily. Graduates can work for insurance firms like LIC, GIC, ESIC, or Banks, Financial Institutions and stock exchange.

After going over the eligibility and other details related to the profession, are you planning your career in Actuarial Science?