Actuarial Exams: Memorization, Theory & Stress Levels

[Mag|cK]

Hello. From the internet I have learned that memorization is the main thing in actuarial exams past the fourth exam. The more you advance, the more theoretical the actuarial studies become. Is it true? Does the mathematics slowly fade away the more you advance? For the memorization, is it like "absolute" memorization or you can memorize it logically? For the memorization, is it more challenging than in biology? Will you be still busy after you have reached fellow level? Why is it that actuary is one of the best rated job, when you have to be workaholics including in your studies and abandon your social life? Is the salary worth the cost? Is an actuary stressful? Sorry for the many questions thx... btw can you give your background of career or studies before answering the questions thx

 

[mattmns]

You may want to ask your question at the forums here: http://www.actuarialoutpost.com/

Note that (unless things have changed) you will need to sign up from an e-mail address other than the typical yahoo, gmail, msn, etc.

 

[Mag|cK]

i don't have any email besides the ones like hotmail/ yahoo, hence i can't register. Can you post my thread to the actuarial outupost and give me the link. Thx a lot..

 

[LHarriger]

I thought about becoming an actuary for a while and even worked as an intern actuary for around half a year after my undergrad. The job definitely was not for me but I can understand the appeal. You said that being an actuary required you to be a workaholic which is not neccessarily correct. The firm I worked for was small and they seemed much more interested in the easy life than making piles of money. They had only a 4 day/7hr work week and anything that could be considered a holiday was taken on paid leave. Also, in the 6 mo. I was there every employee took at least two weeks of paid vacation off. They received excellent benefits and comfortable salaries.
With that said, you can be a "piles of money" actuary and work for a large company. The work load is greatly increased but it does not require one to be a workaholic. Keep in mind that almost all companies allot part of the workday (1-4 hrs) for non-fellowshiped actuaries to study for the next exam. These exams are nightmarishly tough, but you get paid to study for them, and your salary increases everytime you pass a new one. Companies such as Signa also have executive spiral programs that place actuaries in top positions within the company. In the course of 20 years you can start out at the bottom rung making 30-50k and work to the top with a salary of 250k or more.(Some make vastly more than even this.)

 

[Mag|cK]

What don't you like about the job?