Actuary Brochure 2008
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Transcript of Actuary Brochure 2008
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Actuarial Science Program
at the
University of Connecticut
- 2 -
Although actuarial science was started in England over 200 years ago, it is still
a relatively unknown profession. It is multidisciplinary, as evidenced by the
following description from the Society of Actuaries, the largest actuarial
organization:
An actuary is a professional who analyzes the financial consequences
of risk. Actuaries use mathematics, statistics and financial theory to
study uncertain future events, especially those of concern to insurance
and pension programs. They evaluate the likelihood of those events,
design ways to reduce the likelihood and decrease the impact of
adverse events that actually do occur.
Actuaries are an important part of the management team of the
companies that employ them. Their work requires a combination of
strong analytical skills, business knowledge and understanding of
human behavior to design and manage programs that control risk.
The Society of Actuaries and its sister organization, the Casualty Actuarial
Society, created the professional designations: Fellow of the Society of
Actuaries (FSA) and Fellow of The Casualty Actuarial Society (FCAS). These
designations carry significant prestige around the world and signify that an
individual has been properly trained to practice as an actuary.
To achieve these designations, a student must pass a series of examinations
administered by these organizations. It takes a student approximately five to ten
years to achieve these professional designations.
The website www.beanactuary.org contains a wealth of information about:
What is an Actuary?
Actuarial Exams
Career Opportunities
It is a very useful resource for both high school and college students.
What is an actuary?
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The University of Connecticut Actuarial Program began in 1976 with the
creation of two new courses – Theory of Interest and Life Contingencies. The
department also began offering the professional actuarial exams at that time.
From the very first, the program grew rapidly. In the spring of 1979, the first
majors in Mathematics/Actuarial Science were graduated. In 1984 we added a
Concentration in Actuarial Science at the Master’s level. As of 2007, we have
awarded 6 Doctoral degrees in Mathematics with a thesis topic in Actuarial
Science. We have also added a Professional Master’s in Applied Financial
Mathematics that serves a dozen students a year. A Center for Actuarial
Studies promotes student participation in research projects on real-world
problems.
Today, the program has approximately 185 undergraduate students, 35
Master’s level students, and 6 students working on a doctoral thesis in
Actuarial Science. We estimate that, since it’s inception, our program has
contributed over 500 baccalaureate and 350 master’s graduates to the work
force.
The primary goal of our program is to provide students with a sound
foundation in actuarial science and to prepare them for the examinations
administered by the Society of Actuaries and the Casualty Actuarial Society,
with the objective that each student passes at least two exams before
graduating.
Started in 1970’s
Actuarial Science Majors
0
50
100
150
200
250
1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006
Undergraduates Graduates
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Reflecting the multidiscipline aspect of the actuarial profession, students
majoring in actuarial science are either required or strongly encouraged to
take courses from the following departments:
Accounting (ACCT)
2001 Principles of Financial Accounting
2101 Principles of Managerial Accounting
Economics (ECON)
1200 Principles of Economics
1201 Principles of Microeconomics
1202 Principles of Macroeconomics
2201 Intermediate Microeconomics Theory
2202 Intermediate Macroeconomics Theory
2411 Money and Banking
Finance (FNCE)
3221 Risk Management and Insurance or
4324 Health insurance
4325 Life Insurance and Retirement Security
4326 Risk Management: Property and Liability Exposure
Mathematics (MATH): Preliminary
1131 Calculus I (see note 1)
1132 Calculus II
2110 Multivariable Calculus (Math 2194W)
2210 Applied Linear Algebra
2410 Elementary Differential Equations
Mathematics (MATH): Actuarial Science
2610 Introduction to Actuarial Science
2620 Financial Mathematics I
3160 Probability
3170 Elementary Stochastic Processes
3550 Programming for Actuaries
3610 Probability Problems (Exam P Preparation)
3615 Financial Mathematics Problems (Exam FM Preparation)
3621 Applied Actuarial Statistics
3634 Actuarial Models
3630 Actuarial Mathematics I
3631 Actuarial Mathematics II
3632 Loss Models
3650 Financial Mathematics II
3660 Advanced Financial Mathematics
3670W Technical Writing for Actuaries
Statistics (STAT)
3375 Introduction to Mathematical Statistics I
3445 Introduction to Mathematical Statistics II
Since financial models are utilized extensively by the profession, knowledge
of one or more computer languages and facility with a spreadsheet package is
also strongly encouraged.
Multidiscipline Profession
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Year Fall Spring
Freshman Math 1131 Math 1132
Econ 12001
Acct 2001
Sophomore Math 2110 Math 2410
Math 2210 Acct 2101
Math 2610 Math 3160
Math 2620 Math 3615 (Exam FM Preperation)
Exam FM (May)
Junior Math 3615 (Exam P Preperation) Math 36501
Stat 3375 Stat 3445
Econ 2201 Econ 2202
Exam P (Nov)
Senior Math 36211
Math 3170
Math 3630 Math 3634
Math 3660 Math 3631 or Math 3632
Econ 2411 Math 3670W
Exam MLC & MFE (May)
1. Qualifies for Validation by Educational Experience (VEE) with a grade of B- or higher
Plan of Study
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In 2004, the Society of Actuaries, in conjunction with the Casualty Actuarial
Society, redesigned the examination process to give credit for students who
have completed courses in the following subjects at the college or university
level:
Economics
Corporate Finance
Applied Statistics
To receive credit for these courses, the course must be approved by the
Society of Actuaries and the student must pass the course with a B– or better.
At the University of Connecticut, the following courses have been approved
by the Society of Actuaries for VEE credit:
Economics
1200 Principles of Economics
1201 Principles of Microeconomics
1202 Principles of Macroeconomics
2201 Intermediate Microeconomics Theory
2202 Intermediate Macroeconomics Theory 5201 Microeconomics
5202 Macroeconomics
Corporate Finance
3650 Financial Mathematics II (Corporate Finance)
5621 Financial Mathematics II (Corporate Finance)
Applied Statistics
3621 Applied Actuarial Statistics
3115 Analysis of Experiments
4825 Applied Time Series
5315 Analysis of Experiments
5825 Applied Time Series
Validation by Educational
Experience (VEE)
- 7 -
There is a strong demand for our graduates in the large financial services
industry in Connecticut and the surrounding northeast. The quality of our
students is recognized by grants averaging $75,000 per year from our corporate
sponsors.
ACTEX Publications Mass Mutual Financial
Actuaries’ Club of Hartford & Springfield
Aetna Mercer
CIGNA Corporation Phoenix Life
Deloitte Consulting Prudential Financial
Guardian Life Insurance Sun Life Financial
The Hartford Swiss Re
Hartford Life Travelers
ING Towers Perrin
Lincoln Financial USI Consulting
Watson Wyatt
This money is used primarily to award undergraduate scholarships, but
enhances the program in many ways. We have also established endowments
whose sum has passed the $500,000 mark.
Scholarships are awarded to undergraduate actuarial science students who excel
academically, exhibit strong leadership skills and provide community services.
In 2009, 29 scholarships were awarded with the average award being $2,100.
Scholarship Program
Number of Scholarships
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
- 8 -
Every fall semester, we have career day. Approximately, thirty companies visit
our campus explaining to interested students actuarial opportunities at their
organizations. Following this event and continuing into the spring, many of these
organizations conduct on-campus interviews. From these interviews many of our
students are offered summer internships, or if they are graduating, they are
offered an entry level position in the organization’s actuarial trainee program.
The following is the list of some of the participating organizations:
Aetna, Inc. BlueCross/BlueShield
Buck Consultants CIGNA
Deloitte Consulting Guardian Life Insurance Company
Hanover Insurance Hartford Life
Hartford P&C Health Net Northeast
Hewitt Associates Hooker & Holcombe, Inc.
ING Liberty Mutual Group
Lincoln Financial Group MassMutual Financial Group
Mercer Human Resources Consulting MetLife
Milliman Phoenix Life Insurance
Prime Advisors Prudential Financial
Sun Life Financial Swiss Re
The Segal Company Towers Perrin
Travelers USI Consulting Group
Watson Wyatt Worldwide United Health Care Group.
XL Insurance Wellcare Healthcare Plans, Inc
Occasionally, we are approached by some organizations to enter into a work
study program. Under this arrangement, the student works during the school year
twelve to sixteen hours per week.
Employment Opportunities
- 9 -
Gamma Iota Sigma is a fraternal organization. The purpose of Gamma Iota
Sigma is to encourage, establish, and enhance the professionalism of students in
the Risk Management, Insurance, and Actuarial Science majors. Their goal is to
prepare their members for quality employment opportunities in the risk
management, insurance, and actuarial fields. As a fraternal organization, they
strive to build a sense of community and cohesion among members while
improving their career opportunities through increased knowledge of the
industry. In addition, they aim to prepare their members to interact comfortably
with industry leaders, and form contacts that will serve them throughout their
careers.
The University of Connecticut-Storrs Gamma Iota Sigma XI Chapter was
chartered on February 12, 1978. The goal of the XI Chapter is to act as a
professional and social medium for bringing together Actuarial Science majors.
Members are united in their efforts to qualify for the profession as well as in
being college students. It is the responsibility of this chapter to maintain a strong
relationship with the National chapter and the other individual chapters.
Gamma Iota Sigma