Ok, I realize my recent posts have been quite bleagh. You know, all angsty and depressing etc. And frankly, I’m getting quite bored writing like that. So, for a change, something useful! Well, perhaps.

So, many a time, when someone asks me what I’ve studied, or what I’m going to work as, I am greeted by a blank stare. I tell them I’m going to work as an actuary, and they just look back at me wondering if I’ve just made up a profession. Very few people I have talked to actually know who the hell an actuary is.

An actuary is someone who basically manages risk. Now this is putting it very very lightly. Actuaries use mathematics, probability, statistics, economics etc to evaluate the likelihood of crappy situations occurring, devising ways to reduce the chances of said crappy occurrences from happening, and reducing the crapiness of these events in case they occur. Actuaries predominantly found work in the insurance and pensions industry, but now they’re pretty much all over the place, like investments, healthcare, management etc. Many actuaries actually end up in management, since they have so many useful tools at their disposal.

To become an actuary is not such an easy thing. You have to love mathematics, and be good at it. There just is no other way, since mathematics is central to actuarial science (which incidentally is the name of the discipline). You have to be able to express yourself clearly and communicate well, since a lot of actuarial work tends to revolve around other people, like clients, team members. And the job can get complex, depending on your role. If you like these kinds of things, and you like challenges, you would probably find working as an actuary quite satisfying. The profession has societies around the world, just like accountants do as well. But actuaries are no where like accountants (you might be hit with a stapler if you call one the other)! In the UK, you have the Institute of Actuaries. They have a bunch of exams which you have to pass in a certain number of sittings. You also have to get some work experience in an actuarial firm. Normally, you do both at the same time. You complete both these requirements, you qualify as an actuary. You can then add FIA to your name! You are then a qualified actuary, and can start earning big bucks (Note: this really depends on you).

Actuaries handle things like insurance premium calculations, pension fund valuations, investment strategies and similar things. I’ve been in the pensions industry for a while, so all I know about mainly are the investment and pensions aspect of the field. Incidentally, I hope to get back into the pensions field, but in an investment capacity.

I’ve tried to give a brief description of an actuary what he/she does. This is a very light introduction. Really, if you’re interested in the field, look at other more qualified sites. There are tonnes out there, and you can find them by searching on Google or something. An example of a good site is Be an Actuary. Alright, now I’m bored writing about this stuff.