Actuarial Science: Two routes to follow after Class XII and UG courses

Are you good at spotting trends and predicting outcomes? Then you can go for a career in Actuarial Science to make the best use of your abilities by assessing risks in insurance and finance fields. The best thing is that you can pursue this path right after your Class XII board exams or even after graduation or postgraduation in Maths, Stats, Economics, Management and Finance.

What is Actuarial Science

Actuarial Science is a discipline that uses various financial and statistical techniques to resolve real business problems, particularly those involving risk management. To study this subject, you’ll need a strong mathematical, economic and statistical aptitude, including a good grounding in Algebra, Calculus and Probability. Knowledge of computer programming languages like Python and R is also necessary.

Studying Actuarial Science

• You need a minimum of 60% aggregate in your Class XII board exams in either Science or Commerce stream with English and Maths as mandatory subjects. You also need to score at least 70% marks in Maths in the board exams.
• You can graduate in Maths, Stats and Actuarial Science or can go for a BCom course. For other bachelor’s degree courses, you need to follow the admission processes in different universities.
• You can become an actuary by following either of two separate paths. You can clear the Actuarial Common Entrance Test (ACET) and enrol in a formal course run by the Institute of Actuaries of India (IAI), or you can follow a non-ACET path and still become an actuary.

1. The ACET path:

ACET is a home-based exam conducted in an online format. The exam enables you to become a member of IAI.

Eligibility:

• You need to pass your Class XII board exams with Maths as a compulsory subject and 60% aggregate.
• You can also have an undergraduate degree in Maths, Stats, Econometrics or any other technical degree in Engineering or Management streams.
• You can also be a chartered accountant, cost accountant or company secretary.
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After clearing ACET, you’ll enrol in the IAI-run Actuary Science course and need to clear 15 papers in four stages to become an Actuary:

• Stage 1: Core Technical (CT)
• Stage 2: Core Application (CA)
• Stage 3: Specialist Technical (ST)
• Stage 4: Specialist Application (SA)

After passing the first two stages, you’ll become an Associate with IAI. You can become a fellow of IAI only after passing all the four stages and gaining three years of experience. As a fellow, you will be able to further your studies and research in the field.

2. The non-ACET path:

You can become an actuary without appearing for the ACET exam by following this path. You can follow this path, depending on your educational and professional qualifications.

Eligibility:

• You need to be a fully qualified member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, Institute of Cost Accountants of India or Institute of Company Secretaries of India.
• You can also have an MBA, BE, BTech or Finance degree with at least 60% aggregate.
• You can also complete a BSc/MSc course in Actuarial Science from any institute.
• You need to pass two papers from other actuarial bodies like the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA), Society of Actuaries (SOA), Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS), Actuarial Society of South Africa (ASSA) and the Institute of Actuaries of Australia (IAAust).
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Some popular Institutes in India that offer Actuarial Science courses:

Christ University, Bangalore

Course: MSc in Actuarial Science.

• Eligibility: You need a BSc degree in Maths, Stats, or Economics; or a BA degree in Economics; or a BCom degree with at least 60% aggregate from any recognised university.
• Duration: Two years.
• Admission: You need to prepare a presentation and appear for a personal interview.
  
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Amity University, Noida

Course: BSc in Actuarial Science.

• Eligibility: You need at least 60% aggregate in your Class XII board exams and at least 70% marks in Maths.
• Duration: Three years.
• Admission: You have to appear for a video interview.

Course: BSc in Actuarial Science with research

• Eligibility: You need at least 60% aggregate in your Class XII board exams and a minimum of 70% marks in Maths. Or you can be a student enrolled in the Institute of Actuaries of India/UK.
• Duration: Four years.
• Admission: You need to prepare a presentation and appear for a personal interview.
  
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Aligarh Muslim University, Uttar Pradesh

Course: PG Diploma in Actuarial Sciences

• Eligibility: You need a BSc degree in Maths, Stats or Actuarial Science with at least 50% aggregate. Or you need a BCom degree with a minimum of 50% aggregate.
• Duration: One year.
• Admission: Merit-based.
  
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Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala

Course: MSc in Actuarial Science.

• Eligibility: You need an undergraduate degree in any discipline with Maths/Stats as one of the core/subsidiary courses with not less than 50% marks.
• Duration: Two years.
• Admission: Merit-based.
  
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Institute of Actuarial and Quantitative Studies, Maharashtra

Course: BSc in Actuarial Science and Quantitative Finance.

• Eligibility: You need to clear your Class XII board exam in either science or commerce stream.
• Duration: Three years.
• Admission: Admission is based on successfully clearing QAT/ACET/any Actuarial paper followed by a personal interview.
  
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Job Roles with a degree in Actuarial Science

• Personal financial advisor: They help people determine how much money to invest and where to invest. They also prepare personalised financial plans for their clients in keeping with their financial goals.
  
• Risk analyst: They are recruited by almost all companies to identify and analyse potential risk areas in the financial sector. These professionals forecast changing trends and work in sales, trading, marketing or private banking sectors.
  
• Budget analyst: Budget analysts estimate the right budget for a project to be undertaken. They also develop a final budgetary agreement with the management.
  
• Cost estimator: They obtain material pricing and organise information to create and submit proposals to clients. They also review blueprints and product specifications while working with business houses and corporations.
  
• Insurance underwriter: They set the pricing of an insurance premium and decide whether to provide insurance to a company or a person by assessing the risks. They use technology and data from actuaries to make decisions.