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  • In the course of your life, you may make several big investments.

  • There will be a time when you buy your first home or first car.

  • A fact of life HOWEVER is that BAD THINGS do happen to people.

  • And when they happen, recovering can take time and money.

  • So you could return home one evening to find your house burnt down.

  • This can be devastating.

  • Rebuilding the house can take lots of money. Money you may not have.

  • Thankfully we have ways to recover from such big expenses. One solution is called INSURANCE.

  • By paying the insurance company a small amount every month, a large chunk of your costs are

  • taken care of when bad things happen.

  • By insuring your property, you are transferring YOUR RISK to the insurance company.

  • And just like you, there would be thousands of other customers doing the same thing.

  • This means that the insurance company has a lot of risk on its hands. Why would it want

  • to take on so much risk?

  • One reason is because NOT everyone would have their car stolen or their house burnt down.

  • Thus the insurance company is taking in a lot of small amounts and distributing only

  • a FEW large ones.

  • So how does the insurance company predict the likelihood of someone's car being stolen

  • or house burning down? How does the company decide what premiums

  • to charge a customer?

  • These, are just SOME of the questions tackled, by an Actuary, the subject of this session.

  • An actuary is a business professional who uses his or her broad knowledge of math, finance

  • and business to study uncertain future events. And this profession has CONSISTENTLY ranked

  • as one of the MOST DESIRABLE in various studies over the years.

  • As the previous example demonstrates, actuaries may work in insurance companies.

  • They may also advice companies on issues such as mergers and acquisitions.

  • Actuaries may also be involved in the pricing and management of large investments particularly

  • in reducing the risks of investments. They may also be also involved in the design

  • of retirement or pension funds. They are also involved in healthcare finance.

  • The skills you will gain as an actuary will be invaluable in your future career, whether

  • that is as an actuary or not. Many actuaries change practice area and career

  • paths. They may move into teaching, alternative risk

  • roles, consultancy, career advisersthe list is endless.

  • So what skills do actuaries possess that make them such a valuable resource?

  • Actuaries have specialized mathematical knowledge. Some of their strong areas are Calculus , statistics

  • and probability.

  • They have good domain knowledge in the areas of finance, accounting and economics.

  • They also have strong computer skills. They are comfortable with programming, database

  • manipulation and statistical analysis software for example.

  • Actuaries are also motivated people with good problem solving skills.

  • So how do you go about becoming an actuary? Let me assume that you are a high school student.

  • Firstly, you should have a love for mathematics and be good at it.

  • Computer science is another subject you should be fond of and be good at.

  • Once you finish metric or grade 12, you could earn an undergraduate degree in statistics,

  • mathematics, finance or actuarial science. Please note you could also pursue other relevant

  • undergraduate courses. They key however is for you to have an interest

  • in, and an aptitude for, math and a desire to put math skills to use in a business context.

  • Before becoming a fully qualified actuary, individuals must pass certification examinations

  • given by actuarial societies.

  • Some of these exams can be taken while you are still in college.

  • In fact, some companies expect students to have passed at least 1 actuarial exam in addition

  • to getting a degree.

  • After graduation, many students obtain jobs as entry-level actuaries and work through

  • the remaining certification exams while simultaneously gaining experience in the work place.

  • Many employers help by paying the examination fees and providing study time.

  • Passing these exams will help you become an associate or fellow of the actuarial society.

  • This can normally take between 5 to 8 years.

  • As in all our videos, I suggest that you talk to actuaries or visit a college close by and

  • talk to professors and students to learn more about this role.

  • So this brings us to the end of this session. I hope you found it useful.

  • Good luck.

In the course of your life, you may make several big investments.

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