Blogs

Recruiting Experience in 2020- The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

By Matt Ringler posted 11-05-2020
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Authors: Ashley Thyes, Giancarlo Cimaglia, Matt Ringler Matt Ringler: As we all know, 2020 has impacted everyone. And, no matter how you slice it: this year has provided numerous opportunities for all of us to face adversity and foster strength. For those in the actuarial science community, the recruiting process presented several novel hurdles. Our connectivity, or lack thereof, offers a good example, inasmuch as we are now newly dependent upon the virtual world for interviewing. In this new world, if our WIFI connections, webcams, Zoom, Webex or other platforms malfunctioned, a coveted job opportunity could be lost. I can, as a result, confidently say ...
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How COVID-19 Brought Me Closer to the Tightly-Knit Actuarial Community

By Matt Ringler posted 06-23-2020
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Over the past few months, we have all experienced COVID’s toll. As students, we have seen internships and job offers rescinded, watched on-campus professional development opportunities disappear, and have felt the periodic realization that the best four years of our lives have been placed on hold. As an incoming senior actuarial student at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln and active CAS Student Central member, I personally struggled with my new normal and felt keenly disheartened by the loss of on-campus professional development opportunities at a time when we needed them most. As time passed, I struggled to find a solution regarding how to fill this void. ...
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“Insuring” Your Career Against Pandemic Risk

By Jacob Galecki posted 04-16-2020
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The COVID-19 Pandemic is potentially the single most transformational event to occur to the U. S. Economy since the Great Depression of the 20 th Century. What that means for the job market and the property & casualty insurance industry remains unclear. The one certainty is that this event will change how we interact and conduct business for the foreseeable future and perhaps indefinitely. Below you will find a quick summary of what Galecki Search Associates has seen in the job market since the beginning of the crisis. Also, you will see some recommendations on how to shore up your career, and more importantly, stay motivated to advance your career ...
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How to Stay up to Date on Current Industry News!

By Kate Niswander posted 04-13-2020
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In any profession, staying current with industry news is critical for career success. In my role as marketing and communications manager at the CAS, I work with insurance industry publications to place CAS members for media interviews. These same publications can be a useful tool for members of CAS Student Central to keep informed about the industry. Subscribing to daily news updates, for example, can help you to identify topics that interest you professionally, remain current with industry trends, and even gain you a leg up as you apply for internships and jobs. Luckily for you, a multitude of publications serve to keep actuarial professionals informed on ...
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Actuarial Students: Stay Sharp and On Track While at Home!

By Margaret Gaddy posted 04-01-2020
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CAS Student Central members, our thoughts and support are with you during this challenging time. To help you stay sharp and on track while home for the remainder of the semester, we’ve compiled the following list of resources to check out! Webinars on a variety of topics ranging from technical training to career advice. Here are the most recent webinar recordings: The Travelers Predictive Modeling Cooking Show How to Pass Your Actuarial Exams: Learn More Study Less A Day in the Life of a P&C Actuary Your Actuarial Job Search- Guidance on Resumes, Interviews, and Networking Blog Posts that offer perspectives ...
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A Student’s Perspective on Succeeding in the Actuarial Profession

By Jack Richards posted 02-20-2020
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My name is Jack Richards, and I am a senior actuarial science student at Drake University in Des Moines, IA! After my graduation in May, I’ll be joining Deloitte Consulting as an actuarial analyst in their Human Capital practice. I have interned at a variety of different companies (Deloitte, Travelers, and Sammons Financial), and am fortunate to have experienced the P&C, Life, and Health industries! Back in high school, I wanted to explore a career that sat at the intersection of math and business, and one of my neighbors recommended that I explore the actuarial profession. I was intrigued by the high level of respect the actuarial profession has, along ...
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2019 Fall CAS Student Central Webinar- How to Pass Your Actuarial Exams: Learn More, Study Less

By Margaret Gaddy posted 12-05-2019
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Last month the CAS and ACTEX Learning hosted a webinar for Student Central members entitled, “How to Pass Your Actuarial Exams: Learn More, Study Less.” The webinar featured Roy Ju, FSA, CERA, MAAA, Mike Jennings, FSA, CERA and Ken Williams FCAS, MAAA, CAS Staff Actuary. In 2015, Roy Ju broke the world record as the youngest FSA of all time (age 20). After fifteen months of testing these strategies and accelerating his own exam process (passing 2 preliminary exams, a fellowship exam, the FAP modules, and the FSA modules over this period), he partnered with Mike Jennings to share these strategies with all actuarial students. Together they wrote the book, Actuarial ...
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Land Your Next Actuarial Internship: Set Yourself Apart From the Competition

By Elizabeth Owen posted 11-06-2019
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Application Season The application season for summer internships begins the preceding fall, typically starting in September and lasting until February. Highly competitive paid summer internships sometimes see deadlines as early as November. Acceptances generally begin rolling out in January, so it’s important not to wait until the last minute to apply. You don’t have to wait until the application information is posted for the current cycle if you want to start preparing. Looking up companies’ postings from previous years will help give you a sense of their specific timelines, required qualifications, and what the intern’s responsibilities will be. ...
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The CAS Trust Scholarship: Expanding its Reach and Impact in the P&C Actuarial Industry

By Brett Jaros posted 10-15-2019
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Fall is upon us again, and university students have been back in the classroom for a few weeks now. With the new academic year also come exciting changes to the CAS Trust Scholarship that will not only increase the awards available for college students, but also help position the CAS as the premier actuarial society for P&C insurance. The CAS Trust Scholarship committee is very impressed each year as we look at dozens of applicants that demonstrate innovative thinking, noteworthy actuarial experiences, and impressive recommendations with respect to the P&C actuarial industry. In addition, many students demonstrate great actuarial potential and would ...
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CAS at the Gamma Iota Sigma Annual Conference

By Margaret Gaddy posted 10-03-2019
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The CAS was proud to be a Platinum Sponsor of the Gamma Iota Sigma (GIS) Annual International Conference last week in Dallas! We had a great time connecting with faculty, students, and industry partners throughout the event. As part of our involvement, the CAS hosted a booth in the exhibit hall where participants could learn more about the P&C career path. Thank you to everyone that stopped by as well as the CAS volunteers who provided valuable insight and information to students about their experience in the P&C field. CAS members and booth volunteers Jeremy Shoemaker, Lauren Kidwell, Erin Olson and Manuel Guerra pose alongside ...
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Rating Variables: What They Are and Why They Matter

By Kate Niswander posted 08-29-2019
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Accident History. Gender. Marital Status. Credit Score. What do these things have in common? They are all rating variables that an actuary might use to calculate your insurance premiums. The use of rating variables by actuaries and insurance companies is getting increased focus in state and federal legislative groups as well as in the media. But what are rating variables exactly, and how are they used by actuaries? The CAS and Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) published a white paper last month to help educate consumers and policymakers on the topic, and we thought students studying to be actuaries would be interested in the paper as well. Rating ...
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Making the Most of Your CAS Student Central Membership!

By Meghan Goldfarb posted 08-01-2019
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When I decided that I wanted to pursue actuarial science back in 2006, student resources were scarce and expensive. In fact, I was the one that told my professor that the first exam was no longer calculus (and hadn’t been since 1999). Now, thanks to CAS Student Central, there are tons of FREE resources out there for aspiring actuaries. Are you making the most out of your membership? Here is a snapshot of what CAS Student Central provides to its members, through its FREE membership program! Practice exams for exams P and FM through our partnership with The Infinite Actuary Scholarship opportunities including the CAS Trust Scholarship ...
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Catch up on the Latest Student Central Webinar!

By Margaret Gaddy posted 07-30-2019
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Last spring the CAS hosted a webinar for Student Central members entitled, “A Day in the Life of a Property and Casualty Actuary.” The webinar was presented by CAS Fellows Timothy Vosicky, FCAS, MAAA and Richard Moncher, FCAS, MAAA. The hour long webinar was rich with content and discussed the following topics: What a workday looks like for entry-level ratemaking and reserving actuaries Similarities and differences between working at a consulting company vs. an insurance company Detailed ratemaking and reserving examples to illustrate for students the types of real-life projects they can expect to encounter on the job Q&A To learn more about ...
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Getting Involved Outside of Your University By Attending Insurance Conferences

By Tamar Gertner posted 05-02-2019
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Nitai Patel Jessica Zimmerman Do you ever want to travel to cool places around the country? Do you want to meet and network with actuarial students from other universities? Do you want the opportunity to learn about insurance from seasoned industry professionals? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you should keep reading to learn about some of the experiences we’ve had at insurance conferences throughout the United States. As Gamma Iota Sigma (GIS) officers and CAS Ambassadors at Temple University, we’ve had the privilege of attending many events where we got to learn, network, interview, ...
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Study Techniques - The Practice Exam

By Ken Fikes posted 03-07-2019
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An important step in successfully preparing for an actuarial exam is taking practice exams. Before trying that first practice exam, it is important that you are fully prepared. You want to understand the material and have worked many practice problems. Here are some tips on getting the most out of your practice exams. First, you want to take these in exam-like conditions – no interruptions, no distractions. It is important to take practice exams seriously. If you feel a little nervous before you start, that is good. You will most likely feel this way on exam day, and this helps you better prepare for when your actual exam day comes. During your ...
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Realizing My Dream - My Path to a Superpower Career

By Undrakh Jargalsaikhan posted 02-07-2019
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I’m an aspiring actuary and a college senior whose journey began in Mongolia where I grew up envisioning a future as a superhero. Let me take you back in time … to Mongolia. “Uugii, you’re too slow, the water is starting to spill and freeze into our hands. We need to go faster!” yelled my older cousin. “Well, that’s because I’m carrying the heaviest 20-liter cans!” I replied. My cousin responded with a smirk on his face, “Haha! Thank me later. You’ll look like Arnold Schwarzenegger if you keep it up." We chatted back and forth as we carried the heavy cans of water from the well back to our home that -40 degree winter night in Mongolia. The destination ...
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Webinar Recap: Your Actuarial Job Search – Guidance on Resumes, Interviews, and Networking!

By Tamar Gertner posted 01-03-2019
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Last month CAS Student Central hosted a webinar entitled, “Your Actuarial Job Search – Guidance on Resumes, Interviews, and Networking.” The webinar featured presentations from three actuaries, Wesley Griffiths, Regina Kintana, and Mark Maenche, who each spoke about a different aspect of the job search. We have highlighted some of the tips they shared during the webinar! For the full presentation, you can view the webinar recording within the online community. Wesley Griffiths, FCAS, 2nd VP & Actuary at Travelers Insurance, on Networking: Wesley covered a range of topics to help prepare you to network successfully; from where to network, ...
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New Year’s Resolutions for Aspiring Actuaries

By Ken Williams posted 01-01-2019
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As the calendar turns to January and the holiday festivities end, perhaps you will raise a toast to 2019 and, like many of us, make resolutions for the New Year. Sure, like many others you may resolve to eat healthier and exercise more, but what about some resolutions for your actuarial career? When I was taking exams, the beginning of a new year meant getting back into the study habit that I put on temporary hiatus through the holidays. Here are some resolutions for 2019 and beyond you can use as you progress through exams and build your career. Build good study habits – The hardest thing for me to learn while transitioning from a college student to ...
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Cybersecurity for Everyone

By Ya Jia posted 11-27-2018
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Cyber risks are ever-present in our day-to-day lives and they continue to grow rapidly. Hackers take advantage of constantly evolving technology to find new ways to access the private data of major companies. For companies, it is less expensive to invest in cybersecurity than it is to clean up after a data breach. Without adequate levels of cybersecurity, companies not only experience the cost of a data breach, but also a loss of reputation and drop in stock prices. Cyber risks can affect all forms of technology. Employees should understand security issues and how their behaviors can increase or reduce security risks. What Companies Should Do While ...
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How I Succeeded on My Path to Becoming an Actuary and How you Can too

By Maha Chaudhry posted 11-01-2018
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We invited CAS member Carlo Lahura, ACAS, to share his advice on being a successful actuarial student. Carlo is an expert in this subject, as he was able to graduate with a 3.8/4.0 GPA, held five actuarial internships, served five terms as actuarial club president, and passed 7 actuarial exams, all while earning his university degree!. Hola! My name is Carlo, and I graduated from the University of Waterloo in 2017 as Valedictorian with a wealth of experience on my resume. I currently work with EY’s P&C practice in Chicago as an Actuarial Consultant. After having talked with numerous other successful graduates who managed to balance large commitments, ...
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