Actuary Career Information

An actuary uses statistics and mathematics to measure, model, and manage financial risk. Actuaries help businesses protect themselves from potential loss by determining, reducing, and lessening the impact of possibly risky future events.

What skills do you need to become an actuary?

If you’re planning to become an actuary, you need superlative (and specialized) analytical and math skills, as most of your time will be spent doing analyses. You should also have strong written and verbal communication skills to share the implications of your findings with various stakeholders. Actuaries need solid project management and problem-solving abilities, too, as well as detail orientation. And remember: The road to being a full-fledged actuary can be long, so tenacity, self-motivation, and ambition are important, too.

What experience and/or certifications do you need to be an actuary?

You can apply to be an entry-level actuary once you have your bachelor’s degree and have passed a few of the 10 professional certification exams (see below for more information). Some schools offer a major in actuarial science, but a degree in mathematics, statistics, finance, business, or economics is also appropriate. Most actuaries do not pursue an advanced degree, as they are busy working through their exams.

Before applying to an actuary role, you’ll want to be well versed statistical analysis software, such as SAS, Microsoft Access, and R. Actuaries need to be Excel experts, using the program for calculations, reports, and analysis. To speed things up, polish your VBA skills. You should also know a couple of other programming languages; SQL, C++, and Python are the most popular for actuaries.

To be a full-fledged actuary, you need to pass 10 actuarial exams—and it’s a lengthy process. Many aspiring actuaries start exams while still in college, and you only need to take 1–3 exams before being hired for an entry-level role. Then, you can prepare for and take future exams while employed. First, you’ll take preliminary exams for associateship; then, you’ll take the remaining exams for fellowship. Each exam takes 3–5 hours, and the entire process takes 7–10 years from start to finish. There are two governing bodies for the exams: The Casualty Actuarial Society for aspiring Property Insurance and Casualty Insurance (P&C) actuaries, and the Society of Actuaries for life or health actuaries. You don’t need to decide your track until after the third exam. You also need to complete certain online courses and attend conferences to become a qualified actuary.

What companies and industries employ actuaries?  

Insurance companies are the leading employer for actuaries. Other industries that employ actuaries include consulting, government, finance, energy, transit, and healthcare. The majority of actuaries find jobs in major US cities, including New York, Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles.

What is the job outlook and salary for actuary roles?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that employment for actuaries will grow by 20% over the next decade. This is much faster than average. The average actuary makes a median annual wage of $102,880.