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Is Being an Actuary Really the Best of Both Worlds?
 

creamdream's picture
(Chimp, 7
 
Points)
 on 7/24/12 at 1:00am
being an actuary.jpg

I have been researching various finance jobs, and actuary pops up at me as the one with the most pay for the least hours. Would anyone know whether this is actually true?

I realize that it might take 6 or so years to do all the exams, but I would be happy eventually making ~130-150k and running a personal trading account in my free time. This seems like a really low-stress, low-hours alternative to the IB or HF grind. Of course, there is a price for everything, but I'd personally gladly pay that price in order to have a better family life and more free time.

Are there any people here that might like to comment on their actuarial jobs or on other alternatives that might seem equally attractive?

Thanks.

Powa23's picture

Downsides according to some

(Orangutan, 291
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 3:30pm

Downsides according to some people,

1) Not as recognizable, when you say Actuary prepare to hear "what?" and explain what it is.
2) Not only are the exams quite long, they are very hard which is why there is such a high attrition rate. But if you have some perseverance and mathematical ability you should pass.

That said, the career is not low stress all the time. Its like any high stake job and you will be quite busy at when you are evaluating risks in certain big insurance deals or projects. However, for the most part actuaries love what they do, are paid well and their work is intellectually challenging which can't be said for every career.

BTbanker's picture

If you want a finance job

IB
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 4:26pm

If you want a finance job that provides good work/life balance, low-stress environment, enables huge potential for salary accretion, but takes time to get there, think about PWM.

"A man generally has two reasons for doing anything. One that sounds good, and the real one." - J.P. Morgan

In reply to Connor
hoodinternet's picture

Connor: If you want a finance

(Baboon, 123
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 4:50pm
Connor:

If you want a finance job that provides good work/life balance, low-stress environment, enables huge potential for salary accretion, but takes time to get there, think about PWM.

There not much of a personality overlap between people who would excel in PWM and Actuarial Sciences. From my experience PWM people are people oriented and enjoy sales, whereas people in actuarial sciences are math oriented and enjoy crunching numbers.

Charles-perry's picture

I studied Actuarial Science

(Orangutan, 273
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 4:55pm

I studied Actuarial Science but swapped over. Ridiculous amount of math/stats etc and really hard too. Not worth the effort imo. Yes the salary is good - IF you get there. People are mega smart but don't really have that 'type A' personality which I prefer to surround myself with (no offence). I agree with hood internet - act sci people like crunching numbers - and thats all they like doing.

BTbanker's picture

He wasn't limiting himself to

IB
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 5:03pm

He wasn't limiting himself to just jobs that require extensive knowledge of math math/stats. He was asking for all viable alternatives to Actuarial Science, which is something way the hell beyond me as to why ANYONE would want to do that for the rest of their lives. Corporate finance and Asset Management should also be considered.

"A man generally has two reasons for doing anything. One that sounds good, and the real one." - J.P. Morgan

Thurnis Haley's picture

I'm not very optimistic for

CF
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 5:15pm

I'm not very optimistic for the future of the actuarial profession. It used to be one of the best kept secrets, but now everyone who's halfway decent at math wants to become an actuary. Unless they make the tests harder there will probably be a glut of actuaries soon. And of course if the supply is too high then the wage will drop. Also the insurance industry seems like a bore.

blastoise's picture

Actuary is just memorizing

O
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 5:23pm

Actuary is just memorizing equations, period. Don't consider it real math myself(same with engineering/cs ).

FreezePops's picture

If you're looking for easy

(Orangutan, 310
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 5:27pm

If you're looking for easy hours and a decent salary (130k should be easily attainable in 6-7 years) and don't mind repetitive work, product control might be for you.
Compliance is another decent option, though the hours might be a bit worse.

Babyj18777's picture

An actuary is someone who

O
(Orangutan, 286
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 5:41pm

An actuary is someone who wanted to be an accountant, but didn't have the personality for it.

My good friend is an actuarial analyst right now, has passed the first 4 exams and is going for the FCAS designation. He works 37.5 hours a week, and makes about 85k a year. For every exam passed he gets a net 5k bonus and a net 5k raise. In about 10 years he'll be making ~200k, and up to 400k if he decides to join a consulting firm.

Pros for him: Stability, Relatively high pay, very little stress, high barrier to entry

Cons for him: Not intellectually stimulating

If you hate working with people, and can handle the mind numbing nature of the work, actuarial science is a solid profession. Other professions you might consider: Patent law, accounting, dentistry, optometry, audiology.

creamdream's picture

Thanks for the kind replies.

(Chimp, 7
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 6:13pm

Thanks for the kind replies. They have elucidated a lot for me. Would anyone know what a good job might be to have while one is studying in preparation for the first few actuarial exams? And would the choice matter a lot?

lifeofpurpose's picture

i work as an actuary. worked

(Gorilla, 523
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 6:23pm

i work as an actuary.
worked in industry and then switched to consulting. It is not fun after a while. Yes it is challenging and "hard" but it is not interesting. As a consultant, you can make six figures as a partner which is not achievable in industry unless you are the CLA at a big insurance company in europe or the states.

If you end up deciding on becoming and actuary then become a life actuary and specialize in capital management (economic capital, solvency II pillar 1, etc). That is the most interesting field nowadays.

Also, you should learn to program prophet, moses or alpha which is really frustrating.

In reply to Babyj18777
newfirstyear's picture

Babyj18777: An actuary is

ER
 
Points)
 on 7/15/12 at 7:08pm
Babyj18777:

An actuary is someone who wanted to be an accountant, but didn't have the personality for it.

Christ, that says a lot right there.

Longcat1982's picture

I'm also wondering if

ST
(Monkey, 39
 
Points)
 on 7/22/12 at 7:47pm

I'm also wondering if pursuing a career as an Actuary is still worthwhile at this stage in my life (I'm already 30 but haven't taken a single Actuarial Exam yet.)

Some useful info about my career aspirations:

- I do not wish to work long hours. I'm not the type who wishes to spend a great deal of my life in the office.
- On the other hand, I very much enjoy Finance, esp. asset management. I already have a great track record managing my own portfolio using a conservative, passive indexing strategy. I don't mind not working in "Finance" as long as I have the money to run my own portfolio.
- KEY: I'd much rather take risks with my career rather than with my own money.
- I don't mind the time commitment required for the exams.
- I'd rather pick a career with a high and stable pay with little prospect for bonuses than a career with lower salary but a small chance of earning a 1+ million bonus.
- I want to retire as early as possible, preferably by 50.

My qualifications:

- I have a very strong math background.. I hold an Engineering degree from one of the top schools in the country and have 2 Masters (1 in Physics and 1 in Finance.)
- I have attempted the CFA Level 1 but have failed multiple times (I've constantly struggled with the Accounting and Financial Reporting sections although I've usually aced the more quantitatively oriented sections.)

In reply to Longcat1982
sayandarula's picture

Longcat1982: - I have

O
(King Kong, 1,809
 
Points)
 on 7/24/12 at 3:46am
Longcat1982:

- I have attempted the CFA Level 1 but have failed multiple times (I've constantly struggled with the Accounting and Financial Reporting sections although I've usually aced the more quantitatively oriented sections.)

i considered being an actuary at one point, and even did my summer undergrad internship as an actuarial intern at a life insurance company. not to deter you, but most of the actuaries i know who are having difficulty with actuarial exams said that the CFA was a breeze in terms of difficulty. actuary exams are many times harder than the CFA exams and take on average 10 years to complete...

Money Never Sleeps? More like Money Never SUCKS amirite?!?!?!?

sayandarula's picture

i'd like to add that what

O
(King Kong, 1,809
 
Points)
 on 7/24/12 at 3:50am

i'd like to add that what ultimately deterred me from an actuarial career was the level of specialization early on...

at the life insurance company that i was working at, they described the typical actuary will work on something very specific (like asset liability management) for 5-6 years before they get an opportunity to move onto anything else. i don't know if other actuarial jobs are like this, but it really scared me off.

additionally, while there is a ton of job stability, most actuarial jobs are in the midwest, so there aren't a ton of options to move around if you're on the west coast.

Money Never Sleeps? More like Money Never SUCKS amirite?!?!?!?

2Shae's picture

Does CLA mean Certified Legal

EN
(Monkey, 35
 
Points)
 on 7/24/12 at 11:13am

If you can't kill them with kindness, just kill them.

Senvik's picture

A friend of mine graduated

 
Points)
 on 7/24/12 at 11:18am

"You stop being an asshole when it sucks to be you." - IlliniProgrammer

AndyLang's picture

creamdream: I have been

(Chimp, 1
 
Points)
 on 11/4/12 at 6:33pm
robinbanks's picture

I switched careers 3 years

(Chimp, 1
 
Points)
 on 2/8/13 at 3:35pm
In reply to robinbanks
chimpout's picture

robinbanks: I switched

 
Points)
 on 2/9/13 at 10:50am
In reply to robinbanks
sms2013's picture

robinbanks: I switched

(Chimp, 1
 
Points)
 on 2/12/13 at 2:08am
Aleera's picture

Starting on the possible

(Chimp, 1
 
Points)
 on 2/24/13 at 10:46pm

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