Occupation
Actuary
Actuaries model uncertain future events such as claims, mortality, or longevity, and translate them into prices, reserves, and capital requirements. Qualification usually runs through a long series of professional examinations taken while working, and much of the job is defending assumptions rather than running models.
Also known as: Actuarial analyst · Pricing actuary · Consulting actuary · Reserving actuary · Pensions actuary
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Occupation content
Part of Finance, accounting and insurance
A visual day in the work
What the work involves
Build and maintain models of claims, mortality, longevity, or other contingencies.
Set assumptions and test how sensitive results are to changing them.
Price insurance or pension products and calculate the reserves held against them.
Check data quality and completeness before it feeds a model.
Prepare technical reports for boards, trustees, auditors, and regulators.
Explain what the numbers mean to people without an actuarial background.
Entry-route stepper
How people commonly enter
A degree in actuarial science, mathematics, statistics, economics, or a related quantitative subject.
An actuarial trainee role with an employer that sponsors professional examinations.
An actuarial apprenticeship or technician route leading into the professional exams.
A postgraduate qualification in actuarial science after a quantitative first degree.
Typical training: Bachelor's degree
Licensing: Regulated in some jurisdictions. Confirm the current requirement with the regulator in your province, state, or country.
Pathways: Apprenticeship route
Work-context map
Typical work context
- Desk based
- Quiet focus
- Team based
- High responsibility
Desk based · Quiet focus · Team based · High responsibility
Related interests
- Investigative (analytical)
- Conventional (organizing)
Investigative (analytical) · Conventional (organizing)
Related aptitude preparation
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Skills to practise
Practice suites
Related learning
Family-level learning links for Finance, accounting and insurance.
Official sources
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O*NET OnLine: Actuaries (15-2011.00)
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UK National Careers Service: Actuary
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Canada Job Bank: Explore careers (occupation search)
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Labour-market context (not part of exploration match)
This is broad family-level context for Finance, accounting and insurance in Canada, not a figure for Actuary. It does not affect matching scores and is not an eligibility determination.
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Canada Job Bank Career Planning · Canada · Current official profile; consult source for its release period
Finance, accounting and insurance: education pathways
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Canada Job Bank Career Planning · Canada · Current official profile; consult source for its release period
Finance, accounting and insurance: licensing
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