Qualify as an actuary and walk into a top job

The Actuarial Society in a statement yesterday made a case for South African students to acquire actuarial skills due to the high employment demand.

The Actuarial Society in a statement yesterday made a case for South African students to acquire actuarial skills due to the high employment demand.

Published Dec 5, 2019

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JOHANNESBURG - The Actuarial Society in a statement yesterday made a case for South African students to acquire actuarial skills due to the high employment demand. 

“High demand for actuarial skills in South Africa means that the country’s 1 586 fully qualified actuaries enjoy a 0percent unemployment rate. The demand for actuaries is not unique to South Africa - the United States Bureau of Labour Statistics recently predicted a 20percent growth rate in the employment of actuaries from 2018 to 2028, which far exceeds the growth expectations for all other professions,” it said. 

Mike McDougall, the chief executive of the Actuarial Society of South Africa, acknowledges that the actuarial qualification was one of the toughest to obtain, which explained why there were so few fully qualified actuaries in South Africa and globally. 

“However, given the country’s youth unemployment rate of 55.2percent, actuarial science is a profession worth considering for learners with an immense amount of self-discipline and who are prepared to commit to pure maths as a subject,” he said. 

McDougall emphasised it was vital to study pure maths and not maths literacy, despite the difficulty and workload. He said it took from seven to 10 years to become a fully qualified actuary. 

He added: “The path to becoming an actuary is not a cakewalk, but if you are ambitious and talented when it comes to numbers it can be one of the most rewarding and dynamic professions in the world.” 

The Actuarial Society in a statement yesterday made a case for South African students to acquire actuarial skills due to the high employment demand.

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