Contact them and ask. I cannot say what the FSA actuaries do exactly, but the regulatory environment can be extremely stimulating and enriching.
When I was looking for a job recently the FSA had a role up, here is some extracts from the job specs. Hope it helps. Actuary, General Insurance, Wholesale Firms Division Background The Wholesale Firms Division supervises firms that operate predominantly in wholesale markets, including general insurers and reinsurers, investment firms, foreign banks and investment banks. The General Insurance Actuarial team sits in the Wholesale Insurance Department within this Division. The team comprises 13 qualified and 4 part-qualified actuaries. It is involved in addressing technical issues arising from the FSA's Retail, Policy, Regulatory Transactions as well as the Wholesale Departments. A significant part of the work focuses on Individual Capital Assessments and the integration of capital modelling into firm's risk management frameworks. Other work includes the review of reserving analyses and the support of supervisory staff in activities such as risk reviews, new authorisations, transfers of business, etc. In addition to this direct supervisory work, the team's role in the development of policy, training of supervisors and thematic research is becoming increasingly important. We are looking for an additional member to increase our capacity in all areas. What does this job involve ? As an actuary in the Wholesale Insurance Department, you will have an individual portfolio of regulatory work, supporting supervisors, primarily in five areas: • Reviewing firms ICA submissions • Assisting in a firm's Risk Assessment (for instance assessing a firm's reserving process) • Assessing business plan projections, for example as part of an authorisation application • Reviewing firm's reserves and reinsurance programmes • Advising on regulatory decisions, such as transfers of business and changes of control As a member of the wholesale actuaries team, you will also be actively involved in the development and promotion of the team, including: • Maintaining and promoting effective working relationships with colleagues in other business units and external bodies • Liaising with various groups within the FSA including Authorisations, Enforcement, Policy, General Counsel and supervisors (insurance and non-insurance) • Supporting and providing training, formally or informally • Contributing to projects and thematic work • Keeping up to date with developments in the industry and providing thought leadership in key areas
If you're thinking of joining the FSA, it might be worth bearing in mind that the Conservative Party are thinking of abolishing it should they win the next election....
They plan to give the power back to the BoE, just like it use to be before the reform under new labour in 1997. thomasb's point is completely irrelavent, supervision would still be there in probably exactly the same form, if not bigger and stricter i.e. need more staff like they do now because of SII - But maybe just under a different banner.
