Guidance to SA2

[Megan Dreyer]

Hi all

I have a couple of queries regarding studying SA2:
1. Everyone is always referring to the amount of work of SA2 (a lot). I am not finding the file to be much bigger than ST2 (SP2). Am I missing something?
2. What amount of additional material reading is required? E.g. Actuaries' code, TAS 100 and 200?
3. My CMP pack does not contain Q&A bank - is this correct? Is doing the end-of-chapter questions and ASET papers enough to pass? It feels so little.

Thanks in advance.
Megan

 

[Em Francis]

Hi all

I have a couple of queries regarding studying SA2:
1. Everyone is always referring to the amount of work of SA2 (a lot). I am not finding the file to be much bigger than ST2 (SP2). Am I missing something?
2. What amount of additional material reading is required? E.g. Actuaries' code, TAS 100 and 200?
3. My CMP pack does not contain Q&A bank - is this correct? Is doing the end-of-chapter questions and ASET papers enough to pass? It feels so little.

Thanks in advance.
Megan

Hi Megan
I will try and answer your queries...

Amount of work
There is likely to be less bookwork in the SA Subject exam than you have been used to in the SP Subject exams.
However, the recommended study hours for SA2 is 300 hours, as opposed to 200 hours for SP2. A lot of this will be practising the higher order skills required for SA2 which is different to the skill set used in the previous exams with more thinking and planning in the actual exam.

Also, a greater understanding is needed of the material being covered, beyond what you read in the Course Notes. This means you should be prepared to read around the subject and be aware of current topics within the field of the subject.

You will need a good knowledge of how the course links together and you need to be able to assimilate efficiently all the necessary parts of both the subject SA and equivalent subject SP course, in order to prove you understand the subject fully. You will also need to employ your communication skills learned in Subject CP3.

Additional reading
A list of suggested reading has been drawn up and can be found in the SA2 ‘Resources’ section of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) website. However, please be aware though that students are not expected to have read all of the items on the list or to have gained a detailed knowledge of any particular topic additional to that contained in the Core Reading.

Q&A
Yes, there are no Q&A's within the 2108/2019 CMP, this has been replaced with practice questions at the end of each chapter, which includes exam-style questions. These questions aim to test your understanding of what you have covered so far.