Hi, Have only recently found these forums and the information is very useful! I decided I wanted to become an Actuary at the start of my final year of University. And following the application process was offered a job in April. Work starts in a few weeks and I feel under prepared. I need some guidance on what I should know before my first day. I've been reading Financial Times and business sections of other papers (although I'm finding the jargon hard to understand at times) and have tried to get a better understanding of the financial products my company offers. I know how to use Microsoft Office software competently but feel I need to improve on Excel based on what I've read elsewhere. Also as much as I've read up on Actuaries and the profession, I'm still not entirely sure what topics are worth going over before I begin. I gave a 10 minute presentation on pensions at my interview but apart from a little of that my knowledge is very limited. Basically it's a bit of nerves about the first day and not wanting to look like an idiot. It's not about the workload, I'm ready to work very hard. Any advice or guidance on what to read up on or to make sure I know is appreciated.
Some suggestions: Excel: consider learning VBA and pivot tables. Some textbooks give examples that are relevant to the examinations such as the cost of capital, portfolio models, options pricing and bonds calculations. It is important to be committed to qualifying; you can always change job within a year or two if you feel actuarial work is not for you. It is worth having a well-organised approach to the studies and to communications to or from your employer. Passing any particular examination is not critical, but being well prepared for the exams is. Going to some of your employer's social functions is helpful, such as Christmas social events. It is also useful to get to know managers in your company and in any clients that you may meet.
As you got the job straight out of uni I'd guess that you are joining a graduate programme at an actuarial firm. You are likely to form part of a group of new starters (esp if it's a large firm) - so at least you won't be alone! Most firms will have some form of graduate training programme (covering broadly the type of work you can expect to come accross), and some time will be spent on discussing the exams, what support is offered by the company, passing requirements etc. I have also heard about a life insurer which runs a 'model office' with new grads - essentially setting up a mock company and letting grad-teams decide things like pricing and contract design etc to get to grips with how an insurer works. The best advice I can give you is to absorb as much knowledge from your senior colleagues as you can - a positive attitude and willingness to take new information / feedback on board will get you a lot further than the ability to write some wizz-bang macros! Lastly, good luck with the first job - it can be scary at times but at the same time exiting!
Having already done enough research on the profession to discover these forums I strongly suspect you are already WAY ahead of the the pack. I've rarely met graduates (been involved with a few intakes) that had a clue what an actuary is/does at the start of their inductions. Frankly most are utterly clueless. Both set of advice below are useful. Get to know the people you are working with. Knowing who to go to for help on tasks is a far more achievable goal than knowing the answer to everything - which just isn't realistic. Relax, enjoy it, you'll be fine I'm sure.
Thanks for the support, I've already started a bit of VBA work, I did some Java at University so I'm taking to it quite easily. Think I need to go over things like pivot tables again. Good communication seems to be a key theme so I'll try to keep that in mind when I start. Looking forward to it now, feel like I need some challenges. Thanks again.
Relax! you'll be fine... Excel is something you tend to pick up as you go along. Bits of it are useful and bits aren't - I haven't used pivot tables at all except once on training (where I thought 'wow, this is a cool toy' and promptly forgot about it). And anyone who expects you to know all about the profession and field you're working straight out of uni is a bit nuts. Zebedee raises a good point that you need to know who to ask for help - and don't be scared to either, you only learn by asking.
Don't fret - everyone gets first day jitters and companies are well used to it. Quite often the first few hrs or maybe a day is spent on company inductions rather than in depth work. Your colleagues will expect you to ask qns so ask away. Forget any more prep. If you are good enough to get the job that's the major hurdle over. Don't be surprised if you spend a couple of days more or less doing background reading in the office anyhow to get you into what the office really does. Enjoy the rest of your freedom. They'll be plenty time to study soon enough.
