ST3 FAQ (last updated 23 April 2009)

This thread contains the Subject ST3 questions asked most frequently by students, with answers written by ActEd's tutors. Each year, we'll incorporate these questions and solutions into the study material.

This thread was last updated on 23 April 2009.

Question

Which old era subject questions are relevant to Subject ST3?

Answer

Nearly all of the old Subject 303 questions are relevant and worth attempting. You may find that a small number (eg those covering the actuarial control cycle, and those covering experience rating) were covered in greater depth in Subject 303. Make sure that you refer to the up-to-date Subject ST3 material when checking your answers to old questions.

Some of the old Subject 106 questions are relevant and worth attempting. The following Subject 106 questions are worth attempting:

April 2000 exams: Q8
September 2000 exams: Q3, 7
April 2001 exams: Q3
September 2001 exams: Q10
April 2002 exams: Q3
September 2002 exams: Q5, 9
April 2003 exams: Q8
September 2003 exams: Q4
April 2004 exams: Q5, 7(ii)(a)
September 2004 exams: Q6, 8.

Question

If I have passed ST3 (but not SA3) before 31 December 2009, do I need to also sit and pass both ST7 and ST8 to be able to go on to do SA3?

Answer

There is an article on Pg 15 of the April 2009 edition of the Actuary magazine which summarises the situation.

Briefly:

If you have achieved ST3 then neither ST7 nor ST8 will be able to count as your second ST subject due to the amount of overlap in the subject matter.

You can, however, choose to discount your ST3 pass and take both ST7 and ST8 to count as your two ST subjects.

For the new SA3 exam, you will be expected to know the material from ST7 and ST8 and so, even if you don't need to sit the ST7 and ST8 exams, you will still need to be familiar with (ie study) these subjects.