Hi, Just wondering if I could ask for some advice from those who've looked at these subjects. I work in the valuation team of a life insurance company, and have just been moved to a team that does stochastic Asset-Liability modelling. I've finished all the CTs and sat CA1, and can't decide about which STs to do. I'm pretty sure I'll be doing ST2 and SA2 (the life ones), and I think a finance/investment ST would be good too. Which do you think would be most relevant and/or interesting? I've heard that ST6 is quite hard. How much harder than CT8 do people normally find it? Thanks in advance for any advice you might have, Sam
Hi, I have sat ST6 a many times and failed - I know the material inside out, but come exam the paper always (i mean always) has question you cant start let alone do! It is a very tough paper, my advise would be ST5 by a mile!!
Similar experience to AA. It took me 4 attempts to pass ST6. I'd say I was well prepared for each, but the exam threw me each time. The problem being, there always seemed to be at least one question which required knowledge not covered in the acted course. It may have changed with the introduction of an additional 2 text books, but it is still perceived as a 'difficult' exam. The pass rates are generally around 30%, which are the lowest around. Also, ST6 has a very narrow focus and is very technical. I did enjoy the material, but I can't help feeling I would have got more out of the more traditional material covered in ST5.
Thanks for the replies. I've decided to go for ST5. I liked the idea of getting an overview of the finance and investment area as a whole, rather than focusing on a specific part of it. It also sounds like you're less likely to have a bad exam with ST5 than with ST6, which is a bonus. Cheers, Sam
Don't decide based on what is easiest! If you aren't smart enough to pass ST6 you are in the wrong job.
Anon - Given your comments I take it you have sat ALL ST's and ALL SA's to see if you can justify being in the actuarial profession. For some reason I dont think so and if you have I take it social life is non-existent.
anon, that would be the idea. it has unfortunately got nothing to do with smartness whether you pass ST6 at the moment. It has to do with understanding dumbed down maths, and in my case, being able to recite the difference between implicit and explicit finite difference where others seem not to have studied that part of the course in that much detail! I say this having passed the paper. Quite frankly I think that if you have a choice between two papers, and you think you'd enjoy both evenly, it is idiotic not to pick the one that's got a higher pass rate / higher chance of your passing. (these two are not necessarily the same thing...)
Haw haw Anon. It is a common misconception that you have to be intelligent to pass the actuarial exams. Perserverence, hard work, luck, support are all factors. Of course being clever helps things along, but anyone who can gain a decent honours degree is more than smart enough. That being said, when it comes to ST and SA subjects, the choice of which to take is important. This is not a level playing field. The SAs (and increasingly STs) require a breadth of application that the core reading, and sometimes the ActEd courses, only partially touch upon. Most people in pensions struggle to pass ST2 - and not because they are too thick for their job, but because they are competing against Life specialists in an exam where only 40% tops will pass. Similarly, not working in the investment sector would put you at a disadvantage with ST5 and ST6. As a general point, I think the hardest part of the whole exam menue is if you have to choose an ST subject outside of your specialism.
These boards can be a bit bitchier than I expected I don't think that it's a bad thing for students to take easiness into account when choosing exams. On the other hand, I do feel that I should understand financial mathematics to a higher level than CT8 in order to do the jobs that I would like to do (the sotchastic modelling job I've just moved into, for example). I'm just not sure that ST6 will be the best way to learn what I need to know. Why choose the pressure of the exam when you could just learn the material on your own, in a way that suits the work you're doing?
