Could someone please suggest the appropriate order in which I should attempt these exams? I have heard that the 'fundamentals of actuarial science' are regarded as CT1, CT3, and CT7. Is this true? If so...then why did the Actuarial profession suggest that the exams be taken in ascending order i.e. CT1, CT2, CT3....CT9 etc. In the event that CT1, CT3, and CT7 are the fundamentals..then which subjects should i attempt after?
CT1,3, 7 are essentially the fundamentals of their topics - that is, financial maths, probability & stats, and economics. I wouldn't say they are the foundations of actuarial science, however. If you are working, then it is worth consulting with your employer as to which are most immediately useful; if you are studying yourself, I would suggest CT1 is essential, and then CT2,3, and 7 are all reasonable choices, based on what you are most interested in! Numerical order is a sensible route for people working in life offices, which is a massive proportion of all students.
CT order its maybe worth pointing out that CTs 1,2,3,7 tend to have significantly higher pass rates than the other CTs, which is perhaps another reason why people tend to do these ones first. also, some later CTs build on earlier CTs, in particular CT6 should only be done after CT3, and it would be useful to do CTs 1,4 and 7 before CT8.
CT1, CT2 CT3 and CT7 are the easier CTs. I'd strongly recommend not doing them all first though, as then you'll have to do the hard ones together! Prioritize in order of your field and try and mix up the hard and easy ones.. Assuming 2 subject per sitting and you work in life/pensions, I'd go for: CT3/CT1 CT4/CT5 CT7/CT6 CT8/CT2 Rational: 3 and 1 are fundamental and assumed knowledge for many of the other modules. 4 and 5 overlap and are the most important for life. 7/2 are more wordy and require more memorisation, so I wouldn't take both together. 6 is a prerequisite for 8. 8 is harder than 6 and 7 is harder than 2, so 7/6 and 8/2 give the most balance.
