Career as an Actuary in India and Actuarial Syllabus

How to become an Actuary: Actuary in India

The Institute of Actuaries of India (IAI) regulates the education & training of actuaries in India. When a student becomes a member of IAI by clearing the ACET exam, there comes up the ultimate task to become Actuary in India by clearing all the actuarial exams from the below actuarial syllabus.

Following are the eligibility criteria to become an actuary:

• 10+2(H.S.C) or equivalent 
  or
• Graduate or Post Graduate in Mathematics, Statistics, Economics, Computer Science, Engineering, MBA (Finance) and other similar qualifications.
  or
• Fully qualified members of professional bodies such as:
  • The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India 
  • The Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India
  • Certified Institute of Financial Analysts of India
  • Fellow of Insurance Institute of India
• Highly proficient in mathematics & statistics

After clearing ACET, you can apply online to become a student member of IAI. More information on ACET is available here.

To become a qualified actuary in India, you are required to pass all the actuarial exams (15 of them! and 13 as per new course) and have 3 years of practical work experience. Passing actuarial exams will require students to have application skills as just having the knowledge of the study material will not be enough. Actuarial science is a professional course, just like chartered accountancy, and you would have to study on his/her own.

Actuarial career exams by IAI to become Actuary in India

To become Actuary in India, there are 13 actuarial exams conducted by IAI including 9 written exams and 3 practical exams and this is the complete actuarial syllabus:

Stage 1: CORE PRINCIPLES in Actuarial Syllabus

In the Core Principles stage there are three main modules in Actuarial Syllabus: Actuarial Statistics (CS), Actuarial Mathematics (CM), and Business (CB). All of these modules need to be passed to be able to qualify as an Associate or a Fellow.

To pursue an actuarial career, you start with CS and CM modules consisting of two subjects each. Each subject consists of two examinations. One is a three hour and fifteen minutes paper-based exam and the other is a one hour and forty-five minutes computer-based exam.

CB module in Actuarial Syllabus consists of three subjects. CB1 and CB2 are written examinations of three hours fifteen minutes each, whereas CB3 is an online examination of 2 hours duration.

Subject Code	Subject detail
CS1	Actuarial Statistics
CS2	Risk Modelling and Survival Analysis
CM1	Actuarial Mathematics
CM2	Financial Engineering and Loss Reserving
CB1	Business Finance
CB2	Business Economics
CB3	Business Management

Stage 2: CORE PRACTICES

You are required to pass all 3 subjects at this stage and these are as follows: CP1 and CP3 are written examinations of three hours and fifteen minutes each. CP2 is an online examination consisting of two papers of duration 3 hours 15 minutes each conducted on the same day. 

Subject Code	Subject detail
CP1	Actuarial Practice
CP2	Modelling Practice
CP3	Communications Practice

CP1- Actuarial Practice in Actuarial Syllabus

In the Core practices stage, actuarial concepts are covered. Actuarial Practice (CP1) is assessed by 2 papers each of three hours duration 15 minutes time. The marks of the two papers are added together to give a single mark for CP1 Actuarial Practice.

CP2 Modelling Practice

This online exam aims to ensure that you understand how to model data, document the work which also includes maintaining an audit trail, analyse the methods used and results generated, and communicate these along with your conclusions to an actuarial audience. You will need a working knowledge of spreadsheets and word.

The Format of CP2

• The online exam will comprise two papers of the duration of 3 hours fifteen minutes each conducted on the same day. Both the papers will be computer based using Microsoft Office 2007.
• In Paper 1, students will be given a problem to model, including data to analyze and audit trail. In Paper 2, students will be presenting a summary outlining: the description, approach, results and conclusions.
• This will not be presented to an audience.
• The relevant core reading will be available as a soft copy on your computers.
• CP2 examination will be conducted in a classroom environment under the supervision of an invigilator.
• CP2 examination will be conducted twice a year along with the Regular Examination at Indian centers only. These will be visible to students while registering for the exam. There is no batch size limit for registration.
• Study material will have to be purchased separately.
• Students will need to sit and clear both parts of the examination to gain a pass, and if a student is absent from one part they will receive an overall absent grade.
• There will be no pre-requisite of passing other papers in order to register for CP2.

CP3- Communication Practices

CP3 subject aims to test your skills at effective communication to both technical and non-technical audiences. It is based on the concepts in the Core principle subjects and in CP1 – Actuarial Practice and questions are set within a financial framework. The examination will be conducted as a single written examination along with the regular exams twice in a year. There will be no pre-requisite of passing other papers in order to register for CP3. There is no batch size limit for registration. Study material will have to be purchased separately.

You have to pass all these 3 exams to become Actuary in India:

CA1	Actuarial Risk Management
CA2	Model Documentation Analysis and Reporting (Practical Exam)
CA3	Communication (Practical Exam)

Stage 3: SPECIALIST PRINCIPLES

This stage builds on the Core Principles Stage but in individual specialism (non-jurisdiction specific). Choice is introduced at this stage. The student will choose 2 subjects from the 8 subjects offered in Actuarial Exams:

Subject Code	Subject detail
SP1	Health and Care
SP2	Life Insurance
SP4	Pension and Other Benefits
SP5	Investment and Finance
SP6	Financial Derivatives
SP7	General Insurance Reserving and Capital Modelling
SP8	General Insurance – Pricing

Stage 4: SPECIALIST ADVANCED

The final stage of the examinations is one specialist (India-specific or other jurisdiction specific to be allowed from a later date) subject chosen from:

Subject Code	Subject detail
SA1	Health and Care
SA2	Life Insurance
SA3	General Insurance
SA4	Pensions and Other Benefits
SA7	Investment and Finance

Becoming an actuary is a tough process and only the most skilled professionals clear all the levels. Many students often quit studying after clearing a few exams as there are job opportunities even if you’ve cleared 3-4 exams of the IAI. The industry is, therefore, facing a resource crunch for highly qualified actuaries. That means you have to clear the exams along with the job to be a highly qualified Actuary.

Source: Actuaries India