what is an ACTUARY? and what do you have to study to become one? how long does it take?

Question

I hear a lot about this career, but I have no idea what they do and what it takes to become one....

Answer 1

Actuaries are people who calculate, estimate, and minimize the finanical risk for a company/situation. Hence, we calculate how mcuh someone should pay for their insurance coverage, we calculate how much reserves the insurance company should have, estimate the risks the company's encountering etc. We deal CLOSELY with interest rates, statistics, and any social events that might make us re-think on the data that we generate based on historical stats.
Look for University that offers Actuarial Science as your major, it'll help you out. Like accountants, its a profession that you need to take exams to be professionally recongized. www.soa.org is the site you want to look at. There are 8 exams in total, although they do change the the structures of these eams quite often (like every 5 years). The more exams you got under your belt, the higher chance you score yourself a good job, with a good paycheck.
It's a good profession to get into, but it truly does require lots of hardwork and dedication. And if you don't like numbers, analyzing numbers, being data skeptical with numbers, this isn't it! best of luck!

Answer 2

Actuarial Science, Drake University in Des Moines, IA has an outstanding program if you are interested.

They are the bean-counters of the world, folks who work in insurance and come with statistical reasons why men aged 18-25 who drive red cars should be pay more for car insurance.
They make a VERY good living.

You should like math, a lot, especially statistics.

Answer 3

An actuary is a business professional who deals with the financial impact of risk and uncertainty. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actuary

You usually need bachelor's degree (four year college program) in a business accounting courses that will help prepare you for the rigorous examinations you need to take in order to get you professional credential is this area of finance (however, an four year degree is ususally enough) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actuary#Credentialing_and_exams

Good Luck!!!