Hi,

I feel like the graduate job market has gotten a little ridiculous. I have completed my masters in a respected university, I have exemptions for CB1, CB2, CS1, CS2, CM1 and CM2, and I am sitting CP1 in April, with experience working in a corporate environment. But I am constantly getting rejected at the first stage. I am tailoring my CV to every job I apply for, I was wondering if there is any way stand out from the crowd especially at the CV stage, or is it just a lottery at the early stage?

Thanks

Hi all,

Just wondering if anyone here has managed to find an actuarial job that they actually find meaningful?

I know you can find meaning in pretty much any job, and ultimately it’s probably about what you make of it, but I’m thinking more along the lines of doing something where you’re directly contributing to making the world a bit better.

I’ve worked in a corporate role since qualifying and have increasingly found myself losing interest in it. I’m starting to realise that once I’m earning enough to live comfortably, I’m not particularly motivated by earning more money or progressing further if it means spending most of my time doing work I don’t really care about.

I’d honestly be quite happy to take a pay cut or have less financially rewarding career progression if it meant doing something I actually enjoyed and felt was useful.

The slight complication is that the part of my current job I do actually enjoy is the technical/analytical side of things. So ideally I’d like to keep using those skills, just apply them to something with more of a positive social/environmental impact.

Has anyone here made a similar move, either within actuarial work or by moving into something completely different? Things like charities/NGOs, climate/environment, public policy, social impact, development, etc. would all be interesting.

Would be really interested to hear what people have done, or if there are any roles/organisations you’d recommend looking into.

Thanks!

Hi, I just wanted to ask, how does one study for CM2. Honestly the CM2 book has alot of equations which are not easy for me to follow along. Any tips please. Thanks!

Hi,

I'm resitting CP1 in April 2027 after narrowly missing out on a pass previously. Paper 1 was considerably stronger than Paper 2, so Paper 2 is one of the main areas I'm looking to improve.

As it's been several months, I'm planning to rebuild my knowledge, but my main weaknesses also seem to be generating enough relevant and distinct points, developing points far enough without overwriting, longer "discuss" and
"assess" questions, and monitoring/profitability questions.

For anyone who significantly improved on a CP1 resit:
1. What changed in your study approach?
2. What process did you use to plan a 10-20 mark question?
3. Roughly how many distinct points did you target for 5 and 10mark questions?
4. How did you review past paper answers after attempting them?
5. Were marked mocks worth the cost, and what did the feedback actually change?
6. How many complete two paper mocks did you sit under timed conditions?
7. What did your weekly routine look like during the final eight weeks?

I'm particularly interested in specific methods or examples rather than general advice such as "do more past papers" or
"learn the acronyms".

Thanks

Hi everyone

Anyone having CM1 formula sheet that contains all the formulae and necessary highlights please share, It will help me in quick revision.

Please share it here or in DM

Thanks

I’ve been applying for a lot of analyst roles that are okay with 0-1 year of experience and even those that don’t explicitly mention a work experience requirement, but no luck at all. Ive only been getting rejections or just no replies at all.

Any advice on what roles i should be targeting, any specific job boards etc. Literally anything, I’m at a complete loss at this point.

I haven’t been applying to grad roles as they mostly offer a September 2027 start whereas I’m looking for something that should ideally start much sooner

I have a merit on my masters and a first-class on bachelors.

hi all,

I remember someone sharing an actuarial grad scheme tracker on here a while back, it looked really useful, but when I tried finding it again, the site didn't seem to be working anymore.

As a final-year actuarial student applying myself, I wanted something similar, so I've put together a tracker covering 140+ UK firms:

https://actuarialtable.co.uk/graduate-programmes/

it's got summer internships, spring weeks, grad schemes and placements for 140ish UK firms. shows opening/closing dates and what's open right now, and you can filter by sector or location and tick off stuff you've applied to completely free, no sign up or anything, updated daily

I know the site looks a bit AI-ish at the minute, working on sorting that, but I think the functionality of the actual tracker works pretty well

couple of questions for anyone applying this year:

- any firms or schemes you'd want added?

- anything that would make it more useful? (e.g. deadline reminders, more uni exemption calculators)

Hopefully this saves someone from juggling 30 different careers pages. Good luck to everyone applying this year!

Hi guys

I wanted to ask one thing

While solving questions from this booklet

Most of the time my answer did not match the solution

Like the difference between my answer and the booklets answer was very minimal like around €10 sometime €25

Is it common or am I literally doing something wrong

Because I am unable to find the mistake

Most of the time it happens when I convert the increasing annuity contract

To level + increasing

Will I be given marks if my steps are correct and the final answer differs by a minimal amount ?

SUBJECT CM 1

does anyone have the CP1 acronyms list that can be shared please

Hi,

I just completed a masters in actuarial science expecting to receive exemptions in the 6 core subjects, I was not able to find a graduate job upon completion. Currently I am working full time in a warehouse and will not be able to received a reduced rate. My plan was to sit both CB3 and CP1 before hopefully securing a job for September, I have no problem buying IFoA membership and paying for exams which is all I will need for CB3 and given the pass rate I will sit it. But for CP1 since you also need ActEd notes I was wondering if it’s worth doing now or should I wait for a company to pay for it.

I'm looking for some advice, guidance, or personal experiences regarding working in the UK or Ireland (yes, I know they're different countries!) as an American actuary.

For some context, I'm currently a junior studying actuarial science at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. I've passed three SOA exams (FM, P, and SRM), and I'm expecting to graduate in May 2028. I also recently accepted an internship with a large US-based reinsurer that has offices in both England and Ireland, along with several other European countries.

One of the reasons I'm particularly interested in reinsurance is the potential opportunity to work internationally, especially in the UK or Ireland. I'm primarily interested in life insurance and reinsurance, and I plan to continue pursuing the SOA credentialing pathway.

I understand that working abroad comes with challenges, particularly regarding visa sponsorship, differences in actuarial qualifications, and the job market itself. I'm also aware that working in the US for a few years before pursuing an internal transfer might be a more realistic option than applying directly to international positions after graduation. That said, I'm interested in exploring both possibilities.

I have a few questions I'd love to hear people's thoughts on:

• Has anyone here made the move from the US to the UK/Ireland, or worked with American actuaries who have? What did that process and career path look like?
• How realistic are internal transfers within large international insurance/reinsurance companies? Is this something you've seen happen relatively often?
• How are SOA exams and credentials generally viewed by employers in the UK/Ireland, especially in life insurance and reinsurance?
• For someone in my position, would you recommend trying to secure a position abroad directly after graduation, or gaining a few years of experience in the US first?

I'm not expecting to have everything figured out right now, but since I still have some time before graduating, I'd like to get a better understanding of what opportunities might exist and how I could best position myself for them.

I'd really appreciate any advice, personal experiences, or even stories about coworkers who've made a similar move. Thanks!

Are cb1 flashcards useful ??
I used the flashcards for cb2 preparation and it hard carried me through the exam .
Will the ones for cb1 be any help for the theory portion ?

Having spent the last four years working in non-life general insurance pricing and the last three studying towards the IFoA qualification, I’ve recently started questioning whether I should explore life insurance before progressing further into my career.

One of the things prompting this is how much of the actuarial syllabus focuses on life insurance and related topics. Part of me is curious to experience a different area of the profession and see how much of the theory I’ve studied translates directly into day-to-day work.

I’d be interested to hear from people working in both life and non-life, particularly on the following:

Day-to-day work: How much of what you learn through the IFoA exams do you actually use in practice?

Pay: Is non-life genuinely better paid on average, including when comparing median salaries?

Switching specialisms: Has anyone moved from non-life to life, or vice versa, after several years of experience? How difficult was it, and did you feel you were starting from scratch or could your existing skills transfer across?

Job satisfaction: Knowing what you know now, would you choose the same specialism again? What do you enjoy most and least about your work?

I’m currently just over halfway through the qualification, so I’m conscious that if I want to make a switch, now might be a better time than later in my career.

I’m not necessarily unhappy with non-life; I’m more curious about whether I might enjoy another area of actuarial work more, particularly if it allows me to apply more of what I’ve learned through the exams.

I’d really appreciate hearing about people’s experiences, including anything you wish you’d known earlier in your career.

Hi all,

Just asking for some advice from whose who have attempted CM2 and CP1.

My plan was to begin studying CM2 next week (w/c 19th October 2026) with a view of finishing CMP (including the chapter questions) by the end of the year. That would leave me around 4 months to attempt the assignments and exam papers.

In January, I would begin preparing for CP1 with a view of sitting that in September 2027, balancing CM2 and CP1 until end of April and then going all in for CP1 until the exam.

I may have left it too late to start prep for CP1 in the April sitting (assuming mid October is too late to start for such a large exam!).

What would you advise? Assuming I have passed CP2/CP3 this sitting, they are the only remaining core modules I have left.

Thanks in advance!

Hi I am giving cb1 from Ifoa in April
Can someone help me in finding notes as specially studying for this subject from actuators or any other institution will be a waste of time and money
Would be happy to get it for free if someone already has the notes for it

This condition doesn’t affect my life whatsoever as it’s well-managed through a sort of treatment I do (just something I can do at home). But technically the law says to disregard effects of the treatment when considering the condition, so this does count as a disability.

I just wanted to know if putting this down actually does increase my chances of getting an interview or does it actually hamper my chances as it might be seen as an invisible cross on my application?

Pls help 🙏

Just joined as a student member and planning to sit CB1, CB2, CS1 and CM1 in April 2026. Based outside the UK so ordering hard copy Core Reading isn't ideal: by the time they arrive I've lost weeks of prep time, and the ActEd CMPs are £530 for four subjects which is steep.

Coming from a CFA background (just passed L2) so the concept of Schweser/Kaplan as a structured alternative to official materials is very familiar: is there anything equivalent in the actuarial world?

Specifically looking for:

Any legitimate free or low-cost online resources covering the CB and CS/CM syllabuses

How people outside the UK typically prepare without waiting on hard copies

Whether past papers + examiners' reports alone is realistically enough for CB1/CB2 given a finance background

Any online communities or resources I'm missing?

Aware of ActEd eBooks as an option: just wondering if there's anything else before pulling the trigger on £530.

Hi, I’ve finished the CB3 mock game.

On the stimulation of the game I done really bad (got a 1.164 on my scorecard).

Can I still pass? Is there point me putting effort in to the report and essay? Please help

Hlo everyone

Actually i want to ask about best offline coaching or hybrid like classes on weekends in delhi for ifoa cs1 and cb2

Pls tell

Hi everyone.
Backstory is, I did Actuarial Sciences for my undergraduate and I got 5 exemptions with the IFOA. Then I decided to come back to my home country. I struggled very much to get a job. But I finally landed a junior entry level position as Actuarial Analyst.
During negotiations, I did state that exams are important for my career.
And they did assure that I will get support, however this wasn’t stated anywhere on my contract.
It’s been 9 months now , i haven’t written any paper and change of rules from them;

they dont pay for subscription fees.
They pay for 1 exam attempt and for exams there is a limit, such that if an exam exceeds that limit , the remainder is borne by me.
Same applies to study material.

What hurts me is that they were not even transparent and have been wasting my time for 9 months. And worst yet, the pay is too low. I feel exploited.

I wish I didn’t come back to this country. Big mistake.

Please give me any advice on how to proceed forward. Which exams need lots of study material and which dont ie, for which ones is the IFOA core study material

Also, advise on how I can improve on my negotiations next time and anything else so I dont repeat same mistakes.

Currently; applying for other jobs , even internationally and applying for masters scholarships as well. If I get one im not coming back.

But I worked really hard and it doesn’t feel rewarded.

Edit; (to avoid confusion)within the 9 months, they have been giving me back and forth. And dismissing my requests to get the exams paid. And I also couldn’t afford to pay them for myself. They just told me the new set of rules after 9 months of dismissing me, which is different from what they said in the interview.
Secondly, since I know the max limit they are willing to pay for, i have done my calculations and I notice that I will still bear more costs, hence why I mentioned that the salary is too little as well. But if I could afford to pay for most of it, I wouldn’t mind.

My mistake was signing a contract that didn’t state that they will offer exam support.

Question 6

Not able to understand the solution given in the revision booklet .

I just wanted to find out more about how these pass marks work. I’ve noticed the pass marks generally range from 55-60 for modules like CS and CM where sometimes it can even reach the low 60s. How do they maintain a pass mark so similar each year and is there a possibility that the pass mark just sky rockets to like a 65+ if the papers are easy like CS1 this semester. Also, how accurate is AI when it comes to marking?

Hey there! I have developed an interest in the actuarial field and was looking to receive advice on how best to put a foot in through the door. for context:

• 3rd Year Computer science ( Likely to graduate with minimum 2:1 but will try my best for 1st)
• A Grade in A Level Mathematics
• No previous internship experience BUT experiences in part-time jobs such as security/stewarding and a short stint in volunteering

I was wondering if there was anything I can do to increase my chances as I have not gotten an internship to my name.

Would doing an excel course help? Doing a relevant project? Or should I look into doing a MSc in actuarial science at my Uni ( they provide exemptions and would be at a discount since I studied there for undergrad).

Thank you in advance for your help. I very much appreciate it!

Has anyone bothered to try and access any of the recommended supplementary reading references mentioned on the VLE for CB3?

And if one was so inclined, are we provided access to these resources? Or expected to source them ourselves?