CAS 3 vs. SoA 3

[Cats]

Is one easier/harder than the other? I seem to hear that the CAS 3 this last sitting (May 2004) was way easier. Is it true? If so, does anyone know why that is?

Thanks.

[Sunny]

CAS3 was easier last sitting than May 04's, and IMHO, SOA course 3 exams have always been harder than CAS's.

[p&cnewbie]

Some think the CAS C3 is easier, and perhaps it is. Its emphasis is quite different, which makes a direct comparison a little distorted. There is no need for someone who is working in the P&C environment to have a broad base of mastery in complex life contingencies. From my understanding, the non-life stuff that is on CAS C3 is more extensive than SOA C3. Don't become too concerned that the CAS stuff is just too easy to bother with though. I hear the upper level CAS exams at least hold their own in difficulty in comparison to the SOA exams.

[E]

I think they're quickly just becoming 2 very different exams. The CAS obviously puts much less emphasis on life contigencies, but the whole format and theme of the CAS exam 3 is very different from its SOA counterpart. CAS questions are much more direct and straightforward, whereas the SOA likes to create a flavorful (to put it nicely) context for all of the questions. This can often be very distracting and cause one difficulty in setting the problem up.

If you are looking for a straightforward exam that will test you directly on what you have studied, go the CAS route, but be warned that the SOA does not recognize the CAS exam, so if you take the CAS exam, be sure you want to work in the casualty field.

[Sunny]

I agree with E. CAS tends to be what you would think the exam should be, SOA c3 puts in additional twists and tricks and traps and then you look at the exam on the exam day and you go, did I walk into the wrong exam and took the wrong test? :-?

[isaac218]

I did find that the SOA was much more difficult. But that doesn't mean too much because the adjustments are different in the two exams. When comparing the two exams it almost balances out. While the CAS exam has questions of lower difficulty it also has:

1) A much higher pass mark
Last sitting the pass mark was 47. If you were to answer every question as you do with the SOA exam that would mean that you would need to get 27 correct (and 13 wrong) to pass. For the SOA exam the pass mark was 20 correct.

2) A guess adjustment
If you get an answer wrong you do not get a free guess, you actually lose half a point while if you get it right you get 2 points. This makes it so on a blind guess (when you can't eliminate any answers) you are just as well off* I leaving it blank as you are by guessing because you will have an expected value of 0.

3) Range answers
Range answers are bad. Unlike the SOA, you don't get a answer and if it matches one of the 5 listed you can select that answer and move on. In CAS you are given ranges for your answers. You have to select that range that your answer fall in. This may not sound like a big deal but it might cause you to second guess yourself more and take longer on some questions.

Many people will say that the CAS has a much higher pass percentage but because of the guess adjustment there are many more people that will get 0's. Those people are not included when the pass percentage is determined so it is a bit deceiving.

For the SOA 3 last sitting, (or maybe even the last 2 sittings), whether you pass or not is strongly determined by your blind guess luck. I don't think that is a good way to design the exam.

I hope this answered your question.

*there is some strategy that you can use for CAS 3

[windy]

I tried the CAS exam and got 34 correct on my first time through. But, I think I am failing on SOA. The conclusion is that CAS is more difficult.

[Browser]

After much complaining on this board about the SOA course 3 exam (I was one of many complainers), I decided to download the Course 3 CAS exam and take the exam under test conditions, minus the pressure's of course. I had never seen the CAS exam before and I scored 50.5 points. I answered 29 questions of which 3 I answered incorrectly. There were a couple of questions that I did not know how to do since I had not studied for a portion of their syllabus.

In comparison, I think I answered 15 correct on the SOA exam and I am hoping that I guessed well enough to pass, but I don't think I did.

IMO, an unprepared student is much less likely to outperform a prepared student while taking the CAS exam.

[Sunny]

IMO, an unprepared student is much less likely to outperform a prepared student while taking the CAS exam.

This is true also IMHO.

[Howard Mahler]

Posted: Fri May 28, 2004 1:53 pm** *Post subject:
"3) Range answers
Range answers are bad. Unlike the SOA, you don't get a answer and if it matches one of the 5 listed you can select that answer and move on. In CAS you are given ranges for your answers. You have to select that range that your answer fall in. This may not sound like a big deal but it might cause you to second guess yourself more and take longer on some questions."

Historically for numerical short answer questions, for the majority of questions, but not all, the CAS has used ranges for A, B, C, D, and E.

An equivalent idea is when you have for example:
A. 3 B. 4 C. 5 D. 6 E. 7,
and the student would answer B for 4.2.

I am someone who shares this preference.

My reasons:
1. It is more like real actuarial work. (more like = less unlike.) You get your answer. You can check it if you want, including whether its general magnitude makes sense.
2. Testmakers do not waste time and effort coming up with good detractors
(values one could get if one made a particular mistake.)
Rather they can spend their time making sure the question is well worded, not amibigious, not too hard, not too long, etc.
3. Assuming there is a unique numerical answer, it is in one of the ranges,
so there is less chance one will have a defective question.

This an issue about which reasonable people can differ.

Howard Mahler

P.S. I am also strongly in favor of the guessing correction and constructing exams so that reasonable passmarks are 60% or higher.

[E]

After much complaining on this board about the SOA course 3 exam (I was one of many complainers), I decided to download the Course 3 CAS exam and take the exam under test conditions, minus the pressure's of course. I had never seen the CAS exam before and I scored 50.5 points. I answered 29 questions of which 3 I answered incorrectly. There were a couple of questions that I did not know how to do since I had not studied for a portion of their syllabus.

In comparison, I think I answered 15 correct on the SOA exam and I am hoping that I guessed well enough to pass, but I don't think I did.

IMO, an unprepared student is much less likely to outperform a prepared student while taking the CAS exam.

Not to downplay your performance on the CAS May 04 exam, but I think there is a strong likelihood that you would not have done as well on that exam if you had taken it before you took the SOA May 04. Reason being. . .

One thing we all have in common (those of us that took the May 04 SOA exam and are on the borderline between pass and fail) is that we got exposure to an extremely difficult exam. It's hard to imagine that the exam will be any worse than this next time, but who can say for sure. At any rate, I, for one, have been pushed to learn the material on a much deeper level and am more prepared than ever to tackle another May 04. I've already outlined a new strategy that I will be implementing soon after July 9 (no studying right now) if my candidate # isn't posted. I'm just glad I've gotten my first C3 sitting out of the way and that I won't be a first-timer in the fall if I have to take it again.

I'm sure there will be many first-timers next fall -- just like I was this past spring -- that will master a study guide like ARCH, be getting 30+ correct without guessing on the published exams, and then get totally humbled when they take a newly minted SOA exam 3 of the caliber that we just took.