Seminars

[chic squirrel]

Are there any good seminars out there for Exam 6?
Are they worth taking?

Thanks

[Da Bears!]

I hear the CAMAR seminar in Philly is supposed to be helpful. Went to the one for Course 5 and feel it helped quite a bit. Of course, the company pays for everything, so for me it was definitely "worth" it. For others, I can't be sure. I'm not sure I would attend any seminar if it was going to be out of pocket.

[WadotNChew]

I'll second the CAMAR seminars for six. Ken Fikes handles the reserving portion: his notes are great, and include alot of new problems. Tom Kenia handles the accounting portion, and his notes are excellent. I also liked how he set up and solved the accouting problems.

CAMAR wasn't as great for 5, in my opinion. Their really was no logical approach to the order in which the papers were presented, and it felt like a couple of the instructors were simply phoning it in

[Smooth Verona]

The CAMAR instructors (Fikes, Kenia, Soper) are teaching in Philly on the weekends of Sept. 16-18 and Sept. 30-Oct. 2.

Also, they will be teaching for the MAF in Chicago. This seminar will be held on the weekends of Sept. 9-11 and Sept. 23-25.

[Da Bears!]

The CAMAR instructors (Fikes, Kenia, Soper) are teaching in Philly on the weekends of Sept. 16-18 and Sept. 30-Oct. 1.

Also, they will be teaching for the MAF in Chicago. This seminar will be held on the weekends of Sept. 9-11 and Sept. 23-25.


Do you know those dates for the CAMAR for certain? I've been checking their site regularly and they still haven't posted anything regarding the fall seminars.

[Smooth Verona]

Do you know those dates for the CAMAR for certain?

Yes (Except I changed my initial post - the second weekend is actually Sept. 30-Oct. 2. There are only 30 days in September. :duh: ).

[isaac218]

For the CAMAR seminars do they give you the notes in advance? Feldblum does the NEAS seminars and you usually have to wait till you actually get to the seminar to get the notes.

[Rhizome]

Is the NEAS seminar any good? How is Feldblum?

[Examinator]

I'm interested in the CAMAR now. What is the MAF? I've heard the NEAS is poor for 6.

[Smooth Verona]

CAMAR (Casualty Actuaries of the Mid-Atlantic Region) and MAF (Midwestern Actuarial Forum) are Regional Affiliates of the CAS.

For the CAMAR seminars do they give you the notes in advance?
Most (maybe all) of the notes are sent in advance. The reserving piece will be ready by early-mid July and is sent as three PDF files (due to size).

[Examinator]

CAMAR (Casualty Actuaries of the Mid-Atlantic Region) and MAF (Midwestern Actuarial Forum) are Regional Affiliates of the CAS.Are they pretty much the same seminar?

[Anita]

Same seminar, same instructors, different location and date. This same group has taught for CAMAR since 2001. It will be the first time they teach in Chicago for the MAF.

[Smooth Verona]

That is correct. I believe Kenia and Soper have taught Part 6 since 2000. Fikes joined in 2001.

[Examinator]

The CAMAR instructors (Fikes, Kenia, Soper) are teaching in Philly on the weekends of Sept. 16-18 and Sept. 30-Oct. 2.

Also, they will be teaching for the MAF in Chicago. This seminar will be held on the weekends of Sept. 9-11 and Sept. 23-25.Is there a website with all of the specifications? This is interesting me more and more.

[Da Bears!]

Is there a website with all of the specifications? This is interesting me more and more.

http://www.sbm.temple.edu/actsci-seminars

This site will have the information for the CAMAR seminar in Philly. Although I don't think they will have anything posted until at least next week.

[Examinator]

Actually the MAF is what I'm more interested in. Will this be on the Temple site too?

[Smooth Verona]

For the MAF, the info should be up in the next couple of weeks.

http://www.casact.org/affiliates/maf/

[Sox34]

how does this whole split seminar work with ppl who are travelling from a distance?

[GefilteFish144]

Is the NEAS seminar any good? How is Feldblum?

Feldblum has really good handouts, but you don't see most of them till the day of the seminar. He has a teaching style that can be difficult for many people to follow. The advantage is that you only have to travel once and don't have to give up 2 full weekends.

If Bob Scott is still teaching the All 10 seminar I would seriously consider it.

[Wedgefromhere]

Bob Scott and Richard Zarnik are teaching the All10 Seminar. There has been one recommendation for Bob Scott, but does anyone recommend Richard Zarnik?

[mathdonkey]

I found Feldblum very frustrating. I personally will never attend another seminar that he is the sole presenter. I find him very disorganized and his material good when it actual applies to the current exam. I attended the 04 seminar in Chicago and used his notes. They were good but often went into papers that are no longer on the exam and also tangents into exam 7 and 9. Many of his questions he means to come back to and write solutions, but never does. I also attended an exam 5 seminar with him and Mahler this spring. Same general impression about Feldblum, but appreciate Mahlers style. One thing to note is not everyone feels the same way. 1 of my coworkers think he is the only one to go to and 2 others probably would go again to another of his seminars if giving a chance.

[Maine-iac]

Scott is excellent. Zarnick is so-so. But the reserving material (Scott) generally requires more effort to master than the accounting/reinsurance parts (Zarnick), so it's worth the trade-off IMO, unless you know the accounting and reinsurance are your weak areas.

[Tsunami]

Actually the MAF is what I'm more interested in. Will this be on the Temple site too?


MAF is in Chicago. CAMAR is in Philadelphia at the Temple site. Is MAF better than CAMAR? Is there a reason why you will be more interested in MAF than CAMAR? Thanks!

[Smooth Verona]

MAF is in Chicago. CAMAR is in Philadelphia at the Temple site. Is MAF better than CAMAR?
They are exactly the same. The only difference is location. The registration forms for both seminars are now available.

http://sbm.temple.edu/actsci-seminars/

http://www.casact.org/affiliates/maf/

[Last Train to Skaville]

how does this whole split seminar work with ppl who are travelling from a distance?

They travel from a distance twice.

Or just hang out in bars in Philly for a few weeks.

[Examinator]

I see that this is a three-day seminar. For those who have been to this seminar, taught by these three instructors, did you feel it was worth it? Other seminars I've seen or been to for other exams have had longer durations - some a full week or more. Is three days sufficient to cover all the mainstream material, given the instructors? Thanks.

[JAS]

I see that this is a three-day seminar. For those who have been to this seminar, taught by these three instructors, did you feel it was worth it? Other seminars I've seen or been to for other exams have had longer durations - some a full week or more. Is three days sufficient to cover all the mainstream material, given the instructors? Thanks.

It's a 6-day seminar held on 2 separate weekends.

[Actuarius]

Scott is excellent. Zarnick is so-so. But the reserving material (Scott) generally requires more effort to master than the accounting/reinsurance parts (Zarnick), so it's worth the trade-off IMO, unless you know the accounting and reinsurance are your weak areas.
I thought Zarnick was good. I thought it was helpful the way he narrowed down the accounting material by what he thought was more likely to be asked. With so much volume, any advice as to where to place focus is valuable. Scott was alright, I suppose. But he's such a jerk, it's hard to remember much about him besides that. Overall, I would recommend the All10 seminar based on my experience last year.