barking up correct tree?

[oglfxh2]

Hi all,
I'd love to hear your collective advice on whether an actuarial career might suit me.
I like applied econometrics, and coding in statistical packages, but I don't much like arithmetic. I'd rather write a script to check a few thousand spreadsheets than check one or two by hand. It's sort of a creativity vs. repetition thing as well.
I'm also very much a people person. I enjoy explaining technical subjects (Econ in my case) to non-specialists, and I've been told I do it well, but I also like bouncing ideas off intelligent and skilled colleagues, and I imagine that working on a team of consulting actuaries would be a great way to do rigorous problem-solving in a collaborative manner.
I've looked through the syllabi for for the SOA exams through C, and a lot of the topics were things that I remembered from grad school or had read a bit about on my own, and perhaps most importantly, the topics that I recognized were things that I generally found interesting.
I have a (highly coveted) MA in Economics, and I also enjoy reading up on stats and demography (somewhat casually, I'll admit - more abstracts than whole papers, mostly wikipedia, web videos or online help functions for the stats).
On top of all this, I'm a true-believer in the idea that a coherent and evidence-based approach to risk and insurance is going to change both the private and public sectors dramatically for the better (especially in the developing world) during the next decade or two, and I'd like to feel that i'm doing my part for the cause.
I keep getting frightened, though, when I see emphasis placed on attention to detail (with a varying number of "t"s) in the careers faq and on job postings. I have visions of myself chained to a computer screen in a dark basement, proofreading spreadsheets for years on end.
Is that a better approximation of entry level actuarial work, or is there some chance of getting relatively quickly into the world of process automation, innovative data visualization, client interaction, and technical management that I'm imagining at the end of the tunnel?
Although I can't commit to getting my FSA within a year (and therefore can't challenge the A.O. smack-talking record), I think I could progress reliably through the exams, and I assume that with the amount of python/sql/sas/stata/etc that I've written I could make myself useful while doing so.
Any thoughts? Do these sound like the ravings of someone who would enjoy the career, or the distant rumblings of a personality and work-style disaster?

[ElDucky]

You sound like you would prefer to work in insurance consulting. You may need to spend a few years as a spreadsheet monkey though. If you are really talented you can work your way up. You don't need to be the person with the attention to detail... you can delegate that, eventually. To a certain extent you will always need to check your work, just not every single number yourself.

[Maine-iac]

In the initial phases of an actuarial career, you could find it a struggle. Entry level positions can be quite routine, and often with little personal interaction beyond your co-workers. However, the further you advance in the profession, assuming your fundamental knowledge is sound, the more your traits would become useful. You would then move more toward looking at the big picture while your subordinates crank the numbers. You would spend more time working with non-actuarial management and/or clients explaining the work your area is doing or proposes doing and the results achieved/to be achieved.

You have to ask yourself, "can I slog it out until I get there, while at the same time cranking out exams"?

[DW Simpson]

http://www.actuarialoutpost.com/actu...8&postcount=73 might help.

[notreallyme]

Originally Posted by oglfxh2

Hi all,
I'd love to hear your collective advice on whether an actuarial career might suit me.
I like applied econometrics, and coding in statistical packages, but I don't much like arithmetic. I'd rather write a script to check a few thousand spreadsheets than check one or two by hand. It's sort of a creativity vs. repetition thing as well.
I'm also very much a people person. I enjoy explaining technical subjects (Econ in my case) to non-specialists, and I've been told I do it well, but I also like bouncing ideas off intelligent and skilled colleagues, and I imagine that working on a team of consulting actuaries would be a great way to do rigorous problem-solving in a collaborative manner.
I've looked through the syllabi for for the SOA exams through C, and a lot of the topics were things that I remembered from grad school or had read a bit about on my own, and perhaps most importantly, the topics that I recognized were things that I generally found interesting.
I have a (highly coveted) MA in Economics, and I also enjoy reading up on stats and demography (somewhat casually, I'll admit - more abstracts than whole papers, mostly wikipedia, web videos or online help functions for the stats).
On top of all this, I'm a true-believer in the idea that a coherent and evidence-based approach to risk and insurance is going to change both the private and public sectors dramatically for the better (especially in the developing world) during the next decade or two, and I'd like to feel that i'm doing my part for the cause.
I keep getting frightened, though, when I see emphasis placed on attention to detail (with a varying number of "t"s) in the careers faq and on job postings. I have visions of myself chained to a computer screen in a dark basement, proofreading spreadsheets for years on end.
Is that a better approximation of entry level actuarial work, or is there some chance of getting relatively quickly into the world of process automation, innovative data visualization, client interaction, and technical management that I'm imagining at the end of the tunnel?
Although I can't commit to getting my FSA within a year (and therefore can't challenge the A.O. smack-talking record), I think I could progress reliably through the exams, and I assume that with the amount of python/sql/sas/stata/etc that I've written I could make myself useful while doing so.
Any thoughts? Do these sound like the ravings of someone who would enjoy the career, or the distant rumblings of a personality and work-style disaster?

I think you would enjoy the career based on this.

All jobs suck at first, not for year necessarily though. Sounds like you would like product development or research. These are growing areas and they like your skill set.
You still need to pass exams and put in your time. But this will be true for anything.

-- I personally never considered myself a 'spreadsheet monkey', part of this was because when I'd get 'spreadsheet monkey' tasks I'd automate them and whoever gave me the work would usually be happy to have the process become more efficient.
This is also a way to get out of being a spreadsheet monkey quicker.

[oglfxh2]

Thanks much for the advice. Seems pretty positive. If nothing else, I like the community aspect of joining a small but identifiable profession.
I'll take a look through the career links, and I'll be around.