Alright, this is the first update on my actuarial exams journey. In this post, I’ll briefly introduce the Polish and SOA/CAS actuarial exams. I’ll also share my exam pass/fail status, thoughts, and future goals, which will be a consistent part of this series. Let’s dive in!

Let’s start with the Polish actuarial exams. There are nine in total. I passed the Probability exam in May this year. I plan to write a separate article about the Polish actuarial credential and provide a more detailed explanation of the process. However, if you’re curious and want to learn more, I’ve included a link to the Polish Financial Supervision Authority, which organizes actuarial exams in Poland.

Now onto SOA/CAS exams. I’m fortunate to have support from my current employer, Verisk, which helps employees prepare for and take these exams. Like many other insurance-related companies, Verisk offers assistance by providing study materials and covering exam fees. I find this incredibly motivating because it allows me to learn and immediately apply the knowledge in my daily job (and yes, it’s also great for saving money!).

I’m working toward CAS (Casualty Actuarial Society) credentials—either ACAS or FCAS. To achieve these, you need to pass six and nine exams, respectively. The first two are administered by SOA (Society of Actuaries). Additionally, there are three online courses, course on professionalism, and two VEE (Validation by Educational Experience) requirements.

Just like with the Polish credential, I’ll post a dedicated article about the CAS requirements. For now, I’ll share that I’ve passed the Probability exam and have scheduled the Financial Mathematics exam for December 4th this year. If you’re curious, you can check out how the 2024 CAS education journey is structured here.

Alright, now that you know a bit of background, let’s move on to my status, thoughts, and next goals.

Status

Polish exams passed: 1 of 9

SOA/CAS exams passed: 1 of 9

CAS Online Courses: 0 of 3

CAS Course on Professionalism: 0 of 1

VEEs: 0 of 2

Passion: still present

Exam-life balance: still exists

Thoughts

My next exam is in two weeks. I started preparing for it three months ago, and I believe that’s enough time to get ready. However, I still need to review exam problems and work on speeding up my problem-solving skills. For the Financial Mathematics exam organized by SOA, there are 30 questions to solve in 2.5 hours. In contrast, Exam P allowed 3 hours for a similar number of questions. Therefore, my focus for the next two weeks is to complete as many practice exams as possible, review key formulas, and master my calculator skills!

Next goals

The immediate goal is to pass the exam in December. After that, I plan to dive into the syllabus for the next CAS exam and aim to complete one of the required online courses. The next Polish actuarial exam session will likely be held in January or February, leaving limited time to prepare. However, exams like Economics and Insurance & Tax Law might be worth attempting since these topics were part of my studies.