Actuary

A lot of people have probably never heard of the term actuary. However, this interesting field is listed as one of the top five most desirable jobs in the United States. An actuary is basically a person who does risk assessment. They use various methods to attempt to predict what the financial outcome of certain situations will be.

Job Description

An actuary will monitor world events, financial and market news, politics and many more things in the course of their jobs. They can use trends and shifts in the market to predict how different businesses will perform under different sets of circumstances. This is mostly done to prevent the loss of resources and manpower, should a crisis arise.

Actuaries are most often employed by insurance agencies, and may sometimes be employed by a business as a consultant. Basically the businesses want someone who can help them from making mistakes that could prove costly to their business. An actuary also helps businesses prepare disaster contingency plans in case of emergency.

Actuaries do not predict future events, they just try to anticipate them. Things such as death, sickness, accident, or natural disasters can all affect a business negatively. It is up to the actuary to figure out how these things will impact the business in question. They may also may attempt to predict the frequency of these events as well.

Education and Career Options

There are less than fifteen thousand employed actuaries throughout the world. To get this job, a person has to pass a very comprehensive set of examinations and certifications. Each country has a different system by which actuaries are trained. In the United States, they do most of their learning on the job. In Great Britain actuaries may receive most of their training in a more traditional university setting.

Depending on where they are hired, and their years of experience, an actuary can make anywhere from thirty thousand to one hundred thousand dollars a year. These figures are just estimates, but licensed and certified actuaries are in very high demand, as more investment and insurance firms look to bring experienced people on board.

There will continue to be a growing need for people who are trained and certified to work as an actuary. The field is expanding to include investment and expenditure management, direct stock investing and a lot more besides. There is a lot of study and hard work involved in this profession. A strong background in mathematics is essential, as well as a decent knowledge of world affairs, and how to relate to people.