Society of Actuaries
AbbreviationSOA
Formation1949
TypeProfessional association
HeadquartersSchaumburg, Illinois
Location
Membership
31,323 in 2018[1]
Official language
English
CEO
Greg Heidrich
Websitesoa.org

The Society of Actuaries (SOA) is a global professional organization for actuaries. It was founded in 1949 as the merger of two major actuarial organizations in the United States: the Actuarial Society of America and the American Institute of Actuaries.[2] It is a full member organization of the International Actuarial Association.[3]

Through education and research, the SOA (Society of Actuaries) promotes actuaries as leaders in the assessment and management of risk to enhance financial outcomes for individuals, organizations, and the public. The SOA's vision is for actuaries to be highly sought-after professionals who develop and communicate solutions for complex financial issues. The SOA provides primary and continuing education for students and practicing actuaries, maintains high professional standards for actuaries, and conducts research on actuarial trends and public policy issues.

A global organization, the SOA represents actuaries from all major areas of practice, including life and health insurance, retirement and pensions, investment and finance, enterprise risk management, and general insurance (property and casualty) insurance.[4] The Casualty Actuarial Society also represents actuaries working with property and casualty.

The SOA, along with its public relations firm Golin, won the PRWeek Corporate Branding Campaign of the Year award for 2008. The award was given for the SOA's efforts to revitalize the actuarial profession's brand in the U.S., including the slogan "Risk is Opportunity."[5]

History

The Society was founded as a merger of two major American actuarial associations, as reflected in its logo: the Actuarial Society of America (ASA) and the American Institute of Actuaries (AIA).

Shot of an old diploma issued by the AIA

The Actuarial Society of America was the first actuarial professional association in North America, founded in 1889 with only 38 members and headquartered in New York City.[6] Initial members were included by invitation, but the organization soon adopted a system of examination for qualification, with the first Fellow to qualify via exams joining in 1900.

The American Institute of Actuaries was founded in 1909. Based in Chicago, it attracted members from life insurance companies in the midwestern and southern United States. The formation of the AIA, which (like the ASA) was geared toward actuaries in the field of life insurance, was followed within the decade by the creation of two other specialized actuarial organizations: the Casualty Actuarial Society, which still exists today, and the Fraternal Actuarial Association which dissolved in 1980.

Between the two organizations, which came to have some overlap in membership, the number of recognized professional actuaries climbed from the initial 38 to over 1000 by the time the two organizations merged in 1949 to form the SOA. The SOA has seen continued growth since then, now recognizing over 30,000 professional actuaries as active members.

Society structure

Leadership

The SOA is headed by a board of directors, consisting of a president, president-elect, and fifteen other board members.[7] In addition, the most recent past president is a member of the board.

The board positions are filled by election. A member of the society is eligible to vote in board elections if they have the title of FSA, or if they have held the title of ASA for at least five years, and only FSAs can be elected to the board. (See the Membership section below for information on the professional titles granted by the society.) Regular board members are elected for terms of three years. The president-elect is elected for a term of one year, after which he or she becomes the president for a term of one year.

The employees of the SOA are headed by the chief executive officer, a salaried position appointed by the board of directors.

Elections

The SOA holds its elections annually in late summer or early fall for its board of directors and the Section Councils. In the board of directors election, one president-elect, and six elected board members are elected each year. Elected board members serve three–year terms. The president–elect serves three one–year terms as president–elect, president and past president.

In section elections, generally one third of the council is elected each year as members serve three–year terms. Section councils select their officers (chair, vice chair, and secretary/treasurer).

According to the SOA Bylaws, fellows and associates who have been members of the society for five years or more are entitled to vote in the board of directors' election. According to the Section Bylaws, all members of a Section are entitled to vote in the Section Council election. This includes ASAs, FSAs, and members of co–sponsoring organizations who are also members of a Section. SOA members with valid e–mail addresses in the SOA database are sent login credentials to vote online. Members without valid email addresses, or who notify the SOA of their request, receive paper ballots.

Membership

The society's members are involved in the life, health, pension and general insurance areas of the actuarial profession.

LevelRequirements
FellowAchieved designation Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA)
AssociateAchieved designation Associate of the Society of Actuaries (ASA), or
Achieved designation Chartered Enterprise Risk Analyst (CERA)
Professional AffiliateCompleted micro-credential Actuarial Science Foundations, or
Completed micro-credential Data Science for Actuaries
AffiliateAnyone with interest in the actuarial profession

There are three designations offered by the SOA. The two Associate-level designations are Associate of Society of Actuaries (ASA) and Chartered Enterprise Risk Analyst (CERA), which was introduced in 2007. The highest designation is Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA). The SOA has more than 30,000 actuaries as members. The 3 micro-credentials and affiliate membership was introduced in 2022.

Requirements for membership for the SOA include the actuarial exams, a comprehensive series of competitive exams. Topics covered in the exams include mathematics, finance, insurance, economics, interest theory, life models, and actuarial science. Non-members working in the actuarial profession and taking exams are often referred to as actuarial students or candidates.

Members of the SOA who meet a professional experience requirement are eligible for membership in the American Academy of Actuaries, which represents United States actuaries from all practice areas.[8]

Education system

Professional designations in the Society are earned by completing a rigorous system of education including examinations, validations, and e-learning modules. It is common for actuarial students to work full-time in the profession while studying for the exams.

Preliminary exams

The first six to seven exams (preliminary exams) consist mostly of core mathematics related to actuarial science including probability, interest theory, life contingencies, risk models, statistical modeling, and predictive analytics.[9]

Exam codeExam titleFormatLength in hoursTests per yearPass/fail estimate
PProbabilityMultiple-choice36Yes
FMFinancial MathematicsMultiple-choice2.56Yes
FAMFundamentals of Actuarial MathematicsMultiple-choice3.53No
SRMStatistics for Risk ModelingMultiple-choice3.53No
ALTAMAdvanced Long-Term Actuarial MathematicsWritten-answer32No
ASTAMAdvanced Short-Term Actuarial MathematicsWritten-answer32No
PAPredictive AnalyticsWritten-answer3.52No
Note: Candidate can fulfill the education requirement by passing ALTAM or ASTAM.

Preliminary exams administered on computers at Prometric testing centers. The scores are reported in a scale of 0 to 10 in the transcript.The score is referred to the actual passing percentage to the following scale.

Range <0.5P0.5P–0.6P0.6P–0.7P0.7P–0.8P0.8P–0.9P0.9P–P P–1.1P1.1P–1.2P1.2P–1.3P1.3P–1.4P>1.4P
Score 012345678910
Result FailPass

If , then , i.e. the requirement for the percentage of score to get grade 10 will be higher than . That is, grade 10 is unachievable. Hence, the highest grade achievable can be 9 for a test.

The current form of preliminary exams were established in year 2000 and evolved over time. Significant changes were introduced in 2005 and 2007 to introduce the new education components of Validation by Educational Experience (VEE) and Fundamentals of Actuarial Practice (FAP) learning modules. In 2018 and 2023, the preliminary exams have undergone another wave of significant changes to reflect an emphasis on predictive analytics, and also provides a curriculum balance between long-term and short-term insurance coverages.[10] The rough equivalent of preliminary exams since year 2000 are listed according to the transition rules published by SOA. There are also differences in detail between exam syllabus over time.

2000 Syllabus2005 Syllabus2007 Syllabus2018 Syllabus2023 Syllabus
Course 1
(Mathematical Foundations of Actuarial Science)
Exam P
(Probability)
Exam P
(Probability)
Exam P
(Probability)
Exam P
Course 2
(Interest Theory, Economics and Finance)
Exam FM
(Financial Mathematics)
Exam FM
(Financial Mathematics)
Exam FM
(Financial Mathematics)
Exam FM
Course 3
(Actuarial Models)
Exam M
(Actuarial Models)
Exam MFE
(Models for Financial Economics)
Exam IFM
(Investment and Financial Markets)
Exam MLC
(Models for Life Contingencies)
Exam LTAM
(Long-Term Actuarial Mathematics)
Exam FAM
Exam ALTAM
Exam ASTAM
Course 4
(Actuarial Modeling)
Exam C
(Construction and Evaluation of Actuarial Models)
Exam C
(Construction and Evaluation of Actuarial Models)
Exam STAM
(Short-Term Actuarial Mathematics)
Exam SRM
(Statistics for Risk Modeling)
Exam SRM
Exam PA
(Predictive Analytics)
Exam PA

Other components toward associateship

In addition to the exams, candidate would also need to complete the additional education requirement such as Validation by Educational Experience (VEE) and a series of e-learning modules.

Module codeModule titleFormat
VEE EconEconomics
VEE Acct FinAccounting and Finance
VEE Math StatMathematical Statistics
PAFPre-Actuarial Foundationse-learning module
ASFActuarial Science Foundationse-learning module
ATPAAdvanced Topics in Predictive Analyticse-learning module and a final assessment
FAPFundamentals of Actuarial Practicee-learning course with 5 modules and a final assessment
APCAssociateship Professionalism Courseonline or in-person meeting

In 2000, candidate may be admitted to associateship by completing Course 5 (Application of Basic Actuarial Principles), Course 6 (Finance and Investments), and Associateship Professionalism Course (APC) in addition to the preliminary exams.

In 2005, the SOA introduced the Validation by Educational Experience (VEE) as the additional topics covered by actuarial education in addition to exams. The 3 VEE subjects were: Applied statistical methods, Corporate finance, and Economics. The introduction of VEE also made the scope of preliminary exams to shrink. As a part of the education pathways reform, the SOA temporarily admitted candidates to associateship if they completed 2 courses from Course 5, 6, 7, 8, and Professional Development Requirement (PD). Where Course 7 (Applied Actuarial Modeling), Course 8 (Advanced Specialized Actuarial Practice), and PD were part of the fellowship requirement.

In 2007, the Fundamentals of Actuarial Practice (FAP) were introduced to cover real-world topics such as insurance and professionalism with readings, case studies and projects.[11] The FAP modules superseded the former Course 5 (Application of Basic Actuarial Principles) and Course 7 (Applied Modeling) in year 2000 syllabus. The FAP which contains 8 modules and 2 associated assessments, became the only option to attain assiciateship effective January 2007.

In 2018, the VEE 3 subjects were amended as: Accounting and finance, Economics, and Mathematical statistics as part of preliminary exams reform.

In 2023, more e-learning modules were added to the education requirement as a part of educational pathway redesign, including the Pre-Actuarial Foundations (PAF), Actuarial Science Foundations (ASF), Advanced Topics in Predictive Analytics (ATPA). The FAP has also shunk to 5 modules and 1 final assessment.

2000 Syllabus2005 Syllabus2007 Syllabus2018 Syllabus2023 Syllabus
VEE Econ
(Economics)
VEE Econ
(Economics)
VEE Econ
(Economics)
VEE Econ
VEE Corp Fin
(Corporate Finance)
VEE Corp Fin
(Corporate Finance)
VEE Acct Fin
(Accounting and Finance)
VEE Acct Fin
VEE App Stat
(Applied Statistical Methods)
VEE App Stat
(Applied Statistical Methods)
VEE Math Stat
(Mathematical Statistics)
VEE Math Stat
Course 5
(Application of Basic Actuarial Principles)
Elect 2 from:
Courses 5, 6, 7, 8 and PD
FAP
(Fundamentals of Actuarial Practice)
FAP
(Fundamentals of Actuarial Practice)
PAF
ASF
FAP
Course 6
(Finance and Investments)
ATPA
APC
(Associateship Professionalism Course)
APC
(Associateship Professionalism Course)
APC
(Associateship Professionalism Course)
APC
(Associateship Professionalism Course)
APC

Fellowship exams

Upper-level exam topics for the FSA designation include plan design, risk classification, enterprise risk management, ratemaking and valuation. Three fellowship exams are taken in one of six specialization tracks chosen by the candidate – Finance & Enterprise Risk Management, Investments, Individual Life Insurance & Annuities, Retirement Benefits, Group & Health Insurance, or General Insurance. The SOA is updating the Fellowship tracks beginning in late 2018.[12] Candidates completing the Finance & Enterprise Risk Management track will also earn the CERA designation. Candidates in any of the other five tracks have the option of replacing their track-specific Enterprise Risk Management exam with a more generalized ERM exam in order to obtain the CERA designation in addition to FSA.[13]

See also

References

  1. Total SOA Membership
  2. SOA – Society of Actuaries – Historical Background
  3. "About – Members_Full (En)". Archived from the original on 2015-07-09. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
  4. "General Insurance Fellowship Track". www.soa.org. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
  5. "Corporate Branding Campaign of the Year 2008," PR Week, March 06, 2008
  6. "Historical Background". soa.org. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
  7. SOA Bylaws
  8. "Apply for Membership | American Academy of Actuaries". www.actuary.org. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
  9. "Associate of the Society of Actuaries (ASA)". www.soa.org. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
  10. "ASA & CERA Curriculum Changes | SOA". www.soa.org. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
  11. "FAP Overview". www.soa.org. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
  12. "FSA Changes | SOA". www.soa.org. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
  13. "Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA)". www.soa.org. Retrieved 2018-07-14.
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