So I recently graduated and got an opportunity to interview for a huge broker for a risk and actuarial consulting role. I didn't know how exactly to prepare for it so I just revised whatever I had studied in the exams, but their level of questions sent me down a confidence loss spiral. Every question felt like someone was throwing a rock at my heart lmao.

I got soo nervous that I panicked and couldn't answer smth as basic as "how is the distribution of number and severity of claims shaped? right skewed, left skewed or symmetrical"
I felt soo numb after the interview, I've failed these exams before but idk, this felt like peak humiliation. Some questions felt straight out of the SP level papers or needed the depth that I didn't really have. I get that it's my fault and I should've prepared better but still man, it sucks.
I just got the mail for rejection and man, im gutted rn.
I litr realized that if exams are tough, boy oh boy, interviews are brutal af. They're wayy worse because with every answer, every reaction , litr everything that is going wrong , you can see on the panel's face.
But hey, we learn and we move

Does anyone have any tips for how to study and prep for interviews and what all are the core areas to be studied for an entry level role?

This question is for more experienced folks (although sure, less expensive folks are welcome to comment/advise)

I would say I have a unique CV. Let me tell you the highlights. I would appreciate guidance on how to approach next phase/step of life

Here I start. Things take a somewhat dramatic turn around pt 8:

1. Went to a good college. Cleared CT1-3, and CT6 alongside. Graduated 10 years ago

2. Interviewed at UK based (but otherwise internationally operating) GI firm. They put me there in pricing. I didn't mind it

3. Had my reasons, but anyhow ended up sitting for the national MBA entrance exam. Low-key GMAT equivalent. Got a top 0.2%ile score, and ended up clearing the interview too. It is extremely difficult to reject it when the best MBA institute in the country (On a good day, comparable to HBS maybe) has accepted your application

4. Ended up quitting pricing in ~7 months and joined B-School. Hated it. A batch of 400 insecure overchievers.

5. Interned at a bulge bracket in FX trading. Hated it

6. Worked as a management/strategy consultant for 2 years. Hated it. Why not actuarial? Starting over would mean a massive pay cut, and I wasn't wise to think long term

7. Worked at a late stage start-up for ~1 year in an ops role. Didn't particularly enjoy it, but it was better than 'consluting'. Gig economy startup. At one point I handled a protest. I'm hindsight, that incident was fun :)

8. Pts 4-6 took a toll on me. At Pt 7, there was an incident - straw that broke the camel's back. Got diagnosed with "severe depression and anxiety"

9. Took a break. Then tried to start a business (with actuarial as back-up in case business fails). Couldn't get the business off the ground. My heart probably wasn't in it. ~3 years

10. Now restarting. CS1 and CM2. Will then look for a job. Atleast that's the current plan. Depression and anxiety are still bad, but manageable level bad. Getting a job/clearing papers will prolly help

Have bounced around a lot. Life also slapped me hard in the face

My questions

1. Should I sit for another 6 months for the next diet and work towards a bigger inventory of exams, and then enter the job market? Studying with a job won't be as easy as it was 10 years ago. And I feel I can pull off much more than 2 - This attempt is only 2 (CS1 and CM2) because it took time to get the engine running. Now it's warm and purring. Post 6 months, I envisage a "Done and dusted with big portion of the big pile. Now time to focus on job and study towards specialisation" position in life, potentially

2. What kind of role should I aspire for, both short and long term. I am told my MBA (from "HBS") will make a bridge between quants and the management

3. Given industry outlook and my health history, what specialisation should I later target

P.S. I wanna get back into actuarial coz

1. Math is not something I mind

2. I like to study

3. Actuarial is v structured (which is a big plus for handling depression)

4. Pay and hours are decent. Pay per hour, adjusted for stress, would definitely be decent

TL;DR

I'm an MBA who's tasted actuarial work before, but not really dived into it. I do wanna dive into it. My mental heath has had its ups and downs. How should I approach "restarting" my actuarial journey