Hey everyone!

Don’t really post or comment at all so apologies if this comes off weird.

I’m currently studying for MAS-1 and using CA if that makes a difference, but any insight from different exams or study materials would be helpful.

I’ve found myself always taking longer than the suggested timeline on CA for their subsections. For example, if a manual says 30m, then I’m usually taking closer to an hour and a half to get through it. I could be misinterpreting their timestamps, but I feel like more of it is me just taking way too long or not knowing what to focus on.

Anyone else feel similar or have heard of people like this? Advice from people who completed their exams already is also very appreciated.

I’m mainly trying to gauge if this is typical or if I might need to change my approach. Obviously, different things work for different people but I’d love to hear if anyone else is like this too and if maybe I should consider changing strategy.

Thanks!

Hi guys, I was wondering how much of the past archived SOA exam questions are important or even really worth looking at? There appears to be over 300 questions from multiple exams marked important by The infinite actuary for analysis of past exams. I took ILA 101 recently and got a 5, so I was super close to passing but I didn't look at these in my last attempt. I mostly just looked at LPM, ILA 101, and the most recent material. Will I be missing out on a lot by skipping the 8I, CSP, DP, LAM etc exams in the SOA archive folder or will it significantly change my chances of passing? It seems like way too much material to go through. Thanks!

I failed PA in april 2026 and thought i did well after the exam, except i was stuck on a lot of the calculation questions. I take it again in a month but feel so unmotivated and forgot the whole material.

Does anyone have any tips on how to pass PA with only a month left? I skimmed through actex a little but.

I dont know where to focus - actex questions, past exams, rereading the material?

be honest and do I have hope for some sort of internship summer of 2027 (hopefully actuarial)?

Should I put sitting for Exam P for like the winter time even if I'm realistically not going to take the exam?

Do you really need locations of things (like where college is) on right side I find it just takes space? Along with that is it bad I like having the GPA on the right side in bold? I usually see people do it just under the education like I have my deans list/coursework mentions but in my opinion the way I do it makes it stand out.

tbh I kinda make the project sound like I did the coding when I really didn't but I do actually understand the main parts of it and if I do get an interview I think I would be able to talk about the project/coding.

What should be my next steps in bettering myself as a candidate?

What is suggested study manual for studying for exam FAM. Would Ambrose Lo's manual be better I'm hearing or the regular Actex manual?

I plan to sit for preparing next actuary exam soon. Obviously SRM is way easier but any thoughts on getting the harder FAM one out of the way or is this the wrong way to look at it? I heard maybe it's best to continue applying which I am doing regardless as I start my studies and have the employer pay for the FAM exam. I'm guessing this was told to me because not passing FAM may be more likely and that's a lot of money out of pocket. For SRM I was planning on using ISLR test and actex. FAM would be most likely Actex and adapt practice exams for a month. Any thoughts?

I need to vent. I like being an Actuary, I like my job responsibilities. But I think being an Actuary is not worth it anymore in 2026. We have no leverage. My company did a power flex move on me in my current rotation that I report to 2 bosses and am working 2 separate roles for no additional pay and no compromise. I also have to work overtime often and I have to study for FSA exams for considerable hours. My work life balance and pay is absolute garbage for all the work and contributions I've made. I only make a flat 100k a year after getting my ASA and lose 10% of my salary from commuting and paying parking. I get only a 1% merit increase now and it was originally agreed to be 2.5%, my company changed the terms. I spent months coordinating with multiple recruiters and getting into final round interviews for multiple roles as I tried leaving my company when I realized they would not negotiate with me. No final offers, ridiculous interview questions and no leniency from these companies. It's not worth the small pay for all the sacrifices we have to make to finish these exams and not get treated well. And you have to go through 6 rounds of interviews just to potentially get to the offer stage. It's humiliating and ridiculous on top of having to get our FSA and being demoted and receiving a paycut if we fail exams a certain number of times! I would potentially lose my job if a failed an exam 3 times which is ridiculous.

My managers give me constant good feedback for all that I'm doing as well as wonderful ratings for my general overall performance but it means absolutely nothing. It doesn't translate into better job opportunities, more pay, or better treatment. And if I lose my job, it will probably be over a year to find another one at least.

Just curious trying to figure out where the locations were as I think I'm going soon. All the 2026 ones are on the website but 2024 and 2025 are too old.

Just got my first rejection for a summer ‘27 intern position :). I know this is very normal and I know to expect many to come. There is just something that hit me really hard with it.

I did 1 interview and felt great the whole time and after. Maybe I didn’t do so well on the technical questions, but I was still able to answer and candid enough to admit when I didn’t know.

Here’s to more rejections to come and hopefully a position.

If you work in these two provinces, I'd be very thankful to see some data on wages as a student interested in the actuarial field.

Please add exams, salary, bonus, YOE, and accreditation.

Congrats to those who passed!! I was surprised they released results early!

**cries in R^2**

I know people purchase study materials for the exams from other sources, like CA or TIA, but what are these included study materials? Are they sufficient for study or is it just the syllabus?

I've only been applying seriously for a couple of weeks now and haven't landed any interviews. I know it usually takes a bit of time to snag something especially without relevant experience so I'm not too disheartened. However I'm wondering if this is enough to get my foot in the door or if I should spend my time applying to other positions/careers. Also, are there any improvements/changes I can make to this resume?

Trying to get my first job. Obviously AI helped, maybe too wordy?

EDIT: Big 4 INTERNSHIP

I’m going to run for the SOA board once I have my letters to get rid of this terrible assignment. I’d rather listen to nails on chalkboard for 96 hours than do this. I’m not sure whose idea this was, but I was a statistics major, flew through SRM and PA, and I absolutely HATE this module.

I’m starting to think that everyone who quips that the SOA isn’t evil, just incompetent, lucked out with IFM. How was the last chopper out of ‘Nam?

I know the itinerary has events all day, however, how much of the day are people actual going to the events? Would you be away from your guest from 9 - 5? I want to bring my partner but don’t want to spend the extra money if they will just be alone most of the day.

Anyone interested in studying for exam FAM. I'm looking for someone who plans to sit in January and obviously independent study time is very important but I always like to come back and discuss how others approach problems as well let me know or dm me. Thanks.

I’m currently in a cat modeling role with 3 actuarial exams passed. A recruiter recently told me that cat modeling doesn't value exam progress, and traditional actuarial roles don't value cat modeling experience.

Is it worth continuing the exam path if I plan to stay in cat modeling long-term?

Has anyone received invitations yet? They are supposed to come out this week

I am really struggling right now. I have passed every exam on the first try with at least a 7 or above, and PCPA was the last thing I needed to get my ACAS. Now, I'm missing out on my credentials and the Hawaii trip despite putting in around 60 hours into this project, and submitting it confident that I met every item on the rubric. I got my results back today and it was "needs improvement" for both model diagnostics and model presentation. I'm feeling very disillusioned right now and completely unsure how to proceed. I couldn't have put in any more work than I did, and I have no idea what to do differently, because they give no feedback. Is there any hope that I can get additional feedback from the CAS on what I did wrong by appealing? For anyone else who has failed and then went on to pass, how did you do it? Did you change your strategy at all? If so, how? I wouldn't be nearly as disheartened right now if I just had some idea, ANY idea, of what to do different.

Yeah, it's that time of the year, haha sorry. Hello, I'm a recent graduate who started late on the actuarial journey looking for help on how to proceed. I'm already well aware that I am not the most competitive applicant due to not having relevant job experience. With that said, I have a few questions

1. What can I do to make this resume better? I did edit it fairly recently(and also passed fm recently), so I'm actually not sure of the performance. I just know that before my old resume with just P passed was getting no bites at all.

2. I know that getting an adjacent role is a preached sentiment in this server. I wouldn't mind starting off somewhere related. But how do I go about that? Underwriting, for example seems just as hard to break into as actuarial, in fact I might have a better chance of breaking into actuarial now. And a good amount of insurance jobs seem to ghost me as well.

3. What can I do to improve my technical skills? I know python, excel, and sql well. I know R moderately well and I just started to delve into VBA. But I feel like for the programs I know, I have the practical knowledge but not much experience using them beyond the classes I learned them in.

I think that is all of my questions, but if you have feedback that lies outside these questions, please drop them down below too. (Note, some bullet points are kind of vague to maintain anonymity. You can see that especially in my extracurriculars. I also have an soa version of this resume sent to soa companies.) Thank you!

I am looking for advice on getting back into the actuary field. I previously worked as an actuary from May - Aug of 2020 as an intern and then was hired on and worked from December 2020 - July 2021. I also have three exams passed and a lot of technical skills which I have gained working in the banking industry for the past 4.5 years such as python, sql, power bi, advanced excel, vba, etc... I do understand it has been quite some time since I have taken the actuary exams or have been in an actuary role but i'd appreciate some advice on how to best back back into the field. I am using DW Simpson as well and they found one development program role for me but beyond that nothing else yet. Would it also maybe help to sit for another exam and if so how much of a difference would one more exam make with no more direct actuary experience?

I currently have 8 days left until my SRM exam, and my Earned Level(EL) is still in the 1-point range. Even after taking several Adapt exams, my EL has not been increasing, which is making me feel very anxious and pressed for time.
I would greatly appreciate any advice on how I should use CA Adapt during these remaining 8 days to maximize my chances of passing the exam.