Actuarial Studies - 8411
Program Summary
Faculty: Australian School of Business
Contact: Australian School of Business Student Centre
Campus: Sydney
Career: Postgraduate
Typical Duration: 1.5 Years
Typical UOC Per Semester: 24
Min UOC Per Semester: 6
Max UOC Per Semester: 24
Min UOC For Award: 72
Award(s):
Master of Actuarial Studies (Specialisation)
View program information for previous years
Program Description
Graduates in mathematics, engineering and science disciplines who are interested in applying their mathematical skills in business can study courses to prepare them for an actuarial career. Graduates from commerce and economics disciplines can also study courses to allow them to enter the actuarial profession in the program. Commerce and economics graduates will be required to have a strong mathematical background, such as would be obtained from studying econometrics, mathematical economics or mathematical finance.
For graduates of an undergraduate program in Actuarial Studies, the Master of Actuarial Studies allows them to complete courses equivalent to the Part I professional courses that they have yet to complete. They can also complete the Part II courses of the Institute of Actuaries of Australia and include optional courses to assist with the later professional Fellowship examinations. They can also broaden their actuarial training by including relevant courses in the Faculty at postgraduate level in other disciplines through selection of electives.
The Master of Actuarial Studies allows graduates to obtain and develop the required competencies to enter an actuarial career and provides quantitative risk management training for entry into the financial services industry. The program covers the professional actuarial subjects and includes options in actuarial studies, quantitative risk management, and other related disciplines.
Program Objectives and Graduate Attributes
Learning goals and associated learning outcomes for the Master of Actuarial Studies:
- Knowledge: Our graduates will have current Actuarial knowledge applicable in local and global contexts.
- Critical thinking and problem solving: Our graduates will have critical thinking and problem solving skills applicable to business and/or management practice or issues.
- Communication: Our graduates will be effective communicators in professional contexts.
- Teamwork: Our graduates will be effective team participants.
- Ethical, social and environmental responsibility: Our graduates will be aware of ethical, social, cultural and environmental implications of business issues and practice.
Program Structure
The Master of Actuarial Studies program is taught on-campus. The typical duration is 1.5 years full-time or 3 years part-time.
The program requires 12 courses each of 6 units of credit to be completed, 4 core courses and 8 electives selected from the courses offered in actuarial studies.
The program requires 12 courses each of 6 units of credit to be completed, 4 core courses and 8 electives selected from the courses offered in actuarial studies.
Core courses
- ACTL5101 Prob.& Statis. for Actuaries (6 UOC)
- ACTL5102 Financial Mathematics (6 UOC)
- ACTL5108 Finance for Actuaries (6 UOC)
- ECON5103 Business Economics (6 UOC)
Elective courses
Eight elective courses will be selected from the following actuarial courses:
- ACTL5002 Super & Retire Benefits (6 UOC)
- ACTL5004 Project Report - Act. Stud. (12 UOC)
- ACTL5100 Actuarial Theory & Pract. A (6 UOC)
- ACTL5103 Stochastic Model. for Act. (6 UOC)
- ACTL5104 Actuarial Statistics (6 UOC)
- ACTL5105 Life Insurance & Super. (6 UOC)
- ACTL5106 Insurance Risk Models (6 UOC)
- ACTL5109 Financial Economics (6 UOC)
- ACTL5200 Actuarial Theory & Practice B (6 UOC)
- ACTL5301 Models for Risk Management (6 UOC)
- ACTL5302 Risk and Capital Management (6 UOC)
- ACTL5303 Asset-Liability Management (6 UOC)
- ACTL5306 Retirement Saving and Spending (6 UOC)
- ACTL5401 Retirement Planning (6 UOC)
- RISK5001 Fundamentals Risk & Risk Mgmt (6 UOC)
- RISK5002 Risk Tools (6 UOC)
- RISK5003 Risk Decisions (6 UOC)
- RISK5009 Risk Management Strategies (6 UOC)
Academic Rules
- Please refer to Program Structure for the Academic requirements relating to this program.
- Postgraduate courses offered by the Australian School of Business or by other Faculties within the University may be substituted for up to 4 courses (either in the core or as elective courses) with the approval of the Director of the Program.
- Advanced standing may be granted for similar courses already completed but not used for another award up to a maximum of two courses including any exemptions.
- Courses covered in a completed undergraduate program equivalent to those in the core may be granted exemption from the corresponding core courses up to a maximum of 4 core courses.
- Students completing the examinations for the Fellowship of the Institute of Actuaries of Australia, the Institute of Actuaries (UK) or the Society of Actuaries through the professional examinations may receive up to two exemptions in addition to those granted for the core courses (up to 4). They will be required to complete at least 10 courses in the program.
Fees
For information regarding fees for UNSW programs, please refer to the following website: https://my.unsw.edu.au/student/fees/FeesMainPage.html
Entry Requirements
Applicants without a strong mathematical background may be advised to complete the Institute of Actuaries Foundation course, and demonstrate adequate mathematical performance on the self-assessed test.
Session 2 courses in Actuarial Studies assume that students have the required background knowledge from previous studies. Prospective students who plan to commence in Session 2 should consult the Actuarial Studies School office prior to application in order to determine if they have the required background. Students who have a very strong background in Mathematics, Statistics, Econometrics or Finance and Financial Mathematics may be allowed to enrol in the 2nd session Actuarial Studies courses. Approval must be obtained from Actuarial Studies before enrolling in these courses.
Please refer to the Australian School of Business website for further detail.
Session 2 courses in Actuarial Studies assume that students have the required background knowledge from previous studies. Prospective students who plan to commence in Session 2 should consult the Actuarial Studies School office prior to application in order to determine if they have the required background. Students who have a very strong background in Mathematics, Statistics, Econometrics or Finance and Financial Mathematics may be allowed to enrol in the 2nd session Actuarial Studies courses. Approval must be obtained from Actuarial Studies before enrolling in these courses.
Please refer to the Australian School of Business website for further detail.
Professional Accreditation
The Institute of Actuaries of Australia
The UNSW actuarial program is fully accredited by the Institute of Actuaries of Australia for both Part I and Part II subjects and recognised for exemptions by the Institute of Actuaries (London) for the Core Technical subjects. For more details please refer to the Professional Recognition of Programs in the Online Handbook or by contacting The Institute of Actuaries of Australia.
The UNSW actuarial program is fully accredited by the Institute of Actuaries of Australia for both Part I and Part II subjects and recognised for exemptions by the Institute of Actuaries (London) for the Core Technical subjects. For more details please refer to the Professional Recognition of Programs in the Online Handbook or by contacting The Institute of Actuaries of Australia.
Further Information
Please note that these requirements may be subject to change.
Students are advised to follow requirements according to the year they commenced. Please refer to previous editions of the Online Handbook for your program requirements.
Contact the Australian School of Business Student Centre for advice.
tel: + 61 2 9385 3189
location: Level 1, room 1028, Quadrangle Building
Forms, policies and procedures
Frequently asked questions
Students are advised to follow requirements according to the year they commenced. Please refer to previous editions of the Online Handbook for your program requirements.
Contact the Australian School of Business Student Centre for advice.
tel: + 61 2 9385 3189
location: Level 1, room 1028, Quadrangle Building
Forms, policies and procedures
Frequently asked questions
Area(s) of Specialisation
Contents
Study Levels
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