31 July 2018
In this blog, Chole Hung, Amazon best-selling author, describes some hurdles which could come in your way during your actuarial career.
Actuarial science is not an easy course to pursue. You have to be prepared for roadblocks along the way in your actuarial journey.
Most actuarial students struggle with time once they graduate and step into the working world. Good time management is important once you begin working full-time because there may be days when you will need to work overtime or when you’ll feel extremely tired after work and not have the energy or inclination needed to study for your exams. The key is to start your exam preparations early and schedule your study hours wisely.
Failure will definitely be a part of your actuarial journey. There may be a few students who breeze through their actuarial course because they seem to excel in their exams and job. Don’t compare your accomplishments with theirs because that is not going to benefit you in any way.
Don’t blame your failure on other external factors such as the study materials you used, your lecturers, your exam syllabus and so forth. Failure is a result of your actions. Stay strong and learn from your past failures so that you don’t make the same mistakes again.
There will also be times where you may feel overwhelmed by the amount of work you need to complete at your workplace. It’s normal for companies to have peak periods where you may have deadlines every single day. The actuarial job may be a highly ranked profession but that doesn’t mean it’s completely stress free all the time.
Some students may also face steep learning curves when they first begin their actuarial exams or job. Be open to learning new things and always seek help from those who are more experienced than you. Figuring things out on your own may work but will leave you feeling frustrated or completely burnt out at the end of the day.
Actuarial science is a complex field of study. It’s normal for you to stumble across a few roadblocks along the way. It’s OK to feel frustrated at times but don’t let your frustration overwhelm you. Instead, use your roadblocks to build better pathways towards achieving your actuarial goal in the long run.