Description: The article contains a description of the Emerging Topics Community. The focus of the article is what is a community, what makes the Emerging Topics Community special, and benefits of the Community. Included after the discussion on the community are ways to get involved and be a part of the community.

Description: The momentum in value-based care has produced an opportunity for actuaries to become pioneers in health care

Description: 2005 SOA New Orleans Spring Meeting. In this teaching session, panelists discuss the importance, performance, reading and understanding of research that is critical to the future of the health actuarial profession. A case study of a particular research paper is used to facilitate understanding.

Description: The article talks through my personal journey of passing actuarial exams during the pandemic. The purpose of the article is to provide readers a different perspective on how to successfully navigate and balance work-study commitments. The article provides 6 tips that helped me overcome exam challenges.

Description: View the 2022 SOA Student Research Case Study Challenge.

Description: As actuaries, we’re trained to see patterns in numbers and to design solutions that mitigate risk. But I can tell you from experience that while quantitative analysis and modeling are critical actuarial tools, looking at the numbers alone can lead to insurance products that don’t succeed in the real world the way the math says they “should.” With new digital technologies, we have more data at our fingertips than ever before, but I believe it’s equally as important to bring qualitative research methodologies into your product development process if you want to design solutions that meet real needs in the market. In this article, Amanda Turcotte shares what happens when qualitative research is neglected or ignored, what happens when you incorporate it into the product design process, and how to implement qualitative research practices in your organization.

Description: This article is an interview of Stuart Klugman, senior staff fellow for Education at the SOA, who explains the changes to the pathway to earn the ASA designation.

Description: Request for letters to the editor of the Expanding Horizons section.

Description: The SOA basic education has seen dramatic changes. The education system curriculum for pension actuaries has changed so much with the recent introduction of the Flexible Education System FES that actuaries who qualified only a few years ago will find the difference dramatic.

Description: This article explains the changes made to the Expanding Horizons Newsletter.