Introduction
Mission and Vision Statement of the Society
of Actuaries The Society of Actuaries (SOA) is an educational, research, and
professional organization dedicated to serving the public and
Society members. Its mission is to advance actuarial
knowledge and to enhance the ability of actuaries to provide expert
advice and relevant solutions for financial, business, and societal
problems involving uncertain future events.
The vision of the SOA is for actuaries to be recognized as the
leading professionals in the modeling and management of financial
risk and contingent events. Terms and concepts used in the Mission
and Vision Statement may be amplified as follows - Educational Organization
The SOA provides basic education in the fundamental principles of
actuarial science, advanced education and professional development
in areas requiring specific technical or regulatory knowledge, and
continuing education for practicing actuaries.
- Research Organization
The SOA conducts research to develop studies of historical
experience and techniques for projections into the future, to
analyze the actuarial aspects of public policy issues, and to
provide the foundation for further expansion of the
profession.
- Professional
Organization
The SOA promotes high standards of professional competence and
conduct within the actuarial profession. The SOA has adopted
a Code of Professional Conduct, and in matters of conduct and
discipline, it cooperates with the Canadian Institute of Actuaries
and with the American Academy of Actuaries, including the Actuarial
Standards Board and the Actuarial Board for Counseling and
Discipline. - Serving the Public
By developing and valuing financial programs, actuaries provide
service to the public. In addition to looking after the
interests of direct participants and beneficiaries of such public
and private programs, actuaries also provide advice to
shareholders, regulators, financial analysts and others. The
SOA meets its responsibility to the various publics by recruiting
and educating actuaries and by its role as a professional
organization. Note that the SOA places serving the public
ahead of serving its members. - Serving its Members
The SOA is committed to meeting the needs of its members.
Members work in the traditional practice areas of life insurance,
retirement systems, health benefit systems, financial and
investment management, and in emerging practice areas. In
meeting the needs of its members, the SOA conducts meetings and
seminars, publishes papers and studies, makes or sponsors
investigations, promotes educational activities for candidates and
members, utilizes technology to enhance communications, sponsors
academics and supports universities with actuarial science
programs, organizes special interest sections, and undertakes such
other activities as appropriate. However, in accomplishing
many of these tasks, the SOA relies on the generous support of its
members in volunteer roles.
Although the majority of the SOA members reside in Canada or in
the U.S., a significant number of members live or practice in other
geographical areas. The SOA is committed to encouraging the
development of actuarial science worldwide and to addressing the
international needs of SOA members. The SOA is a member of
the International Actuarial Association and of the worldwide
actuarial profession.
- Advancing Actuarial Knowledge and
Enhancing the Ability of Actuaries
Knowledge of actuarial science is the foundation of the actuarial
profession. Actuaries often deal with problems relating to
uncertain future events. With insurance based on scientific
actuarial principles, financial aspects of uncertainties such as
premature death, disability, need for medical care, etc., can be
exchanged for the certainty of a premium payment. Pension and
social security programs require actuarial analysis based on
contingencies such as period of employment, covered earnings, and
mortality. Investments and other financial transactions
involving risk or uncertainty can also be modeled using actuarial
techniques. In a dynamic and rapidly changing world,
actuarial knowledge must be continuously expanded to meet
increasingly complex problems and to enhance the value added by
actuarial analysis.
- Recognition as the Leading
Professionals
The vision of the SOA is not only to have actuaries be the leading
professionals in the modeling and management of financial risk and
contingent events, but to have this expertise widely recognized and
accepted outside the actuarial profession as well.
- Critical Success Factors
Critical success factors for the profession and the SOA are:
For the Profession
- Be relevant to the needs of our customers. Provide value
to a constituency sufficiently large to sustain meaningful work for
current and future members of the profession. This may mean
expanding our horizons as a profession.
- Be recognized and credible with employers, clients,
policymakers and the public by clearly defining who we are and how
we differ from others.
- Expand the scope of the actuarial profession. Design a
paradigm that expands the scope of meaningful applications of our
science, while preserving its integrity and uniqueness.
- Have an effective influence on public policy.
- Focus on maintaining quality membership by recruiting,
educating and retaining people who are a credit to the profession,
the customers and the societies we serve.
- Be forward looking, flexible and adaptable. Where
appropriate, motivate the need for actuarial services in the
absence of government regulations. Focus our professional
resources on outcomes most important to members and the
public.
For the SOA - Provide a relevant educational system to train new actuaries
and provide continuing education for actuaries. Keep
Education and Examination (E&E) and Continuing Education
systems in line with the profession's needs.
- Carry out research initiatives that maintain a current
knowledge base and expand it so that we can add value to our
customers; publications should support dissemination of the
knowledge base; knowledge base needs to support both new and
existing practice areas.
- Provide appropriate scope for actuarial practice, encompassing
attention to the new practice areas and appropriate geographical
areas, and building and maintaining employment opportunities for
actuaries. Focus should continue to be on customer
needs.
- Provide and maintain strong and effective services for
members. The key is helping members add value to their
customers with emphasis on external focus.
- Maintain a strong volunteer system and effectively support it
with staff.
- Provide support to help achieve the critical success factors
for the profession.
- Prepare for the future, focusing on both the long and the short
term.
- The critical success factors should serve as a framework for
testing priorities and allocating resources.
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Principles Underlying the Education and
Examination (E&E) System The SOA administers a series of courses leading to Associateship
and Fellowship. The principles underlying the SOA E&E
system are the following: To provide the actuary with an understanding of fundamental
mathematical concepts and how they are applied, with recognition of
the dynamic nature of these fundamental concepts in that the
actuary must remain up-to-date with developments in mathematics and
statistics;
To provide the actuary with an accurate picture of the
sociodemographic, political, legal, and economic environments
within which financial arrangements operate, along with an
understanding of the changing nature and potential future
directions of these environments;
To expose the actuary to a broad range of techniques that the
actuary can recognize and identify as to their application and as
to their inherent limitations, with appropriate new techniques
introduced into this range as they are developed;
To expose the actuary to a broad range of relevant actuarial
practice, including current and potential application of
mathematical concepts and techniques to the various and specialized
areas of actuarial practice; and
To develop the actuary's sense of inquisitiveness so as to
encourage exploration into areas where traditional methods and
practice do not appear to work effectively.
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Joint Sponsorship
The Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS) jointly sponsors and
administers Exams P, FM and C with the SOA. These three
courses/exams are part of the basis for the Preliminary Education
Component. They form a body of knowledge common to all
actuarial candidates. The CAS actively participates with its
cosponsors to set objectives, syllabus, assessments and passing
standards for the courses/examinations. Validation by
Educational Experience (VEE) is jointly sponsored by the SOA, CIA
and CAS.
The Canadian Institute of Actuaries (CIA), with the exception of
the EA examinations, sponsors and administers the Associateship and
Fellowship examinations with the SOA. The CIA actively
participates with its cosponsors to set objectives, syllabus,
assessments and passing standards for the
courses/examinations.
The SOA and the American Society of Pension Professionals &
Actuaries (ASPPA) jointly sponsor and administer EA-1, EA-2, A and
EA-2, B with the Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries
(JBEA). The organizations actively participate with their
cosponsors to set objectives, syllabus, and assessments for the
courses/examinations. Each organization may set its own pass
mark.
The American Academy of Actuaries (AAA) and the Conference of
Consulting Actuaries (CCA) jointly sponsor the Associateship and
Fellowship examinations with the SOA. Back to top
Admission Requirements to the SOA
Associateship - Who may be admitted
Anyone pursuing actuarial studies may apply for admission to the
SOA. If the Board of Governors (BOG) approves the Application
for Admission as Associate, the candidate will be enrolled as an
Associate of the Society of Actuaries (ASA) after completing the
Associateship educational requirements as prescribed by the BOG,
subject to any further requirements that the BOG may
prescribe. Membership dues are not charged until the
Application is accepted and all requirements prescribed by the BOG
have been satisfied.
- When and how to apply
The Application for Admission as Associate is separate from the
candidate's course registration application and will be issued to
candidates at the Associateship Professionalism Course (APC).
All candidates attending the APC will be required to fill out the
Application for Admission as Associate and turn it in to the APC
faculty prior to completing the course. Canadian candidates
for Associateship in the SOA attending the CIA's Professionalism
Course will also be required to fill out the Application for
Admission as Associate and turn it in to the CIA Professionalism
Course faculty prior to completing the course. Any questions
regarding the application should be directed to the Membership
Services Administrator at 847.706.3532.
- Associateship Requirements
To attain Associateship, the candidate must successfully complete
the course requirements described below, and must have the
Application for Admission as an Associate approved by the SOA Board
of Governors.
Effective January 1, 2007, candidates earn the Associateship
designation by completing the following requirements: - All candidates must complete Exams P, FM, MLC, MFE and C,
collectively known as the preliminary education component. (Credit
earned from a passing score on previous administrations of former
SOA Courses 1-4 will be converted appropriately.)
- All candidates shall satisfy Validation by Educational
Experience (VEE) for three subjects: economics, corporate finance
and applied statistics. (VEE credit earned from a passing score on
Course 2 and/or 4 will be converted appropriately.)
- All candidates must complete the Fundamentals of Actuarial
Practice (FAP) Modules 1-8 and the two associated assessments.
- All candidates must also complete the Associateship
Professionalism Course (APC). Candidates must also have an
approved Application for Admission as an Associate on file, as
described above.
Fellowship - Who may be admitted
An Associate will be admitted as a Fellow of the Society of
Actuaries (FSA) after completing the Fellowship educational
requirements.
- Fellowship Requirements
Associates must complete all remaining educational requirements
with the Fellowship Admissions Course (FAC) as the final
component. The FAC is required of all candidates for
Fellowship, and candidates may not attend the FAC until they have
completed all requirements. In 2007, candidates may earn
their FSA in one of two ways:
- Under the 2000 system requirements, candidates must complete
Courses 1-8 and Professional Development (PD). Credit earned
from a passing score on previous administrations of former SOA
Courses 1-4 will be converted appropriately and can be applied
towards these requirements.
- Under the new system, candidates must complete the preliminary
exam requirements, VEE, Fundamentals of Actuarial Practice (FAP)
Modules 1-8 and both assessments (conversion credit is accepted for
those candidates who have credit for either or both of former
Courses 5 and 7) and
- Two FSA Modules in one specialty track
- Examination Company/Sponsor Perspective (CSP)
- Examination Design & Pricing (DP)
- Strategic Business Management (SBM) Module
- Fellowship Admissions Course (FAC)
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