The Certified Actuarial Analyst is a new qualification and membership category from the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA), providing an internationally recognised professional qualification, proven technical and professional skills and a gateway to a career in financial services.
It will provide you with membership of a prestigious body; a globally recognised qualification; member benefits such as networking opportunities; opens up a wide range of financial career options; and sets Certified Actuarial Analysts apart in a competitive job market.
Why would you want to take the CAA?
– Equip you with useful financial business skills and an internationally recognised qualification;
– Provide you with membership of a prestigious professional body;
– Allow you to join a global community, which will provide you with networking opportunities and support you throughout your career;
– Open the door to a wide range of career options such as management, technical analysis, data analytics, or perhaps even moving to a different area of business such as marketing;
– Give you access to resources such as online books, tutorials and study support;
– Establish you in the finance industry as a qualified professional, who is effectively regulated to provide your clients and the wider
Salary & benefits
Salary for the role will be competitive within the industry and will be benchmarked against similar roles within the market.
Initial indicators of salary have been benchmarked at around £15,000-£18,000 as a new Student Actuarial Analyst (SAA), but this could rise to £25,000+ when you qualify. This will change depending on responsibility level, experience, location and career progression.
Would an employer sponsor me through the CAA qualification?
This is dependent on the employer. Some employers have indicated that they will be prepared to sponsor Student Actuarial Analysts (SAAs) through the entire process; other employers will use the CAA qualification as a benchmark for the quality of candidates during their recruitment processes.
Working hours
The work schedules for CAAs will be dependant on the company, work responsibilities and resource requirements.
Benefits such as health care, pension, flexible working etc. will again be dependant on the company that you are employed by.
Entry
To become a CAA you need to complete and pass 6 exams.
Module 0 must be passed before you can join the IFoA as an SAA. Once you have become an SAA you can then continue to sit Modules 1-4 in any order, but they all must be passed, by exam or exemption, before Module 5 can be taken.
Training & progression
The format of these exams is as follows:
Module 0 – Entry exam
Computer based testing – multiple choice, two hours
Module 1 – Finance and financial mathematics
Computer based testing – multiple choice, two hours
Module 2 – Statistics and models
Computer based testing – multiple choice, two hours
Module 3 – Long term actuarial mathematics
Computer based testing – multiple choice, two hours
Module 4 – Short term actuarial mathematics
Computer based testing – multiple choice, two hours
Module 5 – Models and audit trails
Online exam – three hours
In order to qualify as a CAA, you must also complete the Online Professionalism Awareness Test (OPAT), which must be sat and passed at any time within one full CPD year of joining as an SAA member of the IFoA. This exam consists of five three-part questions, covering each of the five core principles of the Actuaries’ Code.
You must also complete one year of relevant work based skills. An important part of this qualification and of working as an actuarial professional is demonstrating that you have developed the practical aspects of your training. This includes developing skills in reflecting on what you have learnt and the ability to self assess.
Work based skills consist of a series of documents, known as learning logs, which you are asked to complete. There are three learning logs which you must complete in order to become a CAA.
The syllabus for each subject and useful reference material can be found in the CAA resource guides available on the IFoA website.