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Thursday 5th July 2012
Sonal Shah discusses actuaries and academia with the editor of the Annals of Actuarial Science
The profession's international research journal, the Annals of Actuarial Science, has had a makeover. Now published by Cambridge University Press, it has been redesigned to improve readability and clarity.
Launched in 2006 and originally self-published, the AAS is aiming to make its presence known in a small field of international academic journals. It has a new editorial board and is seeking to improve links between actuaries and academics.
Editor Angus Macdonald tells the Actuary about his hopes and plans for the future.
What are the developments since publishing the journal with Cambridge University Press (CUP)?
The most obvious change has been the new format, designed to be in keeping with best practice among academic journal publishers. CUP has also been pro-active in improving and increasing the marketing reach of the AAS - for example, its inclusion in some of its packages subscribed to by libraries.
What are the key future plans for the journal?
The long-term aim is for the AAS to be a leading actuarial journal, with a broad range of authors and readers worldwide. This will require the AAS to be accepted into one of the citation indices used as a yardstick by universities and authors. Over time, I expect the AAS to grow beyond two editions per year.
Which topics are you hoping to cover?
The target will always be the most interesting questions of the day. Just now, longevity, solvency and enterprise risk management are attracting the greatest interest.
How do you ensure quality and accuracy?
Every paper received is subject to peer-review by relevant experts. The peer-reviewers advise me on the originality and quality of the paper, and make a recommendation on whether or not to publish. Improvements often have to be made before a paper can be published.
In what ways is the research utilised by actuaries and how could it be more widely used?
Actuarial and financial research tends to be highly applicable. A good example is mortality and longevity research, which has strongly influenced models used by life insurers and pension funds. Another is stochastic models for general insurance reserving. The focus of the AAS is on applicable work, so the bigger the readership, the more actuaries will be able to find new approaches to help their work.
If resources were unlimited, what research project would you pursue and why?
I would be interested in the lessons to be learned from the securitisation of credit risk (CDOs and CDSs) to avoid problems arising from the securitisation of mortality risk, should that ever take off in the capital markets.
What impact could the application of the research have on wider society?
Securitisation played a significant role in the current crisis, although it was only one part of the story. Avoiding anything similar happening if mortality risk is securitised in a big way would certainly be of great impact. However, it would be hard to measure because success would mean something not happening!
Launched in 2006 and originally self-published, the AAS is aiming to make its presence known in a small field of international academic journals. It has a new editorial board and is seeking to improve links between actuaries and academics.
Editor Angus Macdonald tells the Actuary about his hopes and plans for the future.
What are the developments since publishing the journal with Cambridge University Press (CUP)?
The most obvious change has been the new format, designed to be in keeping with best practice among academic journal publishers. CUP has also been pro-active in improving and increasing the marketing reach of the AAS - for example, its inclusion in some of its packages subscribed to by libraries.
What are the key future plans for the journal?
The long-term aim is for the AAS to be a leading actuarial journal, with a broad range of authors and readers worldwide. This will require the AAS to be accepted into one of the citation indices used as a yardstick by universities and authors. Over time, I expect the AAS to grow beyond two editions per year.
Which topics are you hoping to cover?
The target will always be the most interesting questions of the day. Just now, longevity, solvency and enterprise risk management are attracting the greatest interest.
How do you ensure quality and accuracy?
Every paper received is subject to peer-review by relevant experts. The peer-reviewers advise me on the originality and quality of the paper, and make a recommendation on whether or not to publish. Improvements often have to be made before a paper can be published.
In what ways is the research utilised by actuaries and how could it be more widely used?
Actuarial and financial research tends to be highly applicable. A good example is mortality and longevity research, which has strongly influenced models used by life insurers and pension funds. Another is stochastic models for general insurance reserving. The focus of the AAS is on applicable work, so the bigger the readership, the more actuaries will be able to find new approaches to help their work.
If resources were unlimited, what research project would you pursue and why?
I would be interested in the lessons to be learned from the securitisation of credit risk (CDOs and CDSs) to avoid problems arising from the securitisation of mortality risk, should that ever take off in the capital markets.
What impact could the application of the research have on wider society?
Securitisation played a significant role in the current crisis, although it was only one part of the story. Avoiding anything similar happening if mortality risk is securitised in a big way would certainly be of great impact. However, it would be hard to measure because success would mean something not happening!
Describe the focus and involvement of the international editorial board.
The editorial board has been recently appointed, and includes distinguished actuaries from all over the world and all actuarial traditions. I consult them on both individual questions, such as selecting peer-reviewers for particular papers, and on broader questions, such as increasing the impact of the AAS. I hope they may influence leading authors to choose the AAS as a journal of choice for their work.
Does globalisation increase opportunities to work with other professions?
The actuarial profession is already global in scope, partly because mathematics crosses national boundaries. But there are opportunities to collaborate with other professions and disciplines. Take the new chartered enterprise risk actuary (CERA) qualification. Risk management is emerging as a new profession, and actuaries should contribute through research in the AAS and in other ways.
What makes a successful research paper?
It should be about a real problem and make a worthwhile step towards a solution that will potentially advance practice. And it must be readable; even scientific articles have to tell a story. Some of the best and most useful papers are reviews by experts surveying the state of the art in a broad area of interest.
Are actuaries sufficiently engaged with academia?
The amount of engagement varies across the world, partly because of different traditions in the education of actuaries. In my time at Heriot-Watt, I have seen a great increase in the interaction between academia and the profession, which is very welcome. Of course, we can always do more.
What advice would you offer an actuary looking to move from financial services to academia?
Be absolutely sure that you are doing it for the right reasons - because you have a passion for research and education. The image of academic life as leisurely is a complete myth.
What has been your greatest professional challenge?
Probably the early years of my research on genetics and insurance. It was a completely open field and a great opportunity to be the first to achieve something, but also rather scary as I had to commit all my research time without knowing whether any useful models or answers would be found.
The Annals of Actuarial Science is available online at journals.cambridge.org/aas
The editorial board has been recently appointed, and includes distinguished actuaries from all over the world and all actuarial traditions. I consult them on both individual questions, such as selecting peer-reviewers for particular papers, and on broader questions, such as increasing the impact of the AAS. I hope they may influence leading authors to choose the AAS as a journal of choice for their work.
Does globalisation increase opportunities to work with other professions?
The actuarial profession is already global in scope, partly because mathematics crosses national boundaries. But there are opportunities to collaborate with other professions and disciplines. Take the new chartered enterprise risk actuary (CERA) qualification. Risk management is emerging as a new profession, and actuaries should contribute through research in the AAS and in other ways.
What makes a successful research paper?
It should be about a real problem and make a worthwhile step towards a solution that will potentially advance practice. And it must be readable; even scientific articles have to tell a story. Some of the best and most useful papers are reviews by experts surveying the state of the art in a broad area of interest.
Are actuaries sufficiently engaged with academia?
The amount of engagement varies across the world, partly because of different traditions in the education of actuaries. In my time at Heriot-Watt, I have seen a great increase in the interaction between academia and the profession, which is very welcome. Of course, we can always do more.
What advice would you offer an actuary looking to move from financial services to academia?
Be absolutely sure that you are doing it for the right reasons - because you have a passion for research and education. The image of academic life as leisurely is a complete myth.
What has been your greatest professional challenge?
Probably the early years of my research on genetics and insurance. It was a completely open field and a great opportunity to be the first to achieve something, but also rather scary as I had to commit all my research time without knowing whether any useful models or answers would be found.
Curriculum vitae
Angus Macdonald graduated in mathematics from Glasgow University. He joined Scottish Amicable Life Assurance Society and qualified as a Fellow of the Faculty of Actuaries (FFA) in 1984.
In 1989, he moved to Heriot-Watt University, obtaining a PhD in 1995 and being appointed professor in 2000. He also served on the Faculty Council from 1998 to 2007. In 1999, he set up the Genetics and Insurance Research Centre.
He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2006, became editor of the Annals of Actuarial Science in 2008 and was awarded the Finlaison Medal by the profession in 2011.
The Annals of Actuarial Science is available online at journals.cambridge.org/aas
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