What do accredited programmes mean for employers?

As summer approaches, the current cohort of graduates will complete their accredited degrees and launch their newly acquired skillsets into the world of employment.

Following the 2004 Morris Review, and recognising the need for a greater level of diversity in the way actuaries operate, the IFoA encourages universities to introduce innovative practices. Examples include: linking diverse areas of knowledge to broaden understanding; varying assessment methods to fully develop subject awareness; introducing workplace IT programmes and simulations; using current practitioners as teaching staff; and encouraging students to take paid long-term work placements.

Universities now deliver programmes that provide greater opportunity to students and consequently give actuarial employers access to a much broader range of employees.
The following are just some of the ways in which universities have embraced the challenge.

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore recognises the importance of computing skills in actuarial work and has introduced an actuarial computing module to teach basic programming skills to their actuarial students. Understanding that the actuarial examinations contain a step up from technical-oriented modules, to more strategic, more application-oriented modules, they introduced an actuarial management module as a bridge for students towards the higher level actuarial examinations.

Queen's University Belfast actuarial students are exposed to the university's trading room, which uses Bloomberg market professional software terminals, allowing students to learn investment, portfolio management and technical analysis principles using real-time stock price information. Some of the actuarial students have even taken up positions on the oversight committee of the Queen's Student Managed Fund - a student-managed real money fund, designed around three key areas: student employability, international reputation and corporate social responsibility. It focuses on creating a real-world investment management experience in an academic setting.

University College Cork ensures that its graduates have appropriate work-based skills to enable as seamless a transition as possible to the working environment. UCC students meet and interact with key players in industry and actuarial science at an annual industry event.
To complement the required core technical skills, actuarial students leave UCC with a broad range of practical work-based skills, such as Microsoft Excel, programming language R and presentation skills, to ensure that graduates meet all the requirements of the ever-evolving actuarial workplace.

University of Kent students have the opportunity to gain experience of using Prophet, an actuarial modelling system that helps insurance and financial services companies worldwide to meet reporting responsibilities, improve risk management and develop products. Final-year students undertake an actuarial practice module, where, as well as being given a grounding in all the main areas of actuarial practice, they are also introduced to the professional and ethical requirements for an actuary.

University of Leicester runs a 12-month placement programme and highlights the benefits this offers to the placement provider.

• Opportunity to tackle short-term projects that are otherwise difficult to resource
• Chance to develop links with a world-leading university with a strong research base, as well as practitioner experience in actuarial science and mathematics
• Chance to pick from the brightest, most motivated students for a fixed placement, without long-term commitment
• Opportunity to employ a known quantity post-placement, reducing the risks inherent in the recruitment process.