Derek Cribb talks about CAA exemptions available to current IFoA students
This month I want to congratulate everyone who sat and passed the entry test, Module 0, in the first- ever Certified Actuarial Analyst (CAA) exam session in August. It's fantastic to see so much support from 'early adopter' candidates and employers for the CAA, the IFoA's first new qualification and membership category in a generation.
The range of backgrounds of those taking the exam even at this early stage demonstrates the sheer diversity and breadth of appeal of the CAA. For example, Grainne Burke works in Ireland for a large insurance company as a business support analyst. She sees the CAA as helping her to progress to a managerial role, thus advancing her career. Compare this to Moses Chege, who works as a life and investment consultant in Kenya, who is being sponsored through the CAA by his employers to improve his skills to help him, as an IFoA member, to stand out from his peers. Candidates in over 20 countries sat the exam and we fully expect this geographical spread to increase in the forthcoming exam sessions.
We recognise that there may be some Fellowship students whose career aspirations are better served by the CAA, who therefore would have pursued the CAA had it been available when they commenced their studies. In recognition of this, I am pleased to say that on 3 November we will have opened an exemptions window of 15 months, during which students on the Fellowship pathway can use passes in relevant Fellowship exams to gain exemptions from individual CAA exams and transfer across to the CAA pathway as a student actuarial analyst (SAA). Fellowship students with all relevant exam passes can transfer to the membership grade of CAA at any time, provided they meet the work-based skills and professionalism requirements.
I am very much looking forward to welcoming new and existing members onto the analyst pathway. By diversifying our offering, the IFoA is ensuring that it is continuing to meet the needs of modern financial organisations by equipping staff with relevant qualifications and the benefits of IFoA membership.
More information about the CAA, including profiles of candidates and details about exemptions, are available on the IFoA website: www.actuaries.org.uk/becoming-actuary/caa
For further information about the CAA, please get in touch at [email protected]