Why the actuarial profession?
Like many other actuaries, I found this profession when I was about to graduate from Uni and started looking for career opportunities. I thought the work sounded really interesting, and the more I read about it the better I liked the idea of becoming an actuary.
I always wanted to use maths to solve real world problems. I also wanted a career where continuous development and learning new skills was a core part of the job. Being an actuary fit those criteria perfectly. And, of course, it is also nice that this is a career with no shortage of good job opportunities.
How was the application process?
Once my application started moving forward, I was surprised by how quick and painless the whole process was. The recruitment team were really helpful throughout, and I was always kept informed of the progress of my application.
I also liked the format of the online and assessment centre tests. While other similar graduate programs will mostly test how quickly you can type numbers into a calculator, I found the APR tests focus on the applicant’s ability to understand the problem at hand, and their ability to explain the logic and assumptions supporting their answers.
My recommendation to people planning to apply to APR’s graduate program would be to spend some time writing a good cover letter. You may think that the qualifications and experience in your CV speak for themselves, but it is also important that your application shows you are really enthusiastic about becoming an actuary. And try to make sure that you tell our recruitment team why you are a good fit for the company!
What makes APR different from other companies?
You will have read about APR and what makes it different from other companies elsewhere in this webpage, but the two things that I personally value most are the training opportunities provided and the variety of the work we do.
Since I joined APR, I’ve had the chance to learn many new skills. Of course, this includes many traditional actuarial skills, but APR also focuses a lot on things that other companies may not: lots of programming and other technical/IT skills, communication with clients, specialised software training…
I also enjoy the chance to be involved in many different areas of actuarial work. You have likely seen many job adverts where companies are recruiting trainees for a very specific function (for example, pricing or reserving). At APR, you will not be stuck doing the same job for long. In fact, you may go from working in a life insurer and straight into a general insurance project in a matter of weeks! I think it is great to have this exposure to a wide variety of work, particularly at the start of your career when you may not even know what kind of actuary you want to be in the future.
