Overview of Actuarial Education

2010 is the first year that the Actuarial Society will be offering its own professional actuarial qualification. The official external launch date was the 23rd November 2009. This is a critical step for the profession in South Africa as the challenges of operating in our unique environment are increasing, and it is important that our professionals have an in-depth knowledge of local conditions. Please read the launch letter from Garth Griffin.  Launch Letter 

To qualify as an actuary in South Africa, you need to complete all the subjects prescribed in the syllabus of the professional body, the Actuarial Society of South Africa. Exemptions from many of these subjects can be obtained by completing relevant subjects at accredited universities. From 2010, the Actuarial Society will be offering its own Fellowship (FASSA) and Associateship (AMASSA) designations as internationally recognised professional qualifications –in previous years, the vast majority of actuaries in South Africa qualified via the United Kingdom system.

Extensive detail on the South African qualification can now be found in the Student Handbook. This document provides essential information on key dates, syllabus, tuition, courses, examinations and exemptions for the Actuarial Society professional qualifications. Student Handbook 

International recognition of actuarial qualifications is formalized through signed contracts recognizing equivalence between countries. These are known as Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs). The MRA with the UK Profession was signed on 29 May 2009 and will allow Fellows of the Actuarial Society to obtain the corresponding UK designation subject to some additional requirements. Similar MRAs have been signed with the Australian and Irish professional actuarial associations. The following link will take you to the relevant page: Mutual Recognition Agreements.

A number of universities are offering actuarial degree programs covering most of the Foundation Technical, Intermediate Technical, Core Principle and Fellowship Principles subjects as outlined in the South African curriculum. Please refer to the website for the list of Accredited Universities with subjects offered Accredited Universities with Exemption Agreement SubjectsWork Based Skills-WBS and the attendance of a Professionalism Course.

Assessment of the final stage of the qualification (Fellowship application) is conducted by the Board of Examiners appointed by the Actuarial Society of South Africa

Professional requirements to qualify include specified periods of experiential learning (Work Based Skills-WBS)

Lifelong learning is facilitated though an organized system of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) CPD requirements.

There have been many questions about the South African qualification, some of these frequently asked questions and answers have been compiled FASSA 2010 FAQ's.