Aktua is proudly sponsored by Sanlam and Momentum.

Uitgawe 2: © Aktua Komitee 2005 Mahala/Gratis
Aktua is proudly sponsored by
Sanlam and Momentum.
Ιτσ τιμε το
χαλχυλατε:
σταρτ εαρλψ
τηισ σεμεστερ
ανδ ενϕοψ
βεχομινγ α
ωορλδ
χηαμπιον ατ
τηε νυμβερσ
γαμε !!!!

The Editorial team:
- 2 -
The Editor: Regard Budler
Chairperson: Marguerite Fevrier
Aktua Finance: Martin Ackermann
Aktua Sport and Social: Divan van der Watt
Aktua Academics: David Neale
Aktua Marketing: Liesje Croeser
Department Representative: Johan Sauer
Inhoudsopgawe / Index:
1. A word from the Editor 2
2. The Cost of Qualifying as an Actuary 3
3. The Career Expo Evening 4
4. Actuarial Survey 2005 5
5. Die Opedag 6
6. Uit Agie se Magie 6
7. Ons Proffies van Nader 9
8. The Joke Warehouse 11
9. Writing an actuarial exam 13
10. The Proof of Life 15
A word from the Editor
he first semester is something
of the past and its hard to
believe that it is almost
Christmas. Ok, not quite! This
is however a time for Aktua to
assess what it has done in the first
semester and to rethink its strategy
and goal to unite the students of
the Department.
The first six months were filled with
new and exciting opportunities for
all students. The Aktua Rugby and
Hockey Teams came into being.
The final preparations are being
made for the remaining sports
teams and will soon be ready for
action.
The Career Expo Evening was an
enormous success and I would once
again like to thank Mr. Rossouw
Steyn and Mr. Marthinus Visser
from Sasfin Frankel Pollak
Securities and OUTsurance
respectively for their invaluable
contributions. We hope to bring you
many more such informative
events.
Aktua is already starting with the
preparations for the Annual Formal
Dinner that will take place on the
20th October. Please watch our
notice board for more information
in this regard.
We emphasize that the students
are the blood in Aktua’s veins and
all students in the Department of
Insurance and Actuarial Science are
always welcome to participate in
any of Aktua’s events.
I believe that in the second half of
the year Aktua will go from
strength to strength.
-Regard Budler

- 3 -
The Cost of Qualifying as an Actuary
No, we are not talking about sacrificing your TV-nights and never seeing the
sunlight. We thought it would be interesting to see what the monetary
sacrifices are that a prospective actuary will make. This is a break down of
the costs to fully qualify. The affect of inflation has been disregarded in this
illustration but may have a significant effect on the final cost as it takes many
years to qualify. We also assumed that we all are geniuses and pass all the
subjects the first time round. The figures presented in this table are merely
estimates of the actual costs since exchange rates and other external
influences may have significant effects.
Year of study Tuition fees
Study
material Total Exemptions
1 R 18,000.00 R 2,500.00 R 20,500.00 CT2, CT7
2 R 20,220.00 R 2,500.00 R 22,720.00 CT1, CT3
3 R 21,900.00 R 3,000.00 R 24,900.00 CT4, CT6, CT8
Honours R 25,000.00 R 3,000.00 R 28,000.00 CT5, CA1
Subtotal R 96,120.00
No of
exams/
Exemptions
Exam/
Exemption
Cost*
Combined Materials
Pack (CMP) Course
Notes, Q&A Bank,
Series X
Assignments Total
Overseas
Examination
CT 9 £120.00* £1080.00
CA1 1 £337.50* £337.50
CA2 1 £450.00 £450.00
CA3 1 £195.00 £79.00 £274.00
ST 2 £225.00 £205.00 £860.00
SA 1 £225.00 £231.00 £456.00 £3,457.50
Subtotal R 41,490.00
Subscription
(payable
annually)
Entrance + 3
years
subscription
Faculty
Entrance
Fee
£100.00 £150.00 £550.00
Institute £115.00 £159.00
Subtotal R 6,600.00
R 144,210
Years 1 to 3 and Honours include all subjects for degree purposes as well as
IAS282 and IAS382 for exemption purposes.
A thing to remember is that although this may be a gigantic amount, it will
be by far the best investment you will ever make! And by the way, it is
cheaper than to become a medical doctor! Our advice: study hard today to
make it cheaper tomorrow.
-David Neale

- 4 -
The Career Expo Evening
19 April 2005 was one evening that most of us won’t ever forget. It was a
breath of new hope for those of us who thought the end was dawning. Mr.
Rossouw Steyn and Mr. Marthinus Visser shed some light on the dark world
of business.
Mr. Rossouw Steyn from Sasfin Frankel Pollak Securities introduced the world
of the Fund Manager to us. It was good to
hear that any one of us has the ability to
become a fund manager. The only
important thing is to obtain about 20
years of experience; a slow learning
curve if you ask me. A fund manager
needs the ability to communicate
to clients and explain the fund’s
performance. If you are not
the people’s person, then
technical analysis and research
may be a suitable area for
you. Fund management is all
about long-term investments
in which asset-class and sector
selection plays an important
role. The importance of
diversification has also been made
clear by Mr. Steyn as this will
increase the expected return on your
capital investment. Sasfin follows the bird-inthe-hand
theory when it comes to dividend
relevance. They believe it is fundamental to share selection. Some of us may
disagree. Mr. Steyn concluded his presentation stating the advantage that
the CFA qualification may provide for individuals planning to go into fund
management. It was indeed an amazing presentation.
Then the time was right for the green en purple world of OUTsurance. Mr.
Marthinus Visser, the head of the Actuarial Department at OUTsurance, was
an inspiration to us all. The mere fact that an Actuary can almost do anything
in the business world, from Marketing Analyst to an IT Specialist, was an eye
opener. If I may refer to one of the interesting facts that he mentioned, is
certainly the fact that marketing only consists of 3% of the final premium
that a client pays. This is much less than the 15% you normally pay to a
broker. OUTsurance had an initial starting capital of R50 million and in only 6
years obtained a 15% market share. In 2004 OUTsurance was the fatest
growing short-term insurer. OUTsurance can attribute its success to factors
like the fact that they have 8 actuarial appointments. This is certainly an
advertisement for the actuarial profession. These actuaries work mostly in
non-traditional areas and in OUTsurance’s case: Rating, Reserving,
Performance Based Salary Systems, Procurement, Marketing, Reinsurance,

- 5 -
Communication and Investments. As Mr. Visser also concluded, the actuarial
job market will turn in time as more companies realize the value that
actuaries can add.
An important exam tip that Mr. Visser gave is that it is important to obtain a
bigger picture of the work you study to be able to draw conclusions between
the different parts. As an inspiration to the second half of the year, I leave
you with the quote of Mr. Visser: “The competitive advantage that Actuaries
have in business by virtue of their skills, could be applied to any type of
business and is not limited to the financial services industry as any business
can be reduced to a numbers game and Actuaries are the world champions of
the numbers game.”
-Regard Budler
Actuarial Survey 2005
The following article is based on the results of the 2005 Actuarial Membership
Survey done by the Internal Relations Committee (IRC) of the FIA. This
survey is also found in the July edition of The Actuary. I tried to highlight the
most relevant information.
The survey was conducted electronically and targeted 16,000 members of the
profession in the UK and elsewhere. The following conclusions were based on
the 1,700 responses that were received.
I know we all have our reasons to
become an actuary, but it is
interesting to see what the reasons
were for some qualified actuaries. I
think it is important to note that
only 5% of respondents indicated
that salary is their primary reason.
Most of us, especially from second
year onward, will agree that you
quickly forget about that future paycheck when you get your first IAS paper
back and you thought you knew what was going on. I think that if the money
was your motivation to study the B.Sc, you should really start looking for
new motivation or else you may run into a brick wall. Table 3 contains the
specific responses of
candidates. I wonder if the 18%
that indicated that they wanted
a challenge ever quenched
their
thirst in the 6 or so years of
study. Special mention should
however be made to one
member who became an
actuary because his mother-in-

- 6 -
law wanted him to have a reputable profession!
Table 4 contains the reasons that respondents provided for staying Actuaries.
I’m glad to hear that life stays a challenge! In conclusion, it is clear that if
you want to become an actuary for the right reasons, your chances are way
better that otherwise. Remember, persistence is a function of motivation.
Die Opedag
Dit is moeilik om te glo, maar die
Opedag van 2005 het alreeds
gekom en gegaan. Dit was soos
oudergewoonte `n tyd om van die
nuwe gesigte wat in 2006 Steers
Roomyse en Chelseybuns gaan
misbruik, te sien. Die eerste
uitdaging waarmee ons gesit het
was om plakkate te kry wat die
Aktuariële beroep sou uitbeeld - dis
nou vir die stalletjie. Om eerlik te
wees, nou nie juis iets waaroor `n
vyfjarige seuntjie sal droom nie.
Minwetend nè!
Martikulante en graad elfs het die
vloere van die Rembrantsaal
behoorlik sif geloop. Ons moes met
tye vergelykings trek tussen
Biochemie en `n aktuaris, die
verskille verduidelik tussen `n GR
„CA“ en aktuaris en van die
moeiliker vrae was die verskil
tussen `n aktuaris en finansiële
ingenieur. Somtyds moes ons maar
-Regard Budler
op `n mooi manier die naïwiteit van
sommige leerlinge hanteer. Hoe
vertel `n mens nou vir iemand dat
Wiskunde op standaard graad net
nie goed genoeg is nie?
Nietemin, daar was `n
opgewondenheid onder die
voornemende studente wat `n
mens weer vir `n oomblik
nostalgies maak oor die beroep
waarvoor jy so hard werk.
-Regard Budler
Please note, the following article is TOTALLY FICTIONAL and no reference is
made to any real person! Due to a plane accident our authors cannot be
revealed.

- 7 -
First Years
So `n taaltoets is darem ongerieflik, maar miskien moet hulle party se
gehoor ook toets. Die arme ou het seker nie gehoor dat die persoon wat
langs hom sit in die toets, nie dieselfde toets het as hy nie… Siestog!
Funny, dat van ons nie weet hoe om ‘n muis te gebruik nie. “Dames en here,
hou die muis in jou hand, sonder om dit van die tafel af op te tel, beweeg
jou hand en kyk wat gebeur op die skerm”
AMAZING! Laat mens wonder oor hul bestuursvernuf!
Vinnig vinnig kon ons leer dat ekonomie nie so maklik was soos laasjaar nie.
Darem was die FBS seker nie so bad nie. Mik noord, en … gaan veilig voort!
En dan was daar die famous stelling tot dusver: „I cannot concentrate while
you are talking!“
As ons almal mekaar nou gaan begin “sue” wanneer iemand iets skeef vir ons
sê, gaan ons meer in die hof sit as in die klas. Die vraag is, wat sal
interessanter wees?
…en die Aktua socials: dit was nogal interessant, net jammer daar was so
min van ons daar. Komaan ouens, dis die beste plek om tips vir Numeriese
Analiese te kry: LEER was een van hulle! Darem kon ons so nou en dan
bietjie die tweede- en derdejaars les laat opsê op die rugbyveld.
Second Years
Tweede jaar is nogal rof, die toetse
is moeilik, square besoeke skaars,
Sondae aande (pre-WST klastoets)
M-Net flieks is ‘n nostalgiese
herinnering van `n goeie verlede
en dit word erger….die
waarskynlikheid van jou as `n vlek
op die A1967-70 tabel word vir die
eerste keer vir jou duidelik
gemaak! Okay, before you start
getting scared and decide to switch
to econometrics (as seems to be
the latest trend, “Econorange is the
new pink!”), here is the load down
on the best part of being a second
year financial maths student:
glorious gossip!
Na laasjaar se sjerrie diefstal moes
*Klim en *Klouter hierdie jaar die
sokkie social nog meer
opspraakwekkend maak. Dié twee
kalante het besluit om 2005 se
blykbaar “bourgeois”, Aktua bringen-braai
te omskep in die ultimate
skilpadbraai (meer dop as vleis).
Hoe het hul dit reggekry … nie
monetary of fiscal policy nie, nee,
met die aankondiging van die “24
beers, 24 hours” policy!
Believe it or not, but there are
some aspiring lads in our midst that
want to qualify as actuaries within
five years! Whatever happened to
the Afrikaans saying “dis ‘n
loopbaan, nie ‘n renbaan nie!”?
Think about it, Actuary in a can,
just fry for 5 years and serve with a
social life!
‘n Onlangse verwikkeling by Aktua,
is die sport. Ja, die akademici sien
uiteindelik die lig! Goliath and his
men brave the rugby battlefield
weekly and always keep us updated

on the latest fixtures, scores and
injuries! Sorry third years, facts do
sometimes hurt (and shoulders,
knees and egos)! The hockey
actually seems to be more fatal,
especially with *Meatballs on the
field!
Oe, dan is daar ook die paragraaf
waarsonder enige skindernuus
heeltemal onvolmaak sou wees: die
nuutste klas couples! *Haanco en
daar *Nita, *Ex-knol en haar “not
so x”, *Rekenaarwiskundige,
*Tjarlie en haar *Hairdude (hulle
vlieg seker deur Pantene, of is dit
Loréal Professional!) en dan die
nuutste *flits van romance. Wat
van die meisies se skielike
belangstelling in *Vlermuise die
semester? (Al stem *Wynona
Ryder/ *Gonda Beatrix nie saam
nie!) Maar die skokkendste nuus
van al is die onlangse verklaring
van sommige van die dames
studente dat “Brain Boys” die
nuutste must-have is! (Nog beter
as Nine West skoene of Lulu Belle
oorbelle!) (Dink net aan al die
voordele van ‘n permanently-onstandby
tutor! Hulle doen soms
INF-take ook, né *uhm). So
*Ysterarms, *Klim, *Thintin,
- 8 -
*Ainsley en die *twee computer
geniuses sal maar moet ligtrap!
Darem is die IAS211 en INF214
tutors nou weer veilig!
*Tjarlie spot altyd: “’n Boer maak
‘n plan, en die Engelsman laat hom
werk!” Lyk my dit was wel die geval
in hierdie semester, veral onder die
dames. Yes the leading ladies
*Carrie, *Samantha, *Charlotte
and *Miranda have decided that
they had enough Hellgebra and so
they took action! It might not have
worked out exactly as they have
planned, but they surely made their
point! Good going ladies! There’s
nothing like a little controversy to
keep everyone aware of what is
expected of them!
Dan, soos oudergewoonte, is daar
die MTN-lyn sindikaat. Ja, glo dit, ‘n
paar individue wat baie freeminutes
het! Het almal toe op die
spreadsheet ingepas? En kan julle
glo, sowaar ‘n nuwe topstudent in
die groep!
*Skuilname is gebruik, and any
similarity between the above and
actual persons is purely
coincidental!
Third Years
If you were born in 1984 then you (and probably all your buddies around
you) will know what happens in 2005…
Jip, for most of the students trying to study in their third year, it is not the
next stats class test that dictates your weekly routine, it is the 21 st ’s!
It is not just one a month, sometimes your crowd strikes a bad patch, and it
is the one friend on Friday, and a friend of another on Saturday – AND you’re
obligated to attend / to gate crash. Now, becoming 21 is a significant event.
Not only is it your coming of age, but by this time you KNOW how to throw a
party…
There are those that theme (from Cartoon characters, to Duvet parties),
those that go GRAND, small and large gatherings. Some parties go on for +/-

- 9 -
4 hours, but those that really get spoken about are those that should have
ended at midnight, but since the spirit was high, the “juices” kept flowing,
and it is only the sunlight (or the spotlight thrown into your eyes by a police
officer) that remind you are a human being (with a dwarf sitting on your
shoulder, happily hitting away trying to mash in your skull with his 5 pound
mallet). Ok, you may have woken up halfway to hell, but at least you
remember you went there in style, you know – the night before, or at least,
you think so.
Do not think the hole in your pocket was made by a bottle (or a crate of
cans if you are so inclined) – oh no, trying to work out a budget to fit both
the toll of Hatfield and a sufficiently sturdy (or homely - for the ladies looking
forward to creating a lovely home in the not too distant future) present for
the lucky person that week can get more than a bit tricky, and then you
really start to appreciate the zero use of your multifunction, time value of
money, HP, so many-ith series, pocket calculator.
All in all, the third year is a year of endings (your pre-adult status, your
inability of signing a contract or consent form and hopefully your degree) and
a year of beginnings (your adulthood, asking questions such as “now how
much is this up and coming degree of mine worth?” and sadly but truly –
you’re beginning to study for the next paper.)
Honours
Honours can be compared to the Actuarial and Financial Maths degree on
steroids: IT IS HECTIC! Some of us cannot control our adrenalin-rushes and
then we decide to take on the lecturers. Take Mrs MAN for example: she
really gave Dr van Wyk a go. And NO Van Wyk, you ARE wrong, you don’t
need 45 minutes to prove a 2 nd year formula! Hey, head boy, thanks for
representing us in almost every class. We appreciate you! And who thought
that keeping the Cricket score for South Africa would be less important than
attending class…? In fact, playing golf is much more fun!
For those of you who sticked with the honours class the 2 nd time (or
3 rd ?)…should we thank you for the brief description at the start of each
course on how bad the lecturers are, how difficult the work is going to get
and what a nightmare the exams are??? It’s like watching a movie with
someone who has already seen it!! I hope that none of us will carry on the
tradition.
Realising that this is the last stretch to finishing studying with the honours
class of 2005, it makes you look at your classmates in a different way. Yes,
even the one that you described as “the typical actuary”! The question is: did
he become more like you, or did you become more like him…? Good luck!

Ons Proffies
van Nader
Sommige van die dosente is al
langer hier op kampus as wat jy
gedink het. Die vraag is:
Hoekom? Nadat daar met
moeite in ou argiewe gegrawe
is, het ons op interessante
inligting van Prof. HLM du
Plessis afgekom wat dateer uit
die jare negentigs van die
vorige millenium (1999). Jare
later (nou 2005) wil ons die
vermiste inligting toevoeg
en ook sommige vrae
opdateer...
- 10 -
1. Wat is u regte name? Hendrik Lourens Marthinus du Plessis
2. Waar sien u uself oor 10 jaar? Lewendig met ‘n 97,948% waarskynlikheid
as A1967-70 ult van toepassing is. Kan iemand asseblief my som
kontroleer?
3. Waar het u geswot (en hoe lank het dit geneem om te kwalifiseer)? Ek het
vir 3 jaar by Wits studeer en dit was „blêrrie lank“ voor ek as aktuaris
gekwalifiseer het in 1997. (Daar is dus hoop...)
4. Watter vak was die moeilikste? Die moeilikste vak was life en ek het ook
daarin gespesialiseer.
5. Watter beroep sou u nie wou volg nie? Brandweerman (wel, nie meer nie,
sedertdien het aktuaris beter begin klink).
6. Waarmee ry u rond? Het dit enige “stickers”? Ek het onlangs my Mini
Cooper S ingeruil vir ‘n BMW 540 sonder stickers, maar julle moet net my
mags uitcheck! (Darem is daai groen Audi van destyds vervang met `n KAR!)
7. Wat is u gunsteling tydverdryf? Vermaak my meisie.
8. Waar het u u bevind op 1 Januarie 2000? Ek neem aan om 0h00?
Kleinmond beach party.

- 11 -
9. Wat staan u glad nie aan nie? Moedswilligheid en onbekwaamheid, veral as
die onbekwame onbewus van die onbekwaamheid is. Meng die twee vir
die kersie op die koek.
10. Wat het u (as student) in af periodes aangevang? Pinball gespeel met
my twintig sente (…dit was die going rate daai jare). En die dae as ek
rerig op ‘n roll was, net een 20c-stuk vir die eerste game. Die ander
games het van free games gekom. Nogal ‘n pinball wizard gewees, al
moet ek dit nou self erken.
11. Het u enige slegte gewoontes? Heeltemal te veel om op te noem.
12. Beplan u om eendag oorsee te gaan? Permanent? Dan sou ek op al die
opwinding hier ter plaatse uitmis. Ek gaan kuier wel so af en toe by
kleinboet in Boston.
13. Wat is u motto in die lewe? Soek die waarheid
14. Watter troeteldiere besit u? Wat is hulle name? Een klein tabby katjie
genaamd Kalie.
15. Neem u deel aan enige sport? Fietsry saam met Leonie en Anneke van
die Wiskundedepartement. Offroad motorfietsry (RM250), en gym om die
liggaam geoefen te hou sodat die offroad-ryrery nie my veteraanlyf te veel
karnuffel nie. Die gym help ook sommer terselfdertyd ‘n bietjie om die
skaal in toom te hou.
16. Watter rugbyspan ondersteun u? Die horing span
17. Wat was u gunsteling speelding toe u klein was? Hulle het nooit lank
gehou nie, so dit was moeilik om ‘n langtermynverhouding te smee.
18. Waarvoor is u die bangste? Ek het nie ‘n bang haar op my kop nie.
Behalwe as studente my wil aanrand oor puntetoekennings☺. Andersins is
ek normaalweg heel domastrant.
19. Het u enige stokperdjies? Hou van lees, couch potato speel, harde
musiek (arme bure), bietjie tuinmaak, toets my nuwe kombuis se
kookgeriewe uit, voltooi my huisbouprojek stukkie vir stukkie nadat die
bouer verdwyn het ….kwalifiseer laasgenoemde as ‘n stokperdjie of ‘n
frustrasie? In elk geval, die aktiwiteitelys verander van tyd tot tyd na
gelang van die nuutste gier.
20. Het u enige raad/boodskap aan die studente? Verwag om te werk vir
dit wat jy wil hê.
-Marguerite Fevrier

- 12 -
The Joke Warehouse
Three men are sentenced to die by guillotine. The first man steps up, places
his head in the hole, the executioner release the knife,
and miraculously the knife stops inches above the
man's neck. The king says, "Under the laws of our
country, if the guillotine fails to do its job, you are
declared free." So the first man gets up, relieved,
and the second man takes his place. Again, the
guillotine knife stops inches away from the man's
neck. The king says again, "Under the laws of
our country, if the guillotine fails to do its
job, you are declared free." So the
second man gets up, free. The third
man, who is an actuary, puts his head in
the guillotine hole, looks up, and says, "I
think I see what the problem is ... ".
An actuary is a person, who passes as an expert on
the basis of a prolific ability to produce an
infinite variety of incomprehensive figures
calculated with micrometric precision from
the vaguest of assumptions based on
debatable evidence from inconclusive data
derived by persons of questionable reliability for the
sole purpose of confusing an already hopelessly
befuddled group of persons who never read the statistics anyway! (Oukei, `n
ou een maar hy bly goed!)
A group of lawyers and a group of actuaries are traveling by train to
conferences in the same city. The lawyers were surprised to see that the
actuaries had only bought one train ticket for the entire group. When the
conductor entered the front of the car, all of the actuaries got up and went
into the same bathroom. As the conductor went down the aisle, the lawyers
dutifully handed him their tickets. When he came to the bathroom he said,
"Ticket, please." One ticket slid out, he punched it, and went on his way. On
the return trip home, the lawyers thought they'd try the same trick, but this
time they noticed the actuaries had not bought any train tickets. As the
conductor entered the front of the car, all of the lawyers got up and went into
the same bathroom. One of the actuaries walked over to the bathroom,
knocked on the door, and said, "Ticket, please."
A casualty actuary priced an automobile "Fire and Theft" policy with an
extremely low premium. When asked why it was so cheap, he said, "Who
would steal a burnt car?"

- 13 -
Question: Why did the metalhead (i.e., someone who listens to heavy metal
music) want to become an actuary? Answer: He wanted to get paid to predict
death and destruction.
A group of people is touring the Grand Canyon, and
the tour guide asks if anyone knows the age of the
canyon. Everybody is mumbling but nobody
answers. An actuary raises his hand and says, "one
million and three years old!" The guide is amazed
and asks the actuary how he knows this so exactly.
The actuary answers, "Three years ago I visited the
Grand Canyon, and one of your guides said the
canyon was one million years old."
The Actuary
An actuary is walking down the corridor when he feels a twinge in his chest.
Immediately, he runs to the stairwell and hurls himself down. His friend,
visiting him in the hospital, asks why he did that. The actuary replies, "The
chances of having a heart attack and falling down the stairs are much lower
than the chances of having a heart attack only.
Someone once said, if you can laugh at yourself, you always have
something to laugh about.
Writing an actuarial exam
Bill Osenton advises on how to arrive at that start line ready to run the marathon of your life! (The Actuary
Magazine August 2004).
So you’re planning to write an actuarial examination, and this time you want to really nail it!
Now how do you do that? It is not sufficient just to sit down and study night after night until
you eventually reach the night before the exam, by which time you hope to be properly
prepared for the examination on the next day. You need to focus your studying.
Studying to write an actuarial examination should be approached with the same careful
planning and preparation that you would adopt if training to run a marathon. As the ad for
the mountain bike says ‘This day didn’t start at the top of the hill. This day started long
before…’.
In preparing for a marathon one must train to develop the following:
◆ general fitness and stamina; ◆ strength;
◆ speed; ◆ high energy level on day of race.
Preparing for an actuarial exam one must train to develop the following:
◆ knowledge; ◆ understanding; ◆ speed; ◆ high energy level on day of the exam.
For a marathon your plan of attack might look like figure 1.
First you would build your general fitness and stamina and then your strength. As the race
day approaches you would concentrate on developing more speed and in the last few days
you would taper in order to feel fit and full of energy on the race day. Your training for an
actuarial exam should be just as organised. At first you should concentrate on gathering
knowledge,

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then on gaining understanding. Towards the end you must devote some time to developing
your speed and then finally you should make sure you are well rested for your exam. Your
plan of attack might look like figure 2. All of us study to acquire knowledge, and most to gain
understanding. However, I believe that many students omit to plan properly for the last two
steps. Being able to apply quickly and accurately what you do know is at least as important
in passing an actuarial examination as the extent of your knowledge. Speed is an important
factor in successfully passing actuarial
exams. To increase your
speed, you must have
important methods and
formulae at your finger tips.
As you study, you must
identify and record the
formulae that you will need in
the exam. Then in the last
month before the exam you
should commit them to
memory and practise writing
them down quickly and
accurately. As you study, you
should likewise identify the
methods you will need. Then
in the last month before the
exam date practise using
them so that you can recall them
and apply them instantly. A week or two before the actual
examination, you should find time for at least one practice exam, and get in some practice
on the actuarial calculator you will actually be using on exam day. This practice exam should
be conducted under examination conditions (ie in a quiet room with no distractions and no
reference materials) and should be subject to the time limit of the real examination.
To run a marathon in a good time you need to arrive at the starting
line full of energy and
bounce. The last stage, conserving your energy for the race, is very important. No runner
that I know of would train for a marathon by taking a 30-mile endurance training run on the
day before the big race. And
yet, I know of many students
who will put in a long hard day’s study the day before an
actuarial exam, with predictably poor results.
To recall and replay your
knowledge quickly in an
actuarial exam you need to be
fresh and alert with a clear
head. You should plan a
tapering schedule in the last
ten days. Get out more and
relax, play tennis or golf
(although not if it frustrates
you), or just go for nice quiet
walks. Give your batteries
time to recharge before the
final effort. Never enter an
exam room tired and
depressed from last-minute
study. Make a point of never
tackling new material in the
last two weeks before an exam – concentrate on revising mate rial you already know. In the
last three days limit yourself to memorizing crib sheets prepared during the revision process
in the previous month and get plenty of rest. This way you will find that you are more able to
recall facts and methods from the whole study period.

The
Proof of Life
The Aktua Career Exposure
Evening was the main event
in the second quarter of
2005. It was an enormous
success attributable to the
hard work of the Aktua
Committee and enthusiasm
of the students.
Mr. Marthinus Visser from
OUTsurance.
- 15 -
Mr. Rossouw Steyn from
Sasfin Frankel Pollak
Securities.
Some interesting questions
were answered in the most
polite way.

- 16 -
Kommentaar, Kritiek en Voorstelle
Write to us on our e-mail address.
We
appreciate your continued support.
The
Aktua Committee.
Hierdie
uitgawe van The Actuarial Times is
saamgestel deur Aktua se komitee. Aktua
bestaan om die lewe vir julle lekker te maak en
ons waardeer alle kritiek en voorstelle.
You
are always more than welcome to give
suggestions and recommendations for social
events or anything that you would like us to do.
Aktua is there for you, and we would like to
hear from you!
____________________ _______________________
Marguerite Fevrier (Chairperson) Regard Budler (Editor)
aktua@up.ac.za
This free issue has been made possible by the gracious giving of Sanlam and Momentum!