Actuarial Science: Analysis Of Candidates Taking The ACET

The Institute of Actuaries of India(IAI), the statutory body of Actuaries in India under the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance of the Central government is the one place every aspiring actuary wants to get their certification from.

To get admission at the IAI, candidates have to appear for the Actuarial Common Entrance Test (ACET) which is conducted twice a year. The ACET result is valid for upto three years from the date of declaration of the result.

To get a better understanding, let us break down what this course and the career entails. Actuarial science is a study that uses advanced techniques and models to calculate the financial and commercial impact, valuation of uncertainty and risk of future events. This it does through concepts in Mathematics, probability, statistics, finance, economics, and computer science.

Careers360 studied the data from the official website of IAI and analysed the students who were successful in the ACET exam. In our analysis we found that of the total number of candidates who register for the exam, over 80 per cent actually appear for the ACET. It was also noted that students who appeared for the ACET are mostly Class 12 pass-outs. So it can be said with certainty that Actuarial Sciences is a popular option after 10+2 for many. Undergraduate students were the second highest.

Out of 21 subjects, Communications Practice- CP3, has the most number of candidates that took the exam in November 2020 and March 2021. CP3 is also a subject that sees a high percentage of students passing among all subjects.

So who can register for ACET? Candidates from any background can apply for actuarial science, with a minimum of Class 12 qualification and an expertise in numbers – mathematics and statistics to be specific. A student with an MBA, BE, BTech or finance degree with at least 60 per cent aggregate can also sit for ACET.

Students who clear ACET need further to apply for membership of IAI and sit for the 13 subject exams at their own pace. As the students successfully pass the subjects their membership status changes from student to Associate to Fellow. A student, who clears a total of 10 exams, qualifies to earn an Associate certification and after passing 13 exams, you become a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of India.

Subject Wise Passing Students

A total of 3,108 candidates registered for the November 2020 ACET exams, out of them around 84 per cent finally gave the test. In 2021, 2,896 candidates registered and of those 82 per cent students appeared for the exam.

Most candidates took the Communications Practice (CP3) subject in the exam. This subject is also among the ones with a high percentage of students clearing among other subjects such as Health And Care, Life Insurance and Communications Practice.

Rate of Passing Candidates in Each Subject Out Of The Appeared Candidates (In %)

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Percentage of Appeared Students: Qualification-wise

Most students who appeared in the ACET exams in October 2020, January and March 2021 are students who have completed Class 12 exams. While students who completed their bachelors degree were the second most.

Qualification-wise Appeared Students In ACET (In numbers)

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Student Pool Of Successful ACET Candidates

It is interesting to note that candidates with an IT background show 100 per cent result, but this is negligible as only one student has appeared and been successful in clearing the ACET.

Rate of Passing Candidates As Per Qualifications (In %)

A career in actuarial science is quite lucrative, it offers a high salary even to its freshers. As there are just around 9,000 actuaries in India, there is still room for new talent to enter the sector. With the growing jobs and start-ups, the demand for good actuaries will also increase to help companies predict trends.