Master of Commerce (Actuarial Science)

The Master of Commerce (Actuarial Studies) is for students who hold an actuarial degree and wish to pursue their actuarial training further. It focuses on actuarial theory and practice, specialising in quantitative techniques for insurance, superannuation and financial risk modelling. With sufficiently high results students are able to obtain exemptions from exams of the Actuaries Institute (Australia), including the whole of Part II. The Master of Commerce (Actuarial Studies) has a ‘practice’ pathway, which focuses on advanced professional training, and a ‘research’ pathway, which prepares students for the PhD in Actuarial Studies.

1. Learning Goal

Graduates of this degree will be able to critically analyse theoretical and practical problems in actuarial work.

Learning objectives to achieve this goal

• On successful completion of this degree students will be able to describe, evaluate and utilize the fundamental theories underlying actuarial practice across the main areas of insurance and financial mathematics including superannuation, general insurance and the valuation of embedded derivatives contracts.
• They will also be aware of their limitations and be able to place these in context.

2. Learning Goal

Graduate of this degree will be able to evaluate analytically and numerically using actuarial models.

Learning objectives to achieve this goal

On successful completion of this degree students will be able to:

• Apply specialized actuarial techniques to the statistical analysis of data whilst understanding their limitations.
• Compute relevant quantities for insurance problems using actuarial techniques. These quantities will include premiums, contribution rates and risk numbers.
• Compute prices and sensitivities for a range of financial derivative products that are relevant to insurance work.

3. Learning Goal

Graduate of this degree will have an understanding of actuarial practice and conduct, and of how relevant the models they have studied are.

Learning objectives to achieve this goal

On successful completion of this degree students will be able to:

• Describe the core areas of actuarial practice and critically discuss the application of actuarial models to each of them.
• Evaluate and solve practical problems using the actuarial control cycle.
• Analyze possible conduct/misconduct using tests of professionalism.
• Assess and contrast product characteristics from the point of view of both providers and consumers.

The degree is designed to be completed in one and a half years of full time study and requires completion of 150 points, comprised of 87.5 points of core actuarial subjects and 62.5 points of elective subjects. Students can elect to follow one of two pathways: the practice pathway or the research pathway.

PRACTICE PATHWAY

Core subjects

Students must take the following subjects:

Students must take 25 points of constrained choice core actuarial subjects, selected from the following subjects:

Capstone subjects

Students must take the following subjects:

Elective subjects

Students must take 62.5 points of elective subjects, selected from the following subjects and core actuarial subjects:

and other Masters level electives in actuarial studies, economics, finance or mathematics, as approved by the Academic Program Director.

RESEARCH PATHWAY

Core subjects

Students must take the following subjects:

Students must take 25 points of core actuarial subjects, selected from the following subjects:

Capstone subjects

ACTL90012 Actuarial Science Research Report (12.5 points, to be taken twice over last two semesters or twice in final semester)

Elective subjects

Students must take 62.5 points of elective subjects, selected from the following subjects and core actuarial subjects:

and other Masters level electives in actuarial studies, economics, finance or mathematics, as approved by the Academic Program Director.

This program is available for Semester 1 entry only.

Note: Students interested in progressing to the PhD program will need to follow the research pathway.

1. In order to be considered for entry, applicants must have completed:

• an undergraduate or postgraduate degree in actuarial science or similar with a weighted average mark of at least H2A (75%);
• the Graduate Records Examination (GRE), unless the applicant has completed an undergraduate degree in Australia or New Zealand or met one of the approved conditions for GRE exemption; and
• a personal statement outlining why they wish to be considered for the course. Meeting these requirements does not guarantee selection.

2. In ranking applications, the Selection Committee will consider:

• prior academic performance; and
• the GRE score unless the applicant has completed an undergraduate degree in Australia or New Zealand or met one of the approved conditions for GRE exemption; and
• the personal statement.

3. The Selection Committee may seek further information to clarify any aspect of an application in accordance with the Academic Board rules on the use of selection instruments

4. Applicants are required to satisfy the university’s English language requirements for graduate courses. For those applicants seeking to meet these requirements by one of the standard tests approved by the Academic Board, performance band 6.5 is required.

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

Graduate attributes:

On successful completion of this degree graduates will be:

• Receptive to alternate ideas through a review of the literature and through class participation and assessment;
• Ethical in their approach to research and work practices;
• Skilled in the use, critical evaluation and testing of actuarial models;
• Adept in statistical reasoning through completion of core quantitative subjects in the degree;
• Practiced at problem solving through their understanding of financial, statistical and actuarial techniques;
• Experienced in working effectively with computer software for the analysis of data;
• Adept at retrieval, summary and interpretation of actuarial and financial information through class exercises and assessment;
• Able to apply and synthesise mathematical, statistical, financial and actuarial theory, models and evidence to a variety of financial and insurance issues;
• Independent and effective in communication of ideas; and
• Able to collaborate and be effective in team work.

The course provides the possibility of exemptions from modules necessary to complete the associateship of the Actuaries Institute Australia.

On successful completion of this degree students should have enhanced their skills in:

• Synthesizing ideas, theories and data in developing solutions to actuarial problems;
• Critical evaluation of evidence in support of an argument or proposition;
• Recognizing when mathematical analysis is appropriate and when it is inappropriate;
• Problem solving in actuarial practice through the application of appropriate theories, principles and data;
• Teamwork through collaborative exercises in seminars, workshops and assessment;
• The use of software packages applicable to actuarial and statistical modelling;
• The implementation of models as software;
• Written communication of actuarial ideas, theories and solutions to peers and the wider community.