the United Kingdom
Heriot-Watt University| The award | How you will study | Study duration | Course start | Domestic course fees | International course fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MSc, Postgraduate Diploma, Postgraduate Certificate | Full-time, Part-time | find out | September | GBP 18800 | GBP 18800 |
Entry to the actuarial profession is by a demanding series of examinations, but the rewards after qualifying are great. The Institute and Faculty of Actuaries in the UK has four levels of examinations to qualify. The first level, the Core Technical (CT) subjects, are taught in our BSc or MSc in Actuarial Science and lead to exemptions from CT1 to CT8.
Our MSc in Actuarial Management is an established and successful programme covering the more advanced actuarial subjects and offering exemptions from the syllabuses of the Core Application subjects CA1 and CA3 and Specialist Technical subjects ST2, ST4, ST5, ST6 and ST9 of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.
Students will typically study CA1, CA3 and up to three ST subjects (two ST subjects are needed to satisfy the profession's requirements).
Taking our MSc in Actuarial Management is a great way to speed your progress to this most prestigious of careers - it's designed to take you almost all of the way to qualification. A student who graduates with a full set of exemptions from Heriot-Watt (CT, CA and ST subjects) will only have three more examinations to pass, as well as gaining the necessary work experience, to qualify as a Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.
Programme duration
The PG Diploma comprises the taught coursework component leading to exemptions from CA1 and the ST professional subjects and takes 9 months to complete. Successful students can then progress to the project work in the summer. This takes the form of industry-relevant case studies, assessed by written reports, which leads to the award of an MSc and exemption from the Subject CA3. In exceptional cases a student may be allowed to write a research dissertation.
The programme is also available to be studied on a part-time basis, over a maximum of 4 years.
Accreditation
Center of Actuarial Excellence
The programme is fully accredited by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.
Heriot-Watt University is recognised as a Center of Actuarial Excellence by the Society of Actuaries (SOA), North America. We are the only Center of Actuarial Excellence in Europe and one of only 30 other schools worldwide with this designation. With roots dating back to 1889, the Society of Actuaries (SOA) is the world's largest actuarial professional organization with more than 28,000 actuaries as members.
Teaching excellence and student satisfaction
30% of our teaching staff are qualified actuaries, the others are leading Mathematicians, Financial Mathematicians and Statisticians, who are nationally and internationally recognised for their research. This expertise ensures that what we teach you is current, applicable to the real workplace and current economy. Our National Student Survey results are consistently high for overall student satisfaction.
Results from the National Student Survey for 2011 reveal that 88% of our Mathematics and Statistics (including Actuarial Science) graduates are employed with a graduate position and/or undertaking further study. Our graduates go on to work for companies such as Swiss Re, Standard Life, Towers Watson, Lloyds Banking Group, Barclays Capital, Scottish Widows, Ernst & Young and many more. Graduates are employed locally in Edinburgh, London and throughout the world.
Watch a video
Visit our YouTube channel to watch short videos from our students and graduates, and see an example of a lecture at Heriot-Watt.
Student Actuarial Society
Heriot-Watt has a very active Students' Actuarial Society which won several awards at a recent Heriot-Watt 'Oscars' ceremony. This body is completely managed, enthusiastically and professionally, by our students.
* If you are unsure which category you fall in to, you should complete a fee status enquiry form, which allows us to assess your fees.
** Fee per course
Scholarships and bursaries
We aim to encourage well-qualified, ambitious students to study with us and we offer a wide variety of scholarships and bursaries to achieve this. Over £6 million worth of opportunities are available in fee and stipend scholarships, and more than 400 students benefit from this support.
View our full range of postgraduate taught scholarships.
Entry requires a strong Bachelors or Masters degree with a substantial actuarial content and covering a sufficient number of the Core Technical subjects CT1 to CT8 of the professional actuarial examinations.
A willingness to work hard and a drive to succeed are also important prerequisites.
If you have not already passed most or all of the Core Technical subjects (CT1 to CT8) then please refer to our MSc in Actuarial Science.
English language requirements
Important: If your first language is not English, or your first degree was not taught in English, we'll need to see evidence of your English language ability.
The minimum requirement for English language is IELTS 6.5, we also accept TOEFL (scores of 79 and higher).
We also offer a range of English language courses to help you meet the English language requirement prior to starting your master's programme:
Below are some suggested courses at other providers that you may also be interested in:
If you do not meet the entry requirements for this course then consider one of these postgraduate preparation courses from another institution:
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Graduate Diploma in Business (Financial Planning)
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Find out more about studying in the United Kingdom
As an international student you may require a valid visa to study at Heriot-Watt University. Read more about the requirements in our Guide to the United Kingdom International Student Visa Requirements.
