Why I Chose the Property and Casualty Route
A friend in my actuarial classes absolutely loves talking about mortality and death. Not really my thing. I joke that that’s my motivation behind choosing property and casualty over life and health. But in all seriousness, there are several factors that contributed to my decision.
I am excited by the variety of opportunities within property and casualty actuarial work. The different lines of business, including auto, home, and workers compensation, all have their nuances. While they might share the same foundation, working across different lines of business offers variety and unique challenges. On a larger scale, I feel like I have a wide variety of roles from which to choose. There are more business-oriented roles that may work more closely with clients or underwriters, while there are also more technical roles that may focus on internal processes. I am certain that with all of these options, monotony will not be an issue.
Another motivation is the dynamic nature of the work. Property and casualty insurance is directly influenced by legislative activity, economic conditions, and consumer behavior trends – all of which are constantly changing. This presents actuaries with new challenges and opportunities for creative solutions. New products are introduced to cater to changes in society. For example, there was no need for something like cyber liability insurance even fifteen years ago, yet now it is a very relevant risk for insurance companies to cover. Actuarial work continues to evolve with the times, which means I can rest assured that my work will continue to be relevant.
By choosing to be an actuary in the property and casualty field, I am choosing to continue learning. In order to keep up with the changes in the property and casualty insurance industry, an actuary can draw connections between current events and seek further understanding to learn how they impact actuarial work. I find this an especially exciting aspect of my career choice. An actuary working with an insured oil company in North Dakota may have to study the oil extraction process of fracking while an actuary working with home insurance in Florida may need to learn more about the increasing trend of hurricanes. Actuarial work presents the opportunity to broaden your knowledge base by learning about other topics. In addition, the CAS offers valuable continuing education opportunities to facilitate my desire to learn and grow. My experience in the casualty actuarial field has changed the way I view current events by recognizing risks and the impact on the insurance industry.
It’s one of my favorite questions to ask seasoned actuaries – why did you choose property and casualty insurance? Everyone has their own stories of paths taken and reasoning for their decision. After deciding on the property and casualty route, I found it was the natural path to pursue CAS credentials for its well recognized and respected presence within the actuarial community. I am excited about my choice and to start my career in such a dynamic and interesting field.