Re: OT: I should have been a mathematician!!

On Jan 7, 11:13�am, Tommy Grand <howardj...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
On Jan 7, 10:28�am, Lutemann <lutem...@xxxxxxx> wrote:

Yes, I just took the first test and it was just calculus and linear
algebra. �I understand they dropped that test. �Is that true?

Yes, they changed around the exam structure and got rid of that one.
When I was just starting out, the first exam covered probability and
statistics and assumed a familiarity with calculus. �I believe it
still is the same test, but it's about to change again.

Has your department ever considered trying to get an actuarial program
going? �I've always thought that a good program should focus on
getting the students to pass as many exams as possible before
graduation. �A new actuary with 3-4 exams passed can basically write
their own ticket because they will be very competitive in the job
pool. �But even the best programs today don't work that way. �They
teach a lot of useless actuarial theory (whch is like B-grade math
theory) and churn out students with no exams passed.

If you turn out a lot of qualified applicants, your program will
eventually start to get the attention of the insurace companies and
consulting firms. �You can put on glitzy career fairs and start
reimbursing your students for exam fees, all paid for by corporate
donations. �Happens all the time in the big midwestern actuarial
programs.

�Our
math dept was looking into using it as a minimum knowledge exit exam
for math graduates, but it looked like the new first test had no
math.

See above, still has a lot of calculus but you also have to know prob
and stats. �When I was an undergraduate math major you could get by
without knowing much about this (and so I had to learn it all when I
took the test).

BTW, the problem with being a research mathematition is that most
research just goes into a box in someone's closet to be thrown away at
a later date. It's the glass bead game.

Certainly if you are not among the best. �Everyone wants to be Scott
Tenant and nobody wants to be Stanley's TA, wondering what they are
going to do with themselves once they get that DMA. �After a few
semesters of graduate work I realized that at best I would end up
discovering interesting corollaries to someone else's important
theorems. �The competition was just too good.

TG

Tommy, I passed your suggestion on to the department head. He's going
to bring it up at the next faculty meeting.
.

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