My real live conversation with an actuary wizard

This morning, something amazing happened. Using some connections, I got in touch with an experienced actuary and spoke with him on the phone for about 45 minutes. I emailed him my resume the night before so that he could give some advice, and he walked through every bit of it with me. We also talked about my education at USU and why I’m getting this degree and he said something very interesting. It went something like this:

“Many internships end in an offer for full employment. If I were you and in your position, I would take it. At that point, getting a degree in math doesn’t even matter because all of the experience you needed up to that point is all you needed to get where you are and everything that follows from that will naturally further qualify you. Companies are usually just looking for someone with a four-year degree who can pass exams. If you have that down, you don’t need the second degree. If you want to pay student loans and try to provide for your family in your own way, that’s up to you. But given that opportunity, I would take it.”

Interesting, right? It's something to think about as I get to know the industry and try to find my way in. This isn't the first time I've heard such advice.

Of course, I'm just concerned about passing Exam P in November. Once I do that, I'll feel so much better about everything.

I've got the whole Kilimanjaro in my hands

Spencer Sitton, my multivariable calculus instructor from the summer term, told me the other day that he had some books he wanted to give me. He said that he looked at one and thought, “I bet Tyler would want this,” and he encouraged me to come by his office to pick them up soon.

So to his office I went this afternoon, and he handed me a stack of five different probability and actuarial books, almost all of which I have already referenced several times for one reason or another. There was no adequate way to express my thanks given his abundant generosity—because let me tell you, these books are not cheap—but I did thank him. He also offered his assistance in finding an actuarial internship through his connections in Phoenix should I need it in the future. Simply, for an aspiring actuary, Spencer is the friend to have. He has been nothing but generous to me.

And, of course, I asked Karen to pick me up from campus. Because no way was I going to haul that Kilimanjaro-size stack of books on a walk home.