Actuarial Science Program

Degree Requirements

The requirements and information described below are for information purposes only. I believe they are correct at time of writing, but may not be kept up-to-date in future. The undergraduate calendar is the definitive source for degree requirements. In the case of any discrepancy between the information here and in the calendar, the calendar should be taken as correct.

The curriculum changed in September 2022. Students who started their degree before that change have the option to complete their degree following the old requirements. The curriculum change was made partly to reflect changes in the Society of Actuaries exams and partly to update requirements based on changes to available courses.

Double Majors and Combined Honours with Mathematics or Statistics

In order to complete a double major or combined honours, you need a total of 20 or 22 credit hours between the two chosen subjects. For most choices of the second subject, the required courses for both subjects will exceed these requirements. However, because of the large overlap in required courses between Actuarial Science and Mathematics or Statistics, for double majors or combined honours with these subjects, you may need to take additional elective courses to reach the required number.

The following are the requirements for combined honours in Actuarial Science and Statistics:

  • A total of between 22 and 28 courses in Actuarial Science and Statistics
  • The following courses, all with grade C or better
  • CSCI2202
  • MATH2001
  • MATH2040
  • MATH2600
  • STAT2060
  • STAT2080
  • STAT2450
  • STAT3340
  • STAT3360
  • STAT3460
  • ACSC3703
  • ACSC3720
  • ACSC4950 or STAT4950
  • STAT4XXX
  • Two of the following courses with grade 'C' or better:
  • ACSC3740
  • ACSC4703
  • ACSC4720
  • One of the following courses with grade 'C' or better:
  • STAT3450
  • STAT4350
  • STAT4390
  • STAT4620
  • Seven additional ACSC or STAT elective courses at or above the 2000 level
  • For a double major, the requirements are:

  • A total of between 20 and 28 courses in Actuarial Science and Statistics
  • The following courses:
  • CSCI2202
  • MATH2001
  • MATH2040
  • MATH2600
  • STAT2060
  • STAT2080
  • STAT2450
  • STAT3340
  • STAT3360
  • STAT3460
  • ACSC3703
  • ACSC3720
  • STAT3XXX
  • STAT3XXX
  • Two of the following courses:
  • ACSC3740
  • ACSC4703
  • ACSC4720
  • One of the following courses:
  • STAT3450
  • STAT4350
  • STAT4390
  • STAT4620
  • Five additional ACSC or STAT elective courses at or above the 2000 level
  • Society of Actuaries Examinations

    In order to become a qualified actuary, you need to pass examinations by either the Society of Actuaries or the Casualty Actuarial Society. A number of courses at Dalhousie cover the material in these examinations. There is also a component of the actuarial examinations called VEE which can be satisfied by passing courses at Dalhousie. Details of the courses that are relevant to the Society of Actuaries exams (from July 2018 - if you have already passed exams, look on the Society of Actuaries website to see how the credits transition) are as follows:

    ComponentRelevant Courses
    VEE Mathematical Statistics
  • STAT 3460 Intermediate Statistical Theory
  • VEE Economics
  • ECON 1101 Principles of Microeconomics
  • ECON 1102 Principles of Macroeconomics
  • VEE Accounting and Finance
  • COMM 2202 Finance I
  • COMM 2203 Finance II
  • Exam FM
  • MATH/STAT 2600 Theory of Interest
  • Exam P
  • MATH/STAT 3360 Probability
  • Exam IFM
  • MATH 3900 Financial Mathematics
  • Exam LTAM
  • ACSC/STAT 3720 Life Contingencies I
  • ACSC/STAT 4720 Life Contingencies II
  • Exam STAM
  • MATH/STAT 3703 Actuarial Models I
  • ACSC/STAT 4703 Actuarial Models II
  • Exam SRM
  • STAT 2450 Introduction to Data Mining with R
  • STAT 3340 Regression and Analysis of Variance
  • STAT 4390 Time Series Analysis
  • Exam PA
  • STAT 3450 Data Mining with R
  • ACSC/STAT 3740 Predictive Analytics
  • Exam Fee Reimbursement for Society of Actuaries Examinations

    The Society of Actuaries has a scheme whereby they will refund the exam fees for up to three Dalhousie students sitting SoA exams each year. The application is made by the university on behalf of students. Details of how to apply and which students will be reimbursed are here.

    Courses for the VEE credits in Economics and Corporate Finance

    To qualify as an actuary, you will need to obtain VEE credits in both Economics and Corporate Finance. The following diagram shows how you can do this at Dalhousie

    Other VEE courses for actuaries
  • Courses with green text can be used to obtain VEE credit from the Society of Actuaries.
  • If you are unable to fit the VEE credit for Corporate finance into your program, check here for alternative ways to fulfil this credit.

    Courses

    Here are descriptions of the Actuarial courses that are currently offered.

    ACSC/STAT 3720: Life Contingencies I was first offered in Winter 2015.

    ACSC/STAT 4720: Life Contingencies II was first offered in Fall 2015.

    ACSC/STAT 3703: Actuarial Models I was first offered in Winter 2015.

    ACSC/STAT 4703: Actuarial Models II was first offered in Fall 2015.