Actuality 2021

2021 edition

Cabinet 2021

Unfolding 2021 Proudly sponsored by:

What is ASSOC? An introduction to Actuarial Students' Society at Macquarie University 2020 President's Farewell ASSOC's 2020 President, Hari Moorthi, reflects on the past year.

Treasurer's Report ASSOC's 2021 Treasurer, Annie Lin, reviews the society's financial position in the past year.

Meet the Cabinet 2021 Get to know the incoming ASSOC Cabinet of 2021.

Finity Feature Article Meet Finity graduate, Jiani!

First Year Survival Guide Several stress relieving pages to read!

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Upcoming events!

Keep up with Semester 1 events!

I am delighted to bring you 2021's Actuality! To say 2020 was a rough year is an understatement. We hope that this year, ASSOC is able to hold events and meet everyone in person.

EDITOR

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Contents

I would like to thank my Media and Publications Team for helping me create this magazine and my Cabinet Team for taking out the time to write an article in this magazine.

To the readers, I hope you enjoy the content!

See you soon!

Deane Ngo

Media & Marketing Director 2021

What is ASSOC? John Bekiaris Transitioning to university means starting a whole new chapter in your life. There is excitement, a lot more options and independence, but at the same time anxiety and many questions.

How is the first day going to go? Will you fit in? Did you pick the right units? Will you find people to vibe (?) with? Are you already lost on your way to your first lecture ever? Especially this year where many traditional university practices like orientation week have been adjusted due to COVID-19, fear of the unknown and anxiety going into tertiary education is natural.

The Actuarial Students’ Society of Macquarie University (ASSOC) aims to help students explore new opportunities, develop their soft skills and forge longlasting friendships. Through events, starting with orientation week, ASSOC plays a major part in assisting incoming students with the transition to university, and actuarial studies. Personally, I was able to meet many of the people that became my closest friends through ASSOC events such as Meet and Greet.

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President's Farewell Hari Moorthi

Dear ASSOC, As ASSOC starts yet another chapter in its long journey of serving the student body, I find myself reminiscing on the accomplishments achieved and the unprecedented nature of the hurdles that we as a community have overcome.

I would like to use this opportunity to extend a warm welcome to all new actuarial students. As a first-year student, one of the best decisions I made was to join ASSOC. This society was more than just another student group; its tight-knit community helped me meet the people that would become my closest friends and provided me with opportunities to make the most of my university life. Not only did the society help me build my professional network by connecting me to a range of actuarial firms, but it also helped me develop the soft skills that demonstrably refined my capabilities in an otherwise competitive industry. Given the next few years will be defined by your willingness to push yourself and explore your possibilities, there is no better way to set yourself on the trajectory of growth and success than getting involved with ASSOC.

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To my Cabinet of 2020, I express an enormous thanks for your perseverance and hard work. Despite unprecedented challenges, your ingenuity, kindness, and commitment to the spirit of comradery have made 2020 a success story. You have been an enormous inspiration to me and it has been the greatest pleasure to have worked alongside you.

My deepest thanks also to the Committee of 2020 - ASSOC has never been the vision of any single person or administration, but the collective goodwill of a dynamic student body committed to furthering the core tenets of ASSOC. My heartfelt gratitude to our corporate sponsors, faculty staff, and student engagement for your continued support and commitment to our partnership. We would not be the society that we are today without your invaluable support. Finally, to the Cabinet of 2021, our Cabinet wishes you all the best for the year and are excited to see the new frontiers that you will open this society up to. We are all rooting for your success.

Sincerely, Hari Moorthi

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Treasurer's Report Annie Lin There has been a significant improvement in ASSOC’s financial standing in the year 2020, with the society netting in a profit of $9873. This drastic increase in profit was mainly accounted for by the generous support of MQ Student Engagement, the SRC, and external sponsors, as well as the unfortunate prevalence of the coronavirus which has resulted in the cancellation of major events like ball and camp. As a compromise, we did hold online events, but these could not provide the same level of engagement as physical ones. Given that the situation improves in 2021, we plan on using our excess reserves to provide better opportunities and events for our members.

In 2021, our Cabinet will be placing a greater emphasis on retaining our student engagement levels by allocating more funds in areas that maintain the social cohesiveness of our society, so that events like ball and camp, which were unable to run last year, can be provided to our members on a grander scale.

Additionally, we hope to provide our members with greater opportunities to network and build rapport with our sponsors by introducing more career specific events like the brand new 2021 ASSOC vs ASOC Case competition.

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There will be a greater focus on efficient spending and planning as this year’s Cabinet hopes to continue enriching the university experiences of our members by not only providing new initiatives but also building upon the success of events held by the society in the past. Overall, our society is in a great financial position to run various events for 2021, and we hope to deliver better events to our members with the excess resources from the previous year.

Lastly, I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the hard work of the 2020 cabinet, and in particular ASSOC’s 2020 Treasurer, Gloria Liao for her dedication in maintaining such a great financial standing for our society amidst a challenging and uncertain global environment.

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Meet the Cabinet 2021 Zoom edition

President

What is your role in Cabinet?

As President for 2021, my role is to ensure ASSOC is operating to deliver the best possible experience to its members, at all fronts.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

Last year was a tough year for many societies, and many ASSOC members did not get a chance to experience some of the best ASSOC events like Career's Fair, Camp and Ball. My main objective for 2021, is to try and et as many events as possible back in person, while obeying the COVID-19 restrictions. Since we have the 2020 cohort that missed out on the ASSOC experience, and the incoming 2021 cohort, I am aiming to put in my best effort, into delivering the awesome ASSOC experience I received in my first year at Macquarie.

John Bekiaris

Fun fact!

I could easily live off Coco Pops for the rest of my life.

Internal Vice President What is your role in Cabinet?

I am the society’s main point of contact with the university. I also overlook student engagement, in particular with first-year students, with our ASSOC Buddy Program initiative.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

I hope to make friends, have fun, and encourage more people to become involved with ASSOC as we continue to plan meaningful and beneficial events all our members.

Arnesh Chakrabarty

Fun fact!

I can fart with my both my ears but only hear from one.

External Vice President

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What is your role in Cabinet?

Hi, I’m Linda!! My role as External Vice President is to secure sponsorships for ASSOC and to actively liaise with them throughout the year to maintain ASSOC’s professional brand image.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

I want to see more member participation in all our events! You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take! (So come to all our events this year!! ) I also hope to get all sponsors excited and eager to attend events and interact meaningfully with our society.

Linda Le

Fun fact!

I’m highkey tone-deaf, and lowkey deaf-deaf. I can also laugh 6 different ways!!

Secretary What is your role in Cabinet?

I am the Secretary of ASSOC so my role is to manage the internal coordination of the society and make sure everything is running smoothly!

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

As part of our amazing 2021 Cabinet team, I hope I can contribute to cementing ASSOC as a society that is a symbol of friendship, fun and opportunity!

Fun fact!

I broke my leg from slipping on a piece of paper.

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Ziyan Ma

Treasurer

What is your role in Cabinet?

As treasurer, I am in charge of budgeting and organising reimbursements for events. I also work with the university through cash flow incomeexpenditure statements.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

I hope to maintain the health of ASSOC’s bank account whilst ensuring that we provide the best events for our members.

Fun fact!

I am really into campfires and camping. Something about sitting on a log around a fireplace roasting marshmallows and eating instant noodles just makes me feel super peaceful and calm inside.

Annie Lin

Careers Director What is your role in Cabinet?

As a careers director, I oversee careers orientated events such as careers fair, careers workshop and MLC case competition. Working with sponsors is definitely a highlight of ASSOC! What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

I hope to achieve high attendance from all years for as many assoc events as possible Fun fact!

I'm clearly very good at this degree if I ride motorcycles (where my bike homies at?)

Lewis He

Careers Director What is your role in Cabinet?

My role as careers director is to organise careers events which provides actuarial students with valuable insights into the professional world and the opportunities to enhance their skill sets/ employability.

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What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

Refine the Critical Thinking Competition to a joint case comp which has been achieved [Actually I’d like to teach actuarial students how to get HDs with the minimal time of study lol.]

Ashley Lin

Fun fact!

I am a diehard fan of kdrama!! Pls do hit me up if you also enjoy watching kdrama!!

Sports Director What is your role in Cabinet?

I am the sports director of ASSOC, involved in running the various sports and recreational events we do throughout the year.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

For this year I hope to introduce some new events, if all goes to plan, and make all our events accessible and enjoyable for everyone.

Fun fact!

Fun fact about me is that I enjoy working on and riding my dirtbikes.

Christopher Makhoul

External Social Director

What is your role in Cabinet?

My role as the External Social Director is to provide our members, and occasionally sponsors, with an enjoyable and equable environment where they are able to socialise and converse amidst one another.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

I want our new and existing members to be more involved and integrated with ASSOC by stepping out of their haven and befriending people outside of their friend circle.

Elton Phung

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Fun fact!

I can do a front flip anywhere.

Internal Social Director What is your role in Cabinet?

My role is to bring about non-sponsored social events, such as Meet & Greet, Camp, and Amazing Race, that aims to help ASSOC members form and strengthen connections across the whole society.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

Amid COVID, I wish by conducting the social events and any other means within my power, the integrity of the society could be further enhanced and maintained, and gaps generated from the lack of human interaction could be closed. I wish for none of the parties to be left behind in this endeavour and hope to move forward with everyone during this difficult time.

Jerry Feng

Fun fact!

I’m an international student from Shanghai. I really like Scandinavian Countries and here I am in the Southern Hemisphere doing a degree I have never heard of before graduating high school. Isn’t life amazing.

IT Director What is your role in Cabinet?

As an IT director I am responsible for all the IT events which include the Excel Workshop, the R workshop, Python workshop and a the SQL workshop. It is a great privilege to organise these events which add value to people’s understanding on software languages.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

I wish to really act as support for everyone from first year to post graduates to widen their knowledge on software languages and learn interesting components of the language which might really be helpful for them not in just in university but also in their work in future!

Siddharth Moharir

Fun fact!

Linda drove her car over me

Media and Marketing Director

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What is your role in Cabinet?

My role as the Media and Marketing Director is to provide assistance with all marketing, multimedia, and publications materials within the society.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

To increase the number of student engagement for ASSOC on the different communication disciplines and to improve the quality of the magazines. Also, to have fun and build a great rapport with ASSOC members!

Deane Ngo

Fun fact!

I am extremely terrified of my dog!!

Chairwoman What is your role in Cabinet?

My role is to overview and support Cabinet 2021 in internal society organisation and operations.

What do you hope to achieve during your time in Cabinet?

Make new connections and more lasting friendships Fun fact!

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Anna Hou

First Year Survival Guide

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Anime releases

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Memes

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Places around MQ

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Buddy Program 10

Anime fan? Say no more.

These pages are for you!

Anime Releases Jerry Feng

Guide.

Welcome to Actuarial Studies, one of the easiest and most relaxed degrees there is. Students here at Macquarie studies Actuarial Science in prosperity, happiness and harmony.

Wait sorry. Wrong guide.

Survival. Guide.

Welcome to Actuarial studies, one of the toughest and most stressful degrees there is. Each year approximately 100 new university students join this degree at Macquarie, and begin their journey of endless suffering and torture, as their body and soul become unbreakable veterans over the coming years. In the menacing presence of the workload pressure and challenging units, it is crucial to have a way of distraction, relaxation, emotional outlet and a reason for procrastination from all the schoolwork, and motivational hype for some more. Don’t be like that chess prodigy who decided to lie dead on the bed staring at the ceiling all night and pretend tranquilisers solve all problems. (Just kidding I love Queen’s Gambit)

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Given that COVID ruins all outing experiences, what other way is there than to find a great show to binge and anticipate, introducing:

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Attack on Titan

Attack on Titan is a manga-adapted anime series that has grown into a huge hit over the years with millions of fans worldwide. It is perhaps one of the greatest shows in recent years, and would certainly go down in history as an iconic anime classic.

Considering it’s a story about humans entrapped inside giant walls flying around using gas and cables killing giants 10 times their size with swords, its genre is action and fiction. The fighting scenes could stimulate so much hype they could save you a cup of coffee.

But what a quick Googling doesn’t tell, is that it’s a story about a young boy fighting for freedom, the uprising of the inferior humanity against their archenemies, and many stories of many characters telling their own tales. And there’s even more.

Besides excellent storyboard, legendary animations and captivating confrontations, it also delivered perfect meme material and hysterically funny scenes.

Attack on Titan has aired 3 seasons since 2013, and the 4th and final season is currently under way. For a stressful and uncertain academic year of 2021, why not watch a show worthy of choice.

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Too much Actuarial information? Take a break.

Memes Lewis He & Elton Phung

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Macquarie University has a wide range places on campus where you can relax, study or make new friends. A few of my favourite places to visit on campus are: • Ubar: Place where I try a variety of multicultural eateries such Chinese, Thai, Indian. I do also enjoy to attend social events on every single night of the week, including live events including music on Friday nights • Library: The outside of this is designed to look like an eucalyptus tree and inside there are 5 floors. I like to study here in between my classes and for exams.

• Lake: This is one of the top three places which I visit to relax, hang out with my mates and have a bite to eat • Macquarie centre: Every single student at Macquarie university has gone to the Macquarie centre. This place has all kinds of shops, types of foods and fun activities at strike and even ice skating.

• Macquarie University Sports and Aquatic Centre: As a student I enjoy playing badminton, swimming, gymming, all of these facilities are available at Macquarie university sports and aquatic centre.

• Muse: This place is at 18 Wally’s Walk, this is a hub for everything related to student services and administration of student courses. I go here to get my student ID card, if I have any questions related to university fees, or just any general questions related to university.

• Maze: upstairs from Muse, which is the Macquarie Active zone experience which is a space dedicated for all of the student group and societies on campus. This is where we book colourful rooms to hold meetings, as well as events!

UBAR

Lake

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Library

MUSE

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MQU Sports & Aquatic Centre

Siddarth Moharir

Are you scared of coming into university during a devastating pandemic?? Why wouldn’t you be? Being a little fish in a big pond after being the big fish is already scary enough without the looming danger of a pandemic!!

Well have we got the thing for you!

The 2021 ASSOC Buddy Program!

As wordy as that sounds, it’s designed to help first years like yourself to make friends, meet up and find out more about what the society and university life has to offer (within the confines of our COVID restrictions).

As part of the program, your buddies will: Offer you any guidance they can base on their own experiences Keep you updated with important information from ASSOC Keep you aware of the latest opportunities The chance to meet your peers across the cohort in a fun casual setting And if all of that doesn’t convince you, maybe the following reviews will do the trick.

Reviews of the 2020 ASSOC Buddy Program: “Fantastic” – Person 1 “Best experience of my life” – Person 2 “The real prize was all the friends I made along the way!” – Winner of 2020 ASSOC Buddy Program

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Arnesh Chakrabarty

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Events Keep up to date with our Semester 1 events here!

Meet and Greet: ASSOC’s very first social event of the year! Come meet your fellow COVID zoomers over some hand sanitiser and mindful social distancing!

Enjoy snacks with some great company all while making some lifelong friends who come in useful to help with mind bending STAT questions and assignments .

PwC x ASSOC Welcoming BBQ: It is a great opportunity to meet new people and also reconnect with peers after the long summer break. PwC representatives will also be giving insights about graduate and internship programs!

Career's Fair: Eager to find out more about the exciting internship and graduate opportunities out there? Yearning to network with those in the actuarial field? Do you want to gain insight into some of Sydney’s top corporations? Well, ASSOC’s Careers Fair will be the answer to all these questions and more.

Excel Workshop: Every actuary uses Excel on a daily basis and hence it is extremely important for every undergraduate actuary to be skilful in it!The best way one knows how skilled they are in excel is through competing with others!

Poker: No matter what skill level you are! Poker is a game which allows us all to develop the skills of decision making and emotional management and at the same time make money!!

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Careers Workshop: Have you ever felt prepared for an interview, only to lose your confidence when you're put on the spotlight?Don't know what to expect during an assessment centre? Or even, pass the initial interview stages?If you've ever found yourself in these predicaments, then ASSOC's Careers Workshop is the best place to have all your questions relieved.

The Critical Thinking Competition: An annual careers event, involving multiple rounds of case studies requiring groups of students to solve and present their solutions to real-world actuarial problems. However, this year we are going to refine it as our first-ever joint case study competition collaborating with ASOC from UNSW kindly sponsored by EY. It provides incredible opportunities to enhance presentation, teamwork and problem-solving skills along with invaluable exposure to the cutting-edge actuarial practice in EY.

ASSOC vs. ASOC Futsal Competition: The annual collaboration of ASSOC and ASOC Futsal Competition is back this year and we are ready, set, to make history with another winning streak. Get your shooting boots on and form your DREAM TEAM today, and show them WHO’S BOSS on the field

Amazing Race: Are you bored sitting at home wondering when the next GREAT ASSOC event will be?

Well aren't you in for an amazing surprise! On the 7th of July, ASSOC will be having the amazing Amazing Race where you will be racing your friends around Sydney for an amazing prize! Even if you don't like running, it's an amazing way to hang out with your friends! Either way, I see this as an absolute win to come!

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Camp: ASSOC’s 2021 camp is here! This is one of the biggest events run by ASSOC every year, and since its cancellation last year, this year is going to be EVEN BIGGER! Our camp will be held over a weekend in the July holidays and is an event focused around having fun, creating friendships and making memories you will never forget. So don’t miss this opportunity to be part of this amazing event!

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ASSOC introduces to 2021...

What events will ASSOC introduce in 2021?

1. SQL Workshop

ASSOC is coming up with an SQL workshop for the very first time! This workshop will help you learn the most valuable database management techniques needed in the financial industry when using SQL. This workshop will include is but not limited to: - Table joins - Sub queries - Other database management activities So provide yourself with the best opportunity to get employed and don’t miss out on this incredible opportunity!

2 2.Actuaries institute 0 games night 2 1

Think you've got game? Get your game face on because Actuaries Institute Games Night will get out of control. A day of fun and games, for you to demonstrate your skills. Are you up for the challenge?

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