December 2011 which makes the job a lot more interesting. Since September I also got another task: being the actuarial advisor of two pension funds. They are AMF and BFM known as the mining-funds (which means that the “mijnfondsen” are actually “mijn fondsen”). In contrast to the intra-year reports which are rather “standard” for all funds, as an advisor you serve the specific needs of your own fund. This means writing memorandums on various topics like the financial position of a fund, the funds recovery plan and the future of the fund. It also means going to board meetings (completely suited up, which is not the “normal” AZL dress code) and explaining your memorandum, giving advice to the board and answering ad hoc questions. Going to a board meeting is particularly satisfying as you can see your own advice being put to practice or as an input for discussion. Next to that it is very instructive: it shows that communicative skills are just as important as content related knowledge. As actuary you are an expert in your field, in other words, you know way more about the financial side of pensions than most of the board members. This means that the ability to communicate this knowledge in a clear way is key. Even though student-life came to an end, does not mean I don’t have 15
to study anymore. To become a fullfledged actuary (and be allowed to use the AAG-title) I am studying an Executive Master of Actuarial Science (or EMAS). This means traveling to Utrecht or Tilburg for lessons once a month often on a Friday, Saturday or both. Good thing though is that I meet people from actuarial companies throughout the country. Furthermore it is nice to mention that Econometrics & OR, followed by a master in the Actuarial Science track is the “perfect” pre-training: out of the 27 people that started in September I am the only one that was allowed to start right after the master, without having to take any extra courses. Even better, I am likely to get an exemption for one of the six courses after following “Life Insurance I” in Maastricht. The course I am following right now is called “statistical methods”, and despite the name it is not as technical as the subjects that Urbain teaches. Next to the courses there are some cases as well, meaning I know not only about pensions, but I am also acquainted with disability and health insurance (maternity and pregnancy being my particular specialty…). Of course all this studying requires time and effort and luckily AZL pays my tuition, books, 1st class traveling-costs and hotel stays to easy the study-burden. Even better, I get quite some free days (about one day a week) to facilitate my