We and our clients believe it is highly likely that there will continue to be a strong demand for interim actuarial support for many years. This demand is driven by a number of major regulatory changes in the pipeline as well as commercial pressures on clients to reduce permanent headcount.
Our strategy to help satisfy this demand is wide ranging but a key element is our policy of recruiting a number of the UK’s brightest numerate graduates as our permanent employees (our “employed associates”) using our significant experience in this area, who would then be available for clients to draw on as and when required.
By devising new and innovative solutions to resourcing problems faced by clients, and by providing these solutions at highly competitive rates, APR has already established strong relationships with a number of the largest companies in the UK financial sector.
KEY ELEMENTS OF OUR GRADUATE SCHEME
1. We believe our graduate scheme provides successful candidates with the most immediate and direct exposure to client-facing work in the actuarial sector. Within one month of starting employment with us, you may be asked to be the sole APR representative at a client’s site. However, you will be given the support that you need. Before working on site at a client, all employed associates will be given intensive initial training and tuition. The aim of this training is to allow you to start making an active contribution to clients’ requirements from day one.
There is a very wide range of actuarial work that our employed associates are asked to provide to our clients. Examples include:
• Writing and reviewing calculation specifications across a range of life assurance and pension products as part of a systems migration.
• Developing highly detailed models, commonly in Excel and VBA, to ensure a client’s policyholders have not been disadvantaged in the payout received from a policy held.
• Working in a financial reporting team whose responsibility is to determine the liabilities and assets of an insurance company for a number of different purposes.
• Working in a model development team, ensuring the client’s modelling of future cashflows is robust and compliant with emerging regulation such as Solvency 2.
• Testing the illustrations that will be provided to potential policyholders prior to the launch of a new life insurance or pension product.
• Documenting the actuarial calculations and processes of a client.
2. We want our employed associates to qualify as actuaries as quickly as possible, and to facilitate this, we provide them with a comprehensive package of study support. This package comprises a generous allowance of study days for each actuarial exam, the cost of study materials (including marking and/or tutorials), exam entrance fees and professional subscription fees
3. Because our business is all about the quality and skills of the people we use on our clients’ projects, this has an important and positive impact for our employed associates. We are committed to providing some of the best training in the actuarial industry and we have an ongoing interest in doing so; without this, our services would not be in such demand from clients.
4. We expect successful candidates to be highly intelligent and exceptionally numerate. In addition, we believe the early exposure to client-facing roles and technical responsibilities require a higher level of written communication skills and self confidence than for a standard actuarial role. In return for the outstanding skills we expect, it is fair that we pay commensurately, and our rates are therefore well within the top quartile of the actuarial sector.
If our high demands do not deter you and you feel this is an environment in which you would enjoy working, we are confident that joining our graduate scheme is a decision you will not regret. In short, we believe it provides a new range of opportunities for a more varied, exciting and financially rewarding career than offered by traditional actuarial employers. We would make sure you have the opportunity to speak to the current members of our graduate scheme as part of the assessment process.
These details provide only a brief summary of our graduate scheme. A full brochure including salary details may be obtained by contacting Lindsay using the email address given below.
CURRENT ACTUARIAL STUDENTS
In addition to those who have recently graduated with no actuarial work experience, we also welcome applications from current actuarial students. Provided your experience is directly relevant to the type of work we normally perform, you may be parachuted directly into years two or three of our programme. Relevance is likely to mean experience working in life assurance rather than in pensions, and high levels of skill in Excel and VBA.
For actuarial students who are interested in many of the rewards offered by contracting, but wish to be protected against the key risk of periods of no earnings, we offer a range of packages that provide a balance between this upside and downside. For candidates with appropriate skills, the choice of where to position themselves on this line is up to the individual. We would be happy to discuss these terms with any interested candidates.
APPLYING FOR THE SCHEME
Our main intake of new graduates starts employment with us each year at the beginning of September. Our assessment centres are generally held from October to December of the previous year. However we have taken new graduates on at other times of the year and, as such, we are prepared to accept applications at any time of the year.
Applications should be in the form of a CV and covering letter, and may be sent electronically to lindsay.jeffs@austinprofessionalresourcing.com or by post to our registered address.
We will consider exceptional non-EU candidates. However, we are currently unable to secure Tier 2 work permits so employment with APR would be via the Tier 1 Highly Skilled Workers (HSW) or Post Study Work (PSW) visas.