January 8, 2024
By Louis DiPietro
The Department of Statistics and Data Science (SDS) now offers a new actuarial science minor for students interested in bolstering their skills in measuring and managing risk and uncertainty.
Cornell students from any major may complete an actuarial science minor and learn the mathematical, statistical, and financial theory essential to studying uncertain future events – like those related to health, life, and property insurance – and finding ways to mitigate them. By completing the minor, students learn to evaluate risk, reduce the likelihood of financial exposure, and limit the impact when adverse events do happen.
“The actuarial science minor offers students a unique and valuable skill set in demand across various industries. Actuaries are crucial in assessing and managing risk and essential for businesses, insurance companies, and government agencies,” said Martin Wells, the Charles A. Alexander Professor of Statistical Sciences in the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science and chair of the college’s Department of Statistics and Data Science. “This minor opens doors to a wide range of career opportunities and positions students for a stable and rewarding future in the ever-evolving field of risk management and finance.”
The median annual wage for actuaries is roughly $113,000, and employment of actuaries is projected to grow rapidly over the next 10 years – by as much as 23%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The minor’s required courses in probability and financial mathematics, together with a range of electives like machine learning and analysis, will help prepare students to pass the first five professional exams administered by actuarial societies like the Society of Actuaries (SOA) and Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS).
“Employers seek undergraduate applicants with such credentials for internships and full-time positions,” said Sreyoshi Das, assistant professor of practice in SDS.
To complete the minor, students must take a probability course, Theory of Interest (STSCI 3090), and their choice of at least three electives from a select list.
Actuarial science will join other undergraduate studies – including statistical science, data science, and biometry and statistics – offered by the Department of Statistics and Data Science, a multi-college partnership among Cornell Bowers CIS, the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS), and the ILR School.
For details on the minor, visit the Actuarial Science minor page on the SDS website.
Louis DiPietro is a writer for the Cornell Ann S. Bowers College of Computing and Information Science