undergradly.
Major · Business

Quantifying risk for insurers, pensions, and finance

Actuarial Science (CIP 52.1304) trains you in the mathematical and statistical analysis of risk and its applications to insurance and business management. About 1,022 students complete it across 146 institutions; bachelor’s grads earn $86,961 — among the strongest five-year wages in the business-school catalog, with the named actuary SOC paying $125,770 and projecting 21.8% growth.

Schools offering
146
Annual completions
1,022
Typical degree level
Bachelor's
Median earnings (5yr)
$87k

About this major

Actuarial Science (CIP 52.1304) focuses on the mathematical and statistical analysis of risk and its applications to insurance, pensions, and other business-management problems. The CIP definition covers forecasting theory, quantitative and non-quantitative risk measurement methodologies, development of risk tables, secondary data analysis, and computer-assisted research methods. Coursework runs through probability and statistics, financial mathematics, life contingencies, loss models, time-series analysis, regression and predictive modeling, financial economics, and survival analysis — plus business-school content in corporate finance, accounting, and economics, and increasingly statistical computing in R or Python.

The major fits students drawn to applied probability, financial reasoning, and the long-credential commitment of the actuarial profession. Comfort with sustained mathematical work, willingness to study through the SOA or CAS exam ladder during and after undergrad, and patience with the seven-to-ten-year associateship-to-fellowship arc all help. The work rewards careful quantitative reasoning, attention to model assumptions, and the discipline to write models others can audit and replicate. Strong programs build exam preparation into the curriculum and help students pass two to five preliminary exams before graduation.

One grounded observation about scale, earnings, and the credential structure: 1,022 students complete this CIP across 146 institutions, with bachelor’s grads earning $86,961 — among the strongest five-year wages in the business-school catalog. The CIP is bachelor’s-only because the exam ladder requires college-level probability and financial math that don’t fit into associate’s programs. The named actuary SOC pays $125,770 with 21.8% projected growth — one of the strongest growth rates in the BLS catalog, driven by insurance product complexity, IFRS 17, principles-based reserving, climate risk, and pension/benefit consulting demand. Top producers — Purdue (71), UConn (52), UIUC (50), Nebraska (44), Ohio State (43), Florida State (37), UC Santa Barbara (37), Wisconsin–Madison (37) — are R1 state universities with mature mathematics and business-school combinations, many holding SOA UCAP-AC (Universities and Colleges with Actuarial Programs–Advanced Curriculum) designation. The parent worth-it page on management-sciences is the right reference for the broader business-quant-degree comparison.

Section 3 · Careers

Where this major leads

Occupations most often associated with this major, from the federal BLS+O*NET crosswalk. Job-growth projections and median wages are national.

Occupation Median wage Job growth Typical education
Insurance underwriters $80k -2.6% Bachelor's degree
Business teachers, postsecondary $97k +5.7% Doctoral or professional degree
Financial risk specialists $106k +6.5% Bachelor's degree
Actuaries $126k +21.8% Bachelor's degree
Section 4 · Earnings

Earnings at a glance

Median graduate earnings from the federal College Scorecard, 5 and 10 years out.

Median 5-year earnings

$87k

Associate's vs Bachelor's — early-career earnings

Associate's

$54k

Bachelor's

$87k

Who this major is for

Good signs this major fits: you’re drawn to applied probability, statistics, and financial mathematics, and the structured exam-ladder credential model appeals to you rather than feeling onerous; you’re willing to commit to 7-10 years of progressive exam study after the bachelor’s, with the steady salary increases that follow each credential milestone; you want a career path with a clearer credential structure than most business careers offer; you’re drawn to insurance, pensions, reinsurance, or actuarial consulting (Milliman, Mercer, WTW, Aon) as employer types; and you’ve targeted a UCAP-AC or CAE-designated program with strong exam-prep support.

Reasons to pause: the exam ladder is the real credential, not the degree — passing zero exams during undergrad makes entry-level placement substantially harder, and the seven-to-ten-year fellowship arc requires sustained study commitment alongside full-time work. Insurance underwriting is automating, with -2.6% projected growth on the underwriter SOC; the credentialed-actuary track is what protects against that pressure. The major is bachelor’s-only and quantitatively demanding — students who struggle with calculus, probability, or proof-style mathematical reasoning will find the curriculum hard. If you want broader quantitative business work without the exam commitment, Management Science (CIP 52.1301, 7,495 completions) overlaps on the toolset side. If you want pure quantitative finance, the math-finance and financial-engineering tracks (often master’s-only) are more direct. If accounting and audit careers fit better, Accounting (52.0301, 41,743 completions) is the much larger named credential.

Section 6 · Where to study

Top colleges for Actuarial Science

Ranked by annual completions at the associate's or bachelor's level — a proxy for program scale.

College Location Assoc. Bach. Total
Purdue University-Main Campus West Lafayette, IN 0 71 71
University of Connecticut Storrs, CT 0 52 52
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Champaign, IL 0 50 50
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln, NE 0 44 44
Ohio State University-Main Campus Columbus, OH 0 43 43
Florida State University Tallahassee, FL 0 37 37
University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 0 37 37
University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI 0 37 37
Temple University Philadelphia, PA 0 31 31
Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 0 26 26
Section 7 · Explore sideways

Related majors to explore

Accounting

41,743 completions/yr

Management Science

7,495 completions/yr

Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods, Other

3,245 completions/yr

Accounting and Finance

1,209 completions/yr

Insurance

906 completions/yr

Business Statistics

843 completions/yr

Accounting and Business/Management

780 completions/yr

Investments and Securities

152 completions/yr

Considering this direction?

We've taken a hard look at the debt, earnings trajectory, and degree-level tradeoffs for the Actuarial Science field. Read our verdict before you commit.

Is Actuarial Science worth it? Read verdict
Section 9 · Frequently asked

Common questions

What do Actuarial Science majors actually study?
Coursework covers probability and statistics, financial mathematics, life contingencies, loss models, time series, regression and predictive modeling, financial economics, and survival analysis — plus business-school content (corporate finance, accounting, economics) and increasingly statistical computing in R or Python. The major is structured around preparing you to pass the early Society of Actuaries (SOA) or Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS) preliminary exams during undergraduate years. Most strong programs offer Validation by Educational Experience (VEE) credit and Course on Professionalism preparation as part of the curriculum.
What jobs are realistic from this major?
The named SOC list runs from insurance underwriters ($79,880 median, -2.6% growth) and financial risk specialists ($106,000, +6.5%) at the bachelor’s-typical-entry tier up to actuaries ($125,770, +21.8% projected growth, bachelor’s typical entry but exam-credentialed) and business teachers, postsecondary ($97,270, doctoral). The headline destination is the credentialed actuary track at insurers (life, health, P&C), pensions, reinsurers, and consulting firms (Milliman, Mercer, WTW, Aon). Off-list, graduates also land in financial-risk roles at banks, predictive-modeling and data-science roles in insurtech, and quantitative analyst tracks adjacent to finance.
How do the SOA/CAS exams work, and do I need them?
The actuarial credential is exam-driven, not degree-driven. The Society of Actuaries (life, health, retirement, investments) and the Casualty Actuarial Society (property and casualty) each offer exam ladders — preliminary exams (P, FM, FAM, ALTAM, ASTAM) followed by associateship (ASA, ACAS) and ultimately fellowship (FSA, FCAS) credentials, typically taking 7-10 years to complete. Employers expect entry-level hires to have passed at least two preliminary exams during undergrad; strong programs help you pass three to five. The exams, not the degree, gate progression through the field.
Is the field hiring? Why such strong actuary growth?
The actuary SOC projects 21.8% growth — among the strongest in the BLS catalog — driven by expanding insurance product complexity, new regulatory frameworks (IFRS 17, principles-based reserving), climate-risk modeling, and growing demand from pension and benefit consulting. Hiring at actuarial-science-feeder universities is strong, particularly for graduates with multiple exams passed. Insurance underwriters by contrast project -2.6%, reflecting automation of standard underwriting decisions. The named Doctoral path (business teachers postsecondary) is small and academic.
Why is this major bachelor’s-only?
The CIP code lists bachelor’s-only as the degree level — there’s no associate’s pathway nationally. The reason is the credential structure: the actuarial profession requires the SOA/CAS exam ladder, which is built on top of college-level probability, statistics, and financial-mathematics coursework that doesn’t fit into associate’s programs. The associate’s figure shown ($54,057) reflects only a small handful of completers nationally and isn’t representative. The bachelor’s is the practical floor.
What programs produce the most actuarial science graduates?
Purdue University–Main Campus leads with 71 completions, followed by University of Connecticut (52), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (50), University of Nebraska–Lincoln (44), Ohio State (43), Florida State (37), UC Santa Barbara (37), Wisconsin–Madison (37), Temple (31), and Michigan State (26). The producer list is dominated by R1 state universities with strong mathematics and business-school combinations — many are SOA-designated UCAP-Advanced Curriculum (UCAP-AC) programs, which signal exam-prep depth. UCAP and CAE designations are useful filters when choosing a program.