Actuarial Science – Undergraduate

Actuarial Science and Risk Management is located in the College of Business and Public Administration at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. The school offers undergraduate majors in Actuarial Science, Combined Majors or two concentrations in “Risk Management and Insurance” or “Actuarial Sciences”.

Drake’s School of Actuarial Science is recognized as a Center of Actuarial Excellence by the Society of Actuaries.

Core Business Requirements

All Actuarial Science students must complete the programs core business curriculum. These core business courses consist of the following:

• Accounting
• Economics
• Math
• Statistics
• Management

Core Math Requirements

Drake University Actuarial Science students will begin their studies with the following courses with will provide them with the mathematical base to continue with their actuary degree:

Calculus I

Analytic geometry concepts; functions; continuity; limits; differentiation; applications of derivatives; definite integrals; techniques of integration.

Calculus II

Definite integrals; techniques of integration; applications of definite integrals, infinite series and sequences; power series; Taylor series.

Calculus III

Plane curves; vectors; limits, continuity and differentiation for functions of several variables; multiple integrals.

Core Actuarial Science Requirements

Theory of Interest

Measurement of interest; solution of interest problems; basic and general annuities; yield rates; amortization schedules and sinking funds; bonds; yield curves; duration + immunization; stochasic approaches.

Introduction to Derivatives

Derivatives and their use in managing risk; forwards, futures, options, swaps; hedging and speculative strategies based on options; Black-Scholes formula + Option Greeks

Introduction to Probability I

An introduction to probability concepts; including definition of probability; independence; conditional probability; random variables; specific discrete and continuous probability distributions; multivariate random variables; moments and moment generating functions; functions of random variables; sampling distributions and central limit theorem

Introduction to Probability II

Continuation of ACTS 131. The POISSON process and its relation to the exponential distributions; frequency and severity with coverage modifications; aggregate loss models and ruin theory.

Stat Modeling and Data Analysis I

Statistical techniques of estimation, both point and confidence intervals; theory of hypothesis tests; goodness-of-fit tests and model selection.

Derivatives Mathematics

Delta hedging exotic options; the lognormal model for stock prices; Monte Carlo simulation; Brownian motion and Ito’s Lemma; Black-Scholes Equation; implied and historical volatility; interest rate models.

Life Insurance Math I

Present value determination for life insurances and annuities; benefit premiums and reserves.

Life Insurance Math II

Multiple life functions, multiple decrement models; applications to pension plans, insurance models including expenses.

Credibility and Simulation

Limited fluctuation and greatest accuracy credibility; empirical Bayes estimation of credibility factors. Methods of simulation and their application to evaluating probabilities, the bootstrap, and financial economics.

Stat Modeling and Data Analysis II

Regression and time analysis. Specific topics include simple and multiple regression multicollinearity; heteroscedasticity; diagnostics; forecasting with the regression model; binary and multiple-choice models; autocorrelation; random walks; ARIMA models; minimum mean-square-error forecasts and confidence intervals.

Actuary Degree Admissions

All first-year students are to complete the following when applying for the Actuarial Science program at Drake University:

• Online Application
• Submit their High School Transcripts
• Submit their ACT or SAT scores
• An essay and a letter of recommendation are encouraged

Course Information for Drake University Actuarial Sciences has been obtained from the Universities website.