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Acumen Resources are now on Facebook, we hope our presence on this popular Social Networking site will enable candidates, staff and employers to interact in a new environment.
Take a look at the Acumen Resources Facebook Page and Become a Fan to join the buzz.
Job hunters searching for a new career have been warned to ensure they take steps to secure their CVs to avoid becoming victims of identity theft, according to new research.
A new experiment has shown that many candidates are exposing themselves to the risk of fraud by sharing their CVs freely with total strangers, often CV’s contain sensitive information such as National Insurance numbers and Dates of Birth.
The research was carried out with the help of the Metropolitan Police and the Information Assurance Advisory Council and involved placing a fictional job advert in a national newspaper inviting people to apply for the post by emailing their CV.
107 CV’s were received by e-mail which were then given to an expert in identity theft who found that in the majority of cases there was enough information provided for identity theft to be carried out.
There are literally thousands of people e-mailing and posting CV’s into the UK jobs market every week, it is crucial that the threat of identity theft from CV’s is at the forefront of peoples’ minds.
When considering applying for a new job it is crucial every detail is taken care of, something as minor as a spelling mistake on a CV could be all it takes to make a potential new employer choose to move onto another candidate
For those seeking a new actuarial career it is now more important than ever to ensure every step is taken to maximise the chances of success, this means carefully preparing essentials such as CV’s, References, Certificates of Achievement and most importantly yourself (best suit, clean shoes, body language and interview techniques
Detail is the key, everything should be proof read and double checked for mistakes, ideally looked at several times, by several people. In addition any advice, help or constructive comments on any other aspect of your presentation, including general appearance, attire and spoken communication will all be of great value.
This is where a specialist Actuarial Recruitment Agency will help, not only will they have access to the widest database of suitable actuarial vacancies you will also be given expert guidance on the best way to layout your CV and tips and training on how to handle the interview. This kind of practice and preparation is often the difference between success and failure.
Acumen Resources are an actuarial recruitment agency with years of experience in finding the right candidates the perfect actuarial career, if you are thinking about a change or actively seeking a new role then get in touch for completely free advice on how your chances of finding a dream job can be dramatically improved.
An Insurance Actuary is a specialist in the mathematics of risk specifically relating to insurance calculations such as premiums, reserves, dividends, and insurance and annuity rates.Actuaries who work for insurance companies evaluate applications based on risk.
For example, a company underwriting car insurance may use an actuary to compile data on the likelihood of accidents at various ages of driver, taking into account past data. Or a household insurance company may use an actuary to study data of the frequency of burglaries in a particular area of the country in order to set future premiums to cover the expected payouts, expenses a well as profit and contingency margins.
This method enables insurance companies to assess risk and set premium levels to ensure they make a profit, although there can be unforeseen circumstances which can lead to varying levels of claims than in the past.
Acumen Resources are actuarial recruitment specialists, if you are interested in finding out about actuarial jobs or if you are an employer looking to recruit an actuary please get in touch for more information about how we can help.
The Institute of Actuaries and the Faculty of Actuaries are the 2 professional bodies for UK actuaries.
While the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries have historically been separate institutions, working very closely together, they are currently undergoing a highly debated merger, proposed to take place during 2009. The Institute of Actuaries is the oldest actuarial professional body in the world.
In July 1884, the Institute of Actuaries was granted a Royal Charter. The Royal Charter confirmed the Institute’s role and the right to confer qualifications, i.e. the Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries (FIA). Since then there has been an underpinning concept of professional behaviour and the implicit right, or even duty, to discipline members who did not conduct themselves appropriately.
As with most UK professional bodies, The Actuarial profession represents members to the outside world and regulating members for the benefit of the outside world. These aims include:
* Regulation of members both in terms of an ethical code and enforcement of professional standards produced either by the Profession or the Board for Actuarial Standards
* The education of new candidates who wish to become actuaries and continuing professional development of existing actuaries
* Co-operation with government, business, regulators and other professions
* Innovation through research and debate, to expand the horizons of actuarial knowledge
In addition to examinations and courses, it is required that the candidate both complete at least three years work as an actuary and be at least 23 years of age, for one to qualify as a “Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries” (FIA)
In total there are approximately 15,700 members of the Institute of Actuaries.
Keep your curriculum vitae simple. A good CV should be concise, easy to read and it must sell you and what you have to offer.
The best CV’s will be tailored to exactly what the reader (potential employer) is looking for.
1. Keep it short and clear - The most important information, such as your key skills and recent experience, needs to be near the top, where it can be seen straight away. Sections you should include are your Profile, Experience, Special Skills (languages / computers), Education, Training, and your Achievements.
2. Make it look good - Clear and attractive presentation is also important for your CV to stand out. It should be uncluttered. Use bullet points and keep the sentences relatively short.
3. Most recent first - Put your employment history in date order, starting with the most recent first and don’t go back to far, nobody wants to read about your paper round from twenty years ago.
4. Include many facts - List your job duties beneath each position. List your achievements, responsibilities and results. Talk about results - what difference did your presence make? Use numbers and statistics for achievements wherever possible.
5. Not too many lists - Include specific skills, such as computing skills and languages in a separate section in your CV. Don’t re-list them for every job you’ve used them in.
6. Put some life into it - Remember a potential employer wants to get a sense of the kind of person you are, as well as your skills and what you can do, i.e motivated, punctual and precise
7. Be accurate - Always check for errors. Run a spelling and grammar check and ask someone else to read it for you.
8. Avoid using unnecessary information - Such as reasons for leaving, salary details (this could knock you out of the contention before you have started), marital and family status (this should have no bearing on your ability to do the job).
9. Send a covering letter - Always send a covering letter along with your CV (unless the advert specifically says not to). This should highlight the two or three areas of experience from your CV that are most relevant to the advertised job.
10. Be truthful - Keep your CV honest and factual, never lie on your CV this will always backfire on you.
Finally, consider speaking to a specialist Recruitment Agency, they will help you prepare your CV and give you advice and tips on how to make the most of marketing yourself to a potential new employer.
When looking for a new career it is essential that you explore all avenues to ensure you find the best possible role available to you.
By “best possible role” we don’t just mean how much the salary is, but also how much you will enjoy the position, the type of company you will be working for and the location from a commuters point of view, all of these are very important points to consider before committing to a new job.
In a specialised field such as Actuarial Recruitment the only way to learn exactly what vacancies are available will be to speak to a specialist recruitment agency who will have connections with large insurance companies and financial institutions.
Most corporate organisations will not publicly advertise a role such as an actuarial vacancy, instead they will simply pass responsibility onto a specialist recruiter and allow them to draw up a shortlist of suitable candidates.
By speaking to a specialist recruitment agency you will have access to their database of current actuarial vacancies, in addition you will be given tips and guidance on everything from CV writing to interview techniques.
Acumen Resources are a specialist Actuarial Recruitment Agency, if you would like free impartial advice about a new career please get in touch.
Whatever career you are in there are some fundamental things to consider when you are looking for a new job, here are the five most important.
1) Consider exactly why you are looking for a career change, is your current role not challenging enough? Are there issues with colleagues? You may find a chat to your colleagues or Manager and a few simple adjustments to your current role will change your mind about seeking a new job.
2) Once you are sure you want to find a new job you must consider exactly what you are looking for, it may be that you want a higher salary, a different location or a more senior position, be sure to identify what you want and remain focused and clear on your goals and objectives.
3) Consider how a potential employer will view your CV, ask friends (not colleagues) to read it and be as critical as possible. You should also speak to a recruitment agency for an independent review of your CV - ideally a specialist agency who understand your field of work.
4) Consider how a potential employer will view you. Step back and take a look at your presentation, do you need to invest in a new suit? How well do you communicate? Do nerves affect you during interviews? If so you should take time to partake in role play interviews with a recruitment professional, this is sure to polish up your skills and make sure you are ready for interview situations.
5) Think about the best place to search for your new job. The internet is a good start, where you can find adverts in pretty much every career available. Whether you are an Actuary or an Insurance Professional you will easily gain access to recruitment agencies who specialise in your field of work and advertise the jobs you will be looking for. You should also read industry publications as they often contain up to date job listings.
Follow these five simple steps before you look for a new job and come interview time you should be totally focused and ready to impress.
Acumen Resources are a recruitment agency specialising in Actuarial Jobs.
We have made some important changes to the Acumen Resources website.
To make the site more user friendly we have removed the requirement to register an account and login to the site. If you would like to apply for one of our many actuarial jobs you can now simply click on the actuarial position you are interested in, fill in your details on the registration form and submit.
If you are currently registered for the email alerts system and you are happy with your current settings you need do nothing, the email alerts will continue on as before, keeping you updated with all the latest actuarial vacancies. If, however you would like to change your current settings then simply unsubscribe by clicking the unsubscribe link on your next email update and resubscribe with your new settings.
If you are seeking advice from an actuary on your next career move you may also be interested in using our new chat forum located on the website home page or you can even post a message on our actuarial discussion forum.
I hope you find the changes beneficial to your search for the ideal actuarial job and please do not hesitate to get in touch with one of our actuary consultants if you would like any individual actuarial career advice.
One of the most common questions I tend to get asked from ‘wanna be’ actuaries is “What is a typical actuary’s salary?”.
There is no doubt in my mind that actuarial salaries are quite lucrative and I also don’t doubt that there are many actuaries who entered the actuarial profession having heard about the rewarding financial remuneration.
I sometimes wonder if the high exam failure rate is partly due to those actuarial students who have gone into the profession expecting an easy path to riches!
So what exactly is a typical actuary’s salary? Well this is obviously determined largely by experience, the level of exam passes, actuarial practice area, competence, location, benefits and last but not least negotiation power.
To give an idea of an actuarial job salary, a newly qualified Irish actuary’s salary would likely be about €60,000-€75,000 whereas a newly qualified UK actuary would expect to be on a salary of ?50,000-?60,000.
For those of you that have the ambition, drive and ability the world really is your oyster when it comes to actuarial salary progression. There are Senior Actuaries who earn in excess of £200,000.
Acumen Resources perform the annual actuarial salary survey in Ireland.