Qualifications Questions? The Academy Has Answers
Professionalism Counts, January 2025
Each year, the Academy receives numerous questions on qualifications. While we are always happy to help actuaries determine whether they are qualified for a particular task and, if not, how they may become qualified, we’d like to point you toward resources that may answer your questions more quickly.
The first stop for any qualification question should be the Qualification Standards for Actuaries Issuing Statements of Actuarial Opinion in the United States (USQS). The USQS lays out the requirements for basic education and experience, continuing education (CE), and NAIC annual statements of actuarial opinion. It also covers the requirements for changing practice areas, acknowledging qualifications, and keeping records of your CE.
The USQS apply to actuaries who are subject to the Code of Professional Conduct and who issue statements of actuarial opinion (SAOs) in the United States. This leads to the question, how is an SAO defined? There are two important elements to determining whether a communication contains an SAO:
- Whether it is an opinion expressed by an actuary subject to the Code of Professional Conduct in the course of performing actuarial services; and
- Whether it is intended by that actuary to be relied upon by the person or organization to which the opinion is addressed.
If the answer to both of those questions is yes, the communication contains an SAO. If you are unsure whether a particular statement or work product constitutes an actuarial opinion, Appendix 1 of the USQS, which lists common actuarial communications and whether they are SAOs, may be helpful.
If your question is not answered by the USQS, the next stop is the FAQs on the USQS. The Committee on Qualifications has over the years published more than 50 FAQs. To help you navigate them, they are grouped by topic: General, Basic Education and Experience, Practice Area, Statements of Actuarial Opinion, Specific Qualification Standards, General CE, Relevant CE, Organized Activity CE, Professionalism CE, Principle-Based Reserves Qualifications, Qualifications for Blended Opinions, and Other.
As you can tell from that list, the Academy receives quite a few questions about CE. The Academy created an infographic as a quick reference for CE, so you can see the requirements at a glance. It is important to note that for actuaries subject to the Code and working in the United States, the USQS are mandatory. Meeting the USQS CE requirements each year will automatically meet the requirements of the other U.S. actuarial organizations, but meeting the continuing professional development requirements of another organization over two years does not guarantee that you will always be in compliance with the USQS.
One of the most frequent questions asked each year is from newly credentialed actuaries asking when they must comply with the USQS’ CE requirements. The answer is: Before you issue an SAO as a credentialed actuary. However, you may count coursework and study time toward the CE requirements. These topics are covered in more detail in FAQs 34, 40, and 46.
Newly credentialed actuaries can also be caught by surprise by the experience requirement—occasionally, actuaries become credentialed before they have three years of responsible actuarial experience, defined as work that requires knowledge and skill in solving actuarial problems. As FAQ 34 notes, “It is wise for candidates to plan ahead when they are close to qualification if they intend to issue SAOs shortly after receiving their credential.”
Of course, there will be times when these resources can’t answer your question. That’s when we encourage you to contact the COQ or submit a request for guidance to the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline.