Keeping Her Fingers Crossed
New CAS Associate Pursues Dual Fellowship

By Taresa LaRock, Communications Coordinator

Anita Sathe is probably not the only actuary with dreams of becoming a Fellow in both the CAS and SOA by the tender age 26. However, unlike most, she is well on her way to accomplishing just that.

Sathe, 25, began taking exams when she was 21. Thus far, she has passed nine exams (and passed every one on her first try), gaining Associate designations in both the CAS and SOA.

And she isn't finished yet. This fall, she goes for her tenth exam and after that for every other exam until she finally becomes a Fellow in both societies. "I decided to try to pass every exam on my first sitting, and so far I have been successful. Hopefully, I am keeping my fingers crossed, I will be all done by the time I am 26." You may be asking yourself if this goal is necessary, or attainable, or just plain crazy. Sathe thinks it is simply normal and expected for her.

When I started finding out more about this profession, I realized that it had tremendous potential in a country like India. I still had slight trepidation about entering the actuarial profession because I did not have the math and statistics background needed for passing the exams.

"I have been raised very differently than most other people," said Sathe. "My parents told me I should always believe in my dreams, aspire for something that will have an impact, and chart a course for others to follow in the years to come."

Actuarial science didn't exactly present itself as a likely profession to the young woman raised in India. "When I started finding out more about this profession, I realized that it had tremendous potential in a country like India. I still had slight trepidation about entering the actuarial profession because I did not have the math and statistics background needed for passing the exams."

Her trepidation diminished, however with an encouraging e-mail from a family friend, Mr. Shashikant Bhave, a life actuary in St. Louis, Missouri. "He told me that the actuarial profession was one of the few professions in the world where the demand still far exceeded the supply and how I could do wonderful things as an actuary," said Sathe. "I decided to take the challenge head on and learn everything I needed to, in order to become a good actuary."

Sathe began her undergraduate education at the University of Mumbai in India. Her experience with exams and education were distinct and different in India, where she took Courses 1 through 3. "Taking exams in India was a challenge given that all the study materials and calculators had to be ordered from the U.S. This was both expensive and time consuming," she said.

Course 1 was especially difficult for Sathe because she did not have the recommended level of training in math and statistics. She decided to take Exams 1 and 2 together since she was more familiar with some of the material on Exam 2 and thought she could leverage that with all the math training she was getting. Her aunt, who is a summa cum laude graduate in math, taught all the math and statistics she needed to know. "It was one year of an intensive but extremely enjoyable learning phase of my life," said Sathe.

With Exams 1 and 2 out of the way, and setting her sights on Exam 3, Sathe decided she needed a change. She decided to come to the U.S. for graduate studies in actuarial science at the University of Connecticut. Her experiences at UConn were extremely enriching. "Besides having an excellent actuarial science faculty, which enabled me to pass additional SOA exams," she said, "I was fortunate to be exposed to a variety of real-life actuarial projects through my involvement with the Deloitte-UConn Actuarial Center. Dr. Jay Vadiveloo, who heads up the Center has been one of my biggest sources of inspiration and support throughout my career and was one of the main reasons I chose to work with Deloitte after I graduated from UConn."

Post-graduation, Sathe has continued her professional career at Deloitte working in the company's P&C consulting practice. She works at Deloitte with the understanding that she can continue her work on Center-related projects with Dr. Vadiveloo. Sathe found the P&C work very interesting and, upon the advice of one of her P&C senior managers, Kevin Bingham, decided to pursue the CAS exams to leverage her work experience. Since she had already completed most of the exams for Associateship with the SOA and was fairly young in her professional life, she decided to pursue the joint accreditation.

Balancing consulting and studying for exams is one of the most difficult parts of her job at Deloitte. "Working in a consulting environment and trying to catch up with exams is a challenge," she said. "Deloitte has been very supportive of my efforts to complete the dual credentials." Dr. Vadiveloo, who also works for Deloitte's life practice, and Sathe's P&C manager, Kim Mitchell, have been instrumental in exposing Sathe to both areas and making sure she is getting a good blend of both sides. "My managers and partners at Deloitte fondly call me confused and crazy, but everyone is rooting for me to complete what I have set out for."

As for her life after exams, Sathe plans on doing something that requires an in-depth understanding of the insurance industry as a whole, not just parts of it. "Dual credentials will be the first step in making it happen."

Editor's Note: For the latest information on travel time, visit the CAS Web Site.