SOA FAPFundamentals of Actuarial Practice
Syllabus learning objectives
Paraphrased from the SOA syllabus so the study-plan builder and practice sets track the topics you will actually be examined on. Weights are the official topic ranges.
Actuarial control cycle
- Apply the actuarial control cycle (identify problem, design solution, monitor results) to a general business problem.
- Integrate external forces (economic, legal, social, professional) into product design and management decisions.
- Evaluate feedback loops that trigger a return to earlier stages of the control cycle.
- Apply control-cycle thinking to a case study spanning product design, pricing, valuation and risk management.
Product design, pricing, valuation, solvency
- Design an insurance or retirement product responsive to market, regulatory and risk-appetite constraints.
- Set assumptions and calculate premiums/contributions consistent with pricing objectives.
- Determine liabilities/reserves under an appropriate valuation basis and reporting standard.
- Assess capital and solvency implications of product design and pricing decisions.
Professionalism & communication
- Apply the Code of Professional Conduct and relevant ASOPs to realistic professional scenarios.
- Identify conflicts of interest, disclosure obligations and appropriate courses of action.
- Communicate actuarial analyses and recommendations clearly to technical and non-technical audiences.
- Recognize situations requiring an Actuarial Standards Board or professionalism escalation.
Overview
FAP is an e-learning course in eight modules organized around the actuarial control cycle, ending with a Final Assessment: a 96-hour take-home case study requiring a written report.
- Duration
- Self-paced modules + 96-hour final assessment
- Questions
- Module exercises and a case-study report
- Style
- Online
- Passing
- Pass/fail on the final assessment
Syllabus map
Key formulas
The actuarial control cycle: define the problem → design the solution → monitor experience → feed back. Every module maps to one stage.
Study strategy
Treat each module's end-of-module exercise as a practice assessment.
Draft your final-assessment report template (executive summary, assumptions, analysis, recommendation, limitations) before the clock starts.
Common traps
Running out of the 96 hours by over-analyzing; graders look for judgment and clarity.
Omitting explicit assumptions and their justification.