Exams

Exam P/1 tests calculus-based probability: set theory, conditional probability and Bayes, discrete and continuous univariate distributions, transformations, moment generating functions, and joint/conditional/marginal distributions. It is shared with the SOA and is the usual first exam.

Exam FM/2 covers interest theory: accumulation functions, nominal and effective rates, annuities, loan amortization and sinking funds, bond pricing and amortization, yield curves and spot/forward rates, duration, convexity, and immunization. Derivatives were removed from the FM syllabus in 2022; the emphasis is now firmly on cash-flow valuation.

MAS-I covers Poisson processes and Markov chains, survival and reliability, parametric estimation and hypothesis testing, GLMs with an actuarial lens, and ARIMA time-series basics. It is the first exam with an explicit modeling mindset.

MAS-II is the credibility and modern-modeling exam: classical and Bayesian credibility, conjugate priors and MCMC diagnostics, penalized regression, tree ensembles, and linear mixed models as a generalization of Bühlmann–Straub.

Exam 5 is the gateway to Associateship: half ratemaking (Werner & Modlin's Basic Ratemaking) and half reserving (Friedland's Estimating Unpaid Claims Using Basic Techniques). It is a written-answer exam that rewards clean, labeled calculations and short justifications.

Exam 6-US is a reading-heavy exam on U.S. insurance regulation, statutory accounting, the Annual Statement (with Schedule P as the centerpiece), IRIS ratios, risk-based capital, and the appointed actuary's Statement of Actuarial Opinion under ASOP 36 and 43.

Exam 7 moves reserving from point estimates to distributions: Mack's variance formulas, Clark's LDF/Cape Cod curve fitting, Brosius least squares, Hürlimann, ODP bootstrap, and Verrall/Meyers Bayesian views. It adds valuation (DCF, P/E, Miccolis–Feldblum) and ERM (capital allocation, risk measures, operational risk).

Exam 8 is the fellowship pricing exam: GLM classification (CAS monograph), individual risk rating (NCCI experience rating, retrospective rating, Table M/L), increased limits and deductibles (ILFs, layer pricing, Fisher), and reinsurance/catastrophe pricing (Clark, Mata).

Exam 9 connects finance to insurance: CAPM and portfolio theory (Bodie, Kane & Marcus), fixed-income and ALM, option pricing intuition, coherent risk measures and capital allocation, and the insurance-specific profit-provision literature (Ferrari, Robbin, Feldblum, Mango, Kreps).

OC1 is a self-study course administered by The Institutes covering the risk management process and the functional areas of an insurer. It is conceptual and tests recall of frameworks and definitions.

OC2 introduces statutory and GAAP accounting for insurers, policy coverage analysis (declarations, insuring agreements, exclusions, conditions), and the legal framework of insurance contracts.

A required interactive course (not an exam) taken after passing the ACAS exams, built around case studies applying the Code of Professional Conduct, the ASOPs, and the ABCD counseling and discipline process.

VEE credit is earned through approved university courses or online providers (grade B− or better) rather than an exam. The CAS currently requires Accounting & Finance and Economics; Mathematical Statistics VEE is required by the SOA but not the CAS.