Actuary + Cadetship (1 Viewer)

[v_hero]

Hi All!!

Im in quite a dilemma here!

Right now i have a cadetship with PWC which requires myself to do accounting, but i am also interested in actuary.

Is it quite possible to do a double major at UNSW in accouting and actuarial studies or is it just not worth it?

Also, is the move wise, or should i just stuff the cadetship (even though i accepted but there is 6weeks probation period which you can quit) and head off to MQ and do actuary there?

 

[lanyon]

Go to ANU, do B actuarial studies/B commerce, you can choose to major in accounting through the commerce degree.

 

[jake2.0]

You can do acst/accounting double at Macq from next year onwards. At UNSW i think if you to a double degree, say econ/comm, you can choose a double major in comm, acst and accounting. As to if its worth it, i dont think so as they are quite seperate fields plus it'd be a shitload of work.

 

[blackfriday]

you can complete double-major actuary and accounting with iaa exemptions and ca/cpa exemptions in the bcom-actl/bcom-acct 4.5 year program at club mac or bcom/bec 4 year program at unsw with actuary major and bus law minor in commerce, econ and accounting double major in econ (but im not so sure about this one). i dont think pwc lets you do double degree.

 

[v_hero]

PWC doesnt let you do double degree but it does let you do a double major and UNSW offers double majors in their commerce degree. the thing is i have to swith to part time university after a few years due to the way the program at pwc is structured...does macquarie uni double degree offer part time if i was to swith later on for, say B Commerce - Actuarial/ B Accounting

 

[blackfriday]

well if you hack through your accounting subs for the first two years you have to do full-time work, then finish everything off full-time uni, its only an extra 12-18 months.

 

[seremify007]

Too lazy to read through and give you long winded answer.

In short, yes you can double major in Actuary and Accounting. Actuarial studies I believes swaps out some of the core Commerce subjects like ECON1202 (QMA) and replaces them with Actuarial stuff. And with PwC, you can do a double-major at UNSW. If you wish to do a double degree, you need partner approval and if approved, you'll receive a new contract.

EDIT: I think you can also get HR or director approval... but not sure- if anyone is interested, they should contact their HR contact to discuss this matter.

 

[Raginsheep]

I guess the big question is how many CA/CPA and FIAA exemptions you can get althought with the changes to the actuarial exemptions, you might be able to.

 

[seremify007]

IIRC CA has become alot more lenient nowadays and you can just do update/bridging courses. I won't say that I know much about swapping Actuary subjects with core Commerce ones, but I'd imagine that based on the past, as long as you graduate with B Commerce (or another acceptable degree) and meet the subject minimums (eg. Acct, Legt1711, etc..), then you should be fine. And that's not even taking into account the new lighter restrictions/requirements in place!

Best bet is to check out www.icaa.org.au and www.flyhigher.com.au

 

[seremify007]

Also, is the move wise, or should i just stuff the cadetship (even though i accepted but there is 6weeks probation period which you can quit) and head off to MQ and do actuary there?

Well... whilst technically you can quit without penalty- it doesn't exactly reflect well on you if you signed the contract and back out. The probation period (isn't it 3 months?) is more of a way to make sure both you and the firm believe that you fit in well...

... but it's upto you. Although I do feel sorry for those ppl who missed out on big4 cadetships and would probably wish they could be in your little dilemma with the opportunity to join a big firm.

 

[Raginsheep]

I wasn't really interested in Accounting so I don't really know but doesn't the company want you to finish your CA or CPA at the end of your degree?

Just had a quick look and looks like its too hard to fit in everything unless your doing some major overloading.

 

[Meads]

The probation period (isn't it 3 months?)

I believe the new IR laws have made probation periods a total of 6 months now.

 

[turtleface]

I wasn't really interested in Accounting so I don't really know but doesn't the company want you to finish your CA or CPA at the end of your degree?

Just had a quick look and looks like its too hard to fit in everything unless your doing some major overloading.

You have to finish your degree before you start the CA or CPA. For the firm's core lines that they recruit cadets into, generally it will be the CA.

Just remember its never too late to change careers and stuff. If you start off in Accounting and want to change to actuary later on, go do a Graduate Diploma in actuarial studies. If you want to become an Accountant later, go do a conversion course like a Graduate Diploma of Accounting.

When you do subjects over yur limit, do you have to pay Full fee?

 

[seremify007]

What do you mean pay full fee? Why would we pay full fee when we're HECS students? Or do you mean Full Fee in terms of university fees for full time vs. part time. In my experience, doing 3+ subjects classifies as FT so you pay FT rates for union fees and whatever other crap unis charge you for at the moment, but the large part of the cost (ie. tuition fees/lecture fees) is charged per subject and varies depending on the subject.

Btw, just remember, whilst not bulletproof or guaranteed, work experience as an undergrad in a Big4 firm isn't something which future employers won't take note of.

 

[turtleface]

at our uni, if we want to do subjects in addition to our alloted 300/500 points, we have to do it through the "community access program" (i.e. uni subjects for ppl who don't go to uni), and this requires full fees, no CSP.

 

[seremify007]

Ahh... that's interesting. I guess each uni probably has it's own policies regarding this.

 

[velox]

UNSW has the same policy. I tried to go over 144cp, but they said I would have to get permission, and then pay full fee

 

[seremify007]

UNSW has the same policy. I tried to go over 144cp, but they said I would have to get permission, and then pay full fee

I see. Btw earlier I thought the topic was referring to the cadetship scenario where someone doing part time wanted to do 3 subjects instead of 2.

 

[velox]

Sorry, bit of crossed wires here.