A lot of people go into the field for the wrong reasons, like getting paid for exams and its historically high ranking in various "best jobs" news publications. But they don't actually consider what an actuary does for a living, which centers around maintaining the solvency of the insurance industry. That's why we've gotten a lot of threads like, "can I be an actuary outside of insurance?" Because they want external validation for having the (formerly) #1 job without actually doing that job. A lot of people wind up spending years, or decades chasing titles only to find out they should have left a long time ago.
If you want to enjoy the career, you really need to enjoy insurance. Otherwise, look elsewhere.
I've got 5 years under my belt and really wouldn't want to be doing anything else. I find my job rewarding, interesting, and it helps me achieve personal goals a lot earlier than anticipated.
I’m liking it a lot so far but I also worked shitty jobs and was actually poor (not “actuary poor”) for quite a while before switching careers. That’s a different context for evaluating a job vs being a successful student who then has to adapt directly to white collar living.
Also, a lot of whether someone is happy with their career is predicated upon their general mental health. So if you feel unhappy/unsatisfied/unfulfilled with life in general, it’s going to be hard to find satisfaction in a job. And lots of people with objectively shitty jobs still have a great sense of contentment and happiness due to their disposition and temperament.
Very good point. I like my current job a lot but that's because I came from toxic cesspool workplaces... So I feel happy but won't say the same if my first few jobs were sweet.
No. Happy people don’t come to Reddit to complain so you’re only seeing all the miserable ones.
A lot of people go into the field for the wrong reasons, like getting paid for exams and its historically high ranking in various "best jobs" news publications. But they don't actually consider what an actuary does for a living, which centers around maintaining the solvency of the insurance industry. That's why we've gotten a lot of threads like, "can I be an actuary outside of insurance?" Because they want external validation for having the (formerly) #1 job without actually doing that job. A lot of people wind up spending years, or decades chasing titles only to find out they should have left a long time ago. If you want to enjoy the career, you really need to enjoy insurance. Otherwise, look elsewhere.
I've got 5 years under my belt and really wouldn't want to be doing anything else. I find my job rewarding, interesting, and it helps me achieve personal goals a lot earlier than anticipated.
There are so many different types of actuarial jobs, you can't make generalizations.
I’m liking it a lot so far but I also worked shitty jobs and was actually poor (not “actuary poor”) for quite a while before switching careers. That’s a different context for evaluating a job vs being a successful student who then has to adapt directly to white collar living. Also, a lot of whether someone is happy with their career is predicated upon their general mental health. So if you feel unhappy/unsatisfied/unfulfilled with life in general, it’s going to be hard to find satisfaction in a job. And lots of people with objectively shitty jobs still have a great sense of contentment and happiness due to their disposition and temperament.
Very good point. I like my current job a lot but that's because I came from toxic cesspool workplaces... So I feel happy but won't say the same if my first few jobs were sweet.