Course planning

General Issues

What are the criteria for completing a BCom degree?

You require 300 points (24 subjects) to complete a BCom degree. Most university subjects are worth 12.5 points. You will undertake eight subjects (100 points of study) in each year of full-time study.

For students entering the BCom in 2021 or earlier, the degree has 8 core subjects to cover commerce fundamentals, 11-13 major(s) and elective subjects to deepen your commerce knowledge, and 4-6 breadth subjects from non-commerce disciplines. For students entering the BCom from 2022, the degree has 8 core subjects, 11 major(s) and elective subjects in Commerce, and, for actuarial students, 5 breadth subjects. Your major is your chosen specialisation that you will focus on throughout your degree. In your first year, you will be able to try a few different commerce disciplines before deciding on your major. You can wait until the beginning of your second year to choose a major or you can focus on a specialisation right from the beginning.

Students in the BCom must take:

• CMCE10001 Sustainable Commerce (from 2022),
• ECON10004 In- troductory Microeconomics,
• ECON10003 Introductory Macroeconomics,
• MGMT20001 Organisa- tional Behaviour,
• FNCE10002 Principles of Finance and
• ACCT10001 Accounting Reports and Analysis.

They must also take two quantitative subjects. Students with an actuarial specialisation satisfy the quantitative subjects requirement by taking MAST20004 Probability and MAST20005 Statistics, and hence should NOT enrol in subjects such as Quantitative Methods 1 and 2 (ECON10005 and ECON20003).

Breadth is a required component of your undergraduate degree. BCom students specialising in Actuarial Studies will satisfy the breadth component of their degree by completing two first year maths subjects, MAST20004 Probability and MAST20005 Statistics plus two other subjects (one other subject for 2022 and later commencing students) that is/are neither commerce subject(s) nor subject(s) offered by the Department of Mathematics and Statistics.

It is important to realise that, in order to satisfy the requirements of the BCom, you must pass the appropriate number of Commerce subjects. If you should fail a subject in Actuarial Studies, you are not obliged to repeat the subject in order to obtain your BCom. You will, however, need to make up the 12.5 subject points.

The following advice is based on the assumption that a student wishes to obtain as many exemptions as possible from the professional exams of the Actuaries Institute (explained here). Therefore, recommended subjects for each year of study include both exemption subjects and prerequisites for exemption subjects.

What subjects should I do in my first year of Actuarial Studies?

The first year provides you with a broad skill base in business, economics and science. It is recom- mended that you enrol in the subjects shown below. (There are other possibilities for the two math- ematics subjects, see below.) Most of the above are prerequisites for level-2 subjects (see Second-year below) and you are strongly encouraged to complete these subjects. ACTL10001 Introduction to Ac- tuarial Studies is not compulsory and is not a prerequisite to any subsequent subject. However, completing this subject will give you a clearer view of actuarial work.

Breadth subjects

The Centre for Actuarial Studies does not give any advice on which subjects students should take as breadth subjects, other than to recommend that you take subjects that interest you and expand

your horizons. Other faculties, including both Arts and Science, offer sequences of subjects at first- and second-year level, and there are also sequences of University Breadth Subjects.

A sample course plan for students commencing from Semester 1 2022 onwards is as follows:

A sample course plan for students who commenced in semester 1 prior to 2022 is as follows:

Are there any prerequisites to these subjects?

The first-year Mathematics subjects are very important components of your actuarial major. We highly recommend that you enrol in MAST10008 Accelerated Mathematics 1 if you have the prerequisites, as the two Accelerated Mathematics subjects give a better preparation for second and third-year Actuarial Studies. Decisions about entry into these and other Mathematics subjects are made by the School of Mathematics and Statistics, not by the Centre for Actuarial Studies.

Entry to MAST10008 Accelerated Mathematics 1 is subject to a high level of achievement in VCE Specialist Mathematics 3/4 or equivalent. Students with a raw study score of 38 or more in this subject, or with permission from the Director of the Mathematics and Statistics Learning Centre, may enter the subject directly. Students with lower study scores who do not gain direct entry may be able to enter the subject by taking a placement test in the week before semester starts.

If you are not able to enter MAST10008, it is recommended that you enrol in MAST10006 Calculus 2 in Semester 1, and then MAST10007 Linear Algebra in Semester 2.

Students who have not completed VCE Specialist Mathematics 3/4 or equivalent must take the se- quence of MAST10005 Calculus 1 in Semester 1, followed by MAST10006 Calculus 2 and MAST10007 Linear Algebra in Semester 2. Such students should not enrol in ACTL10001 Introduc- tion to Actuarial Studies.

If you have completed MAST10013 UMEP Mathematics you will be exempt from MAST10008 Ac- celerated Mathematics 1. This means that you will have a space in Semester 1 to take another breadth subject in mathematics or elsewhere.

MAST10018 Linear Algebra Extension Studies can be used as a substitute for MAST10007 Linear Algebra. However, students who have taken MAST10019 Calculus Extension Studies need to take MAST20026 Real Analysis.

The subject ACCT10002 Introductory Financial Accounting requires ACCT10001 Accounting Re- ports and Analysis as prerequisite.

Mid-year intake

If you enter university in second semester (i.e. in July or August of the calendar year), it is essential that you are in a position to take subjects ACTL20001 Introductory Financial Mathematics and MAST20004 Probability in the first semester of the following calendar year. This means that you must complete both MAST10009 Accelerated Mathematics 2 (or MAST10006 Calculus 2) and MAST10007 Linear Algebra in Semester 2 (i.e. in your first semester at university).

It is not essential to enrol in ACTL10001 Introduction to Actuarial Studies, but students who do not enrol in this subject and who still want an introduction to actuarial concepts may work their way through the prescribed lecture notes during the summer break. Please see the second table below for a course plan.

It is strongly recommended that mid-year intake students complete 2 summer semester subjects in each of the two summers following their enrolment, so that they can complete the BCom degree at the end of a calendar year and enter Honours or the MCom (Actuarial Science) in the following year.

A specimen program for a mid-year intake student who commenced in July 2021 and who wants to enrol in ACTL10001 Introduction to Actuarial Studies is as follows:

A specimen program for a mid-year intake student who commenced in July 2021 without enrolment in ACTL10001 Introduction to Actuarial Studies is as follows:

Note that MAST10007 Linear Algebra is offered during the summer semester. Students may elect to swap the elective subject from the first summer and MAST10007 in the specimen program above.

A specimen program for a mid-year intake student who commences in July 2022 or July in a later year and who wants to enrol in ACTL10001 Introduction to Actuarial Studies is as follows:

A specimen program for a mid-year intake student who commences in July 2022 or July in a later year without enrolment in ACTL10001 Introduction to Actuarial Studies is as follows:

What do I need to achieve in first year to continue Actuarial Studies in second year?

There is no minimum first-year mark for admission into second year of Actuarial Studies. Provided you have the necessary prerequisites and fulfill Faculty requirements, you can enrol in level-2 actu- arial subjects.

However, if you intend to complete the professional qualification to become an actuary (explained here), it is suggested that you do your best to achieve an average mark of at least 70% across your first-year subjects. Past experience shows that students with an average first-year mark less than 70% find it difficult to achieve exemptions in second and third year. You may wish to speak with the Director of Study about your situation at the end of your first year.

It is important to note that entry to the key second year actuarial subject ACTL20001 Introductory Financial Mathematics (the subject title was Financial Mathematics I until the end of 2019) is based on your score in first year mathematics subjects. Students taking MAST10008 and MAST10009 must pass both subjects and obtain a total of 120 (out of 200) marks or more across both subjects. Students taking MAST10006 and MAST10007 must obtain 150 (out of 200) marks or more across both subjects. It is also possible to enter ACTL20001 by obtaining a total of 135 (out of 200) marks or more across MAST10009 and MAST10007. Please note that these prerequisites are strictly applied (explained here).

What if I decide that I no longer wish to pursue Actuarial Studies at the end of first year?

If you decide that Actuarial Studies is not for you at the end of first year, the subjects set out above are broad enough to allow you to switch to another area of study within the Faculty. For example, you may choose to major in Economics and/or Finance, and you can still achieve a BCom degree by the end of three years at University. Alternatively, you may wish to apply to change to a degree in another faculty.

The Director of Study for first year students is Professor David Pitt. Year level Directors of Study are able to give advice on academic matters.

Second Year

What subjects should I complete in my second year of Actuarial Studies?

• For BCom students commencing in Semester 1 2021, in your second year, you should take the following subjects:

• For BCom students commencing from semester 1 2022, in your second year, you should take the following subjects:

*There are some alternative prerequisites for these subjects. See above for ACTL20001, or look up any of those subjects in the online version of the Handbook for more information: https://hand- book.unimelb.edu.au/faces/htdocs/user/search/SimpleSearch.jsp .

Some variations of the above sample program are possible, since MGMT20001 Organisational Be- haviour is offered in both Semesters 1 and 2 as well as in the summer semester.

Students considering going on exchange must enrol in MGMT20001 Organisational Behaviour in their second year of study.

Are there any criteria for entering third year Actuarial Studies?

There are no set criteria for entering third year Actuarial Studies. You may enrol in any third-year actuarial subject provided you have the necessary prerequisites. However, the recommended sub- jects in third year are heavily concentrated towards Actuarial Studies and hence at the end of your second year you should be sure that you wish to complete your degree with a major in Actuarial Studies.

The Director of Study for second year students is Associate Professor Han Li.

Third Year

What subjects should I do in third year?

For BCom students commencing from 2020, in your third year, you should take the following sub- jects:

*For students who commenced the BCom in 2022 or later and who completed the breadth require- ments by studying Calculus 1, Calculus 2, Linear Algebra, Probability and Statistics, a Commerce Elective should be taken here in place of a breadth course.

Major in Actuarial Studies

To obtain a major in Actuarial Studies a student must complete 37.5 points of third year Actuarial Studies subjects.

The Directors of Study for third year students are Associate Professor Ping Chen in first semester and Dr Yuyu Chen in second semester.

Honours Year

Should I do an Honours degree?

There are many advantages in completing an Honours year. An Honours degree will give you the opportunity to broaden your knowledge and skill base, as well as allowing you to complete a re- search-based subject.

Some employers (particularly the public service and some investment and finance firms) will only employ graduates with an Honours degree, and hence completing a higher-level degree will open up more employment opportunities to you.

By studying for Honours, you have the opportunity to obtain exemption from all of the Foundation Program (formerly Part I) of the Actuaries Institute’s professional examinations. Also, some of the Actuary Program (formerly Part II) subjects required for qualification as a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of Australia (described here) are covered in the Honours year. It is advantageous to study these subjects as a full time Honours student, rather than attempting them after graduation on a part time basis while you are working.

The Centre now offers an alternative degree to honours: the MCom in actuarial science. This is an 18-month program and offers everything the honours degree does and more. It has its own guide, which can be downloaded from the Centre’s website.

What are the criteria for doing an Honours year?

Students who have completed the BCom with a major in Actuarial Studies (or equivalent) may apply to the Faculty for entry into Honours.

For students with a BCom in Actuarial Studies from the University of Melbourne, entry into Hon- ours usually requires students to have

1. satisfied the requirements for a BCom degree (previously described), and
2. achieved a grade of at least H2B in four level-3 actuarial subjects.

Note that ACTL30003 counted as two subjects up to and including 2019. Thus, a mark of 70 in ACTL30003 would have counted as two H2B grades. Starting from 2020, ACTL30003 covered con- tent from the new professional syllabus for part of subject CM1 of the Actuaries Institute and is a single 12.5-point subject. For students with an actuarial degree from another university we apply equivalent criteria for admission.

If you do not meet the requirements for an Honours year, you may still apply and your application will be considered in terms of your overall academic record. However, only in exceptional circum- stances would such an application be successful.

You should also note that meeting the above two requirements does not guarantee a place in Hon- ours. For example, a student who completed eight level-3 subjects with four marks in actuarial subjects of 70 and four marks of 50 meets the requirements but would not be admitted. The Centre will only admit students who it believes can successfully complete the Honours year.

How do I apply to undertake an Honours degree?

Students interested in doing Honours must make a formal application. Local students must apply online at

https://prod.ss.unimelb.edu.au/student/S1/eApplications/eAp- pLogin.aspx?f=%24S1.EAP.LOGIN.WEB .

International students must submit an International Undergraduate Application, available either using the link above, or at

https://study.unimelb.edu.au/how-to-apply/undergraduate-study/international-applications.

The Faculty of Business and Economics will write to you, probably in early January, to advise if your application has been accepted or not. Your offer letter will include information and instructions for enrolment.

What subjects should I take in my Honours year?

It is compulsory for Honours in Actuarial Studies that a student completes either ACTL40001 Actu- arial Studies Research Essay or ACTL40010 (Actuarial Studies Projects Part 1) and ACTL40011 (Ac- tuarial Studies Projects Part 2). The suggested program is shown below.

For students commencing their honours year from 2022, corresponding to continuing BCom stu- dents commencing their university study from 2019, the program is shown below.