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The New
American Dream Job Is Pretty Dull
Actuarial science graduates earn six-figure
salaries and have a better-than-average
unemployment rate.
By Riley Griffin
September 10, 2018
Taking on student debt is a financial risk.
Those in the best position to pay it off
after graduation are those who study exactly
such risks.
Actuarial science, the formal term for the
study of insurance, was ranked the most
valuable college major, according to a
Bankrate.com report released on Monday.
Actuarial science majors earn an average
annual salary of $108,658 and have a
better-than-average unemployment rate at 2.3
percent. And at a time when student debt is
at a record high, these graduates are less
likely to incur the added expense of
additional schooling and delayed earning
potential. Less than 1 in 4 graduates pursue
advanced degrees.
“The actuarial science profession is
interesting because students don’t need
advanced degrees to gain livable wages, but
instead are certified through a series of
exams overseen by the industry’s
professional organizations,” said
Bankrate.com analyst Adrian Garcia in an
interview. “Students typically pass one to
two of these exams while in school and then
go on and complete others while working,
earning raises and bonuses as they pass.”
The study ranked 162 majors with labor forces of at least 15,000 people based on
average annual income, employment status and whether those graduates went on to
pursue a higher degree within 12 months. Income accounted for 70 percent of the
weighted ranking, unemployment for 20 percent and 10 percent was awarded to
career paths that did not demand additional education. The data was derived from
the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2016 American Community Survey.
Recent actuarial science graduates are entering the industry at an opportune
moment. The U.S. property and casualty insurance industry took in $18 billion in
net profit, even as the country sustained heavy losses from natural catastrophes
such as hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, according to the National Association
for Insurance Commissioners. But that number is expected to increase in 2018 due
to favorable interest rates, shows the S&P Global Market Intelligence report.
Health-care premiums are also on the rise as many insurers seek double-digit
percentage increases in monthly costs for individual medical plans in 2019.
Science, technology, engineering and mathematics degrees continue to offer the
best postgraduate prospects to college students, the study found. Zoology,
nuclear engineering, premedical programs and applied mathematics dominated the
five most valuable degrees, offering graduates low rates of unemployment and
six-figure salaries.
But the prospect of a high salary doesn’t always win out. Petroleum engineering
graduates boast the most lucrative average salary, topping out at $124,448, but
fail to crack the top of the list because of an excessively high 7.9 percent
unemployment rate.
The only students faring worse than fine arts degree holders are niche fine arts
degree holders. Graduates with degrees outside the traditional buckets of art,
theater, music or creative writing earn the second-lowest average annual salary
of $40,855 and have the highest unemployment rate of any major at a whopping 9.1
percent.
“At the end of the day, you have to balance being practical and following your
passion,” Garcia said.
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