Study Materials

AMSA students have study materials for the P exam and FM exam. We will be trying to get official copies of these study guide to keep in the organization.  If you need to use these materials for exam study come to one of our study sessions. 

We currently do not have any study sessions for Exams P, FM, or M, but if you would like to start one, let us know.  We will post study times on this webpage. 

An excellent website to check frequently is The Actuarial Outpost.  There are sample questions posted by authors, professors, actuaries, students, etc.  Feel free to ask them questions about any problems you may be having.  Most people who take advantage of this website and its many resources pass their exams.  Explore this website to see what all it has to offer.  If you are looking for more study problems on exam P or FM, go to www.saab.org and look under the heading “Mathematics Tests and Drills.”

Materials Used for Exam P/ Course 1

You will probably only need one of these manuals, but any more than one will give you extra practice problems.  SOA has an excellent sample set of questions.  Go to the bottom of this linked page, for P Sample Exam Questions.  No graphing calculators are allowed, so you may want to use a BA-II Plus as soon as you start studying for this exam in order to get familiar.  More information on the BA-II Plus is described in the Exam FM study materials on this page. 

Materials Used for Exam FM/ Course 2

Again, you will probably only need one of these manuals.  Click the following links for the syllabus and a sample set of Exam FM questions from the SOA.

BA II Plus and BA II Plus Professional – Pick one.  These are the calculators that we suggest. The SOA allows two or three other types, but these are the most powerful and useful. They will make your test tons easier and faster. Just in case of problems during an exam, you may want to invest in two. 

The BA II Plus has easier to push keys.

The BA II Plus Pro has firm keys but can do modified duration problems (Not major). Most students pick the original because of the ease of keystrokes.

Materials Used for SOA Exam M/ CAS Course 3

SOA and CAS have separate exams for the third exam. This material will prepare you for either exam. CAS Course 3 in one exam lasting four hours, however, SOA Exam M is split into two sections, Models for Life Contingencies (MLC) and Models for Financial Economics (MFE).  Basic Exam P knowledge is assumed.  You may take them separately or in the same session.  The total test length is five hours, MLC being three and MFE being two.  For the syllabus for SOA Exam M, click here.  Click the following link for sample questions on MLC. Click the following link for sample questions on MFE.

For CAS Course 3, basic Exam P/1 knowledge is assumed, as with SOA Exam M.  For a syllabus of material go to the 2021 CAS Syllabus Basic Education. 

These materials are suggested, based on each section. 

MLC

Use Either ‘Actuarial Mathematics – 2nd Edition by Bowers’ or ‘Models for Quantifying Risk – 2nd Edition by Cunningham.’ ACSI 4330 and 4340 use Models For Quantifying Risk.

For extra practice and reference, the ASM MLC Study Manual – 1st Edition by Abraham Weishaus is also suggested.

MFE

For extra practice and reference, the ASM MFE Study Manual – 4th Edition by Abraham Weishaus is also suggested.