Overview
Actuarial trainee positions are among the most selective graduate roles in the UK. Firms like Hymans Robertson, Aon, Mercer, and Willis Towers Watson typically require a strong mathematics degree, progress on IFoA exams, and evidence of programming ability. The qualification journey takes several years, so employers want to see that candidates are already committed to it.
Eilidh MacLeod is a mathematics graduate from the University of Glasgow who completed a summer internship at Hymans Robertson and has already passed 2 IFoA exams. Her resume stands out because it combines academic excellence with real consulting experience and demonstrable technical skills.
What Makes This Resume Work
Two IFoA exams passed before starting work. This is the single most important differentiator for actuarial trainees. CM1 and CS1 are the foundational exams, and having them passed before graduation shows Eilidh is serious about the profession and can manage exam study alongside a full degree programme.
Pensions consulting experience with meaningful numbers. Working on valuations for schemes with £1.2 billion in combined assets and 8,500 members shows the scale of real actuarial work. These are not academic exercises; they are calculations that affect real people's retirement income.
Programming skills applied to actuarial problems. Building liability projection models in R and creating an interactive mortality dashboard shows Eilidh can code, not just use spreadsheets. As actuarial teams increasingly rely on R and Python, this technical ability is a genuine advantage.
A First Class degree with a relevant dissertation. Stochastic mortality modelling using Lee-Carter methods is directly applicable to pensions and life insurance. It shows the recruiter that Eilidh's academic interests align precisely with the work she will be doing.
Key Takeaways
For actuarial trainee roles, your IFoA exam progress is the most important item on your resume. List every exam you have passed with the date. Beyond that, demonstrate programming skills (R, Python, VBA), describe any actuarial work experience with scheme sizes and member numbers, and show a strong academic record in a quantitative discipline. If you have built any tools, models, or dashboards, describe them with specific details about the data and methodology used.
