Finance with Maths (1 Viewer)

[karnoganguli]

I'm tossing up between actuarial and finance but i'm definetly combining it with maths. I know acturial is hard and i may not cope with it so i was wondering if finance/maths (hard maths like discrete) is worthwhile and if it provides benefits.

 

[chucknthem]

Discrete isn't hard, it's just...different.

 

[la.la]

may i ask how u did in maths for the hsc?
because even if u did well in maths during high school, the marks u receive in uni may not be up to ur standard.

 

[karnoganguli]

^^Nods
I got 87 for 3u and 80 for 4u... not great hence why the Actuarial head said it would be very tough for me.

 

[schmeichung]

not necessarily

One of my friend who got 98 for 3u but struggled very badly and dropped out eventually

All you have to do is to study very very very very hard
Even if you got good marks in hsc, you still need to study very very very hard for actuarial

 

[Krustallosice]

What does studying hard mean?

Does it incorporate:
- sleepless nights
- cramming everyday of ur life
- do exercises non-stop
- no life (like what Sachi warned on the 1st day of actl2002 :S) in the future (or even now)...

 

[uraleech]

What does studying hard mean?

Does it incorporate:
- sleepless nights
- cramming everyday of ur life
- do exercises non-stop
- no life (like what Sachi warned on the 1st day of actl2002 :S) in the future (or even now)...

hmmm... i think:

yes
no
no
maybe =p

 

[§eraphim]

I just finished my BSc/BCom (Maths & Finance) degree last year. If you want challenging and interesting problems, you can do pure Maths (like extensions of Discrete Maths). Also, if you pick it up quick enough, there is certainly less work and study than Actuarial.

The main problem is that Maths & Finance doesn't lead to any job in particular. Those jobs that are in maths and finance field, eg derivatives trading, quantitative analyst, etc, usually just require smart quantitative people (eg engineers, actuaries, physicists, etc) as the finance can be learnt on the job.

I think if you can beat or are on par with the top people in the quantitative area, ie, students doing actuarial, maths, from the Sydney unis, then you stand a chance. Otherwise, it's not clear what doing this degree will lead to.