Actuarial Science Online Certification of Professional Achievement

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Applicant Qualifications

• Applicants must hold at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.
• Most successful applicants have a cumulative undergraduate grade point average of 3.0 or better.
• Applicants are required to have knowledge of elementary economics (ECON W1105), linear algebra (MATH V2010), and multivariate calculus (MATH V1202)
• Applicants must be able to demonstrate the ability for critical thinking and analysis.

Admissions Timeline

Application decisions are delivered on a rolling basis. Decision notifications are delivered through the online application system within 4-6 weeks of the submission of a complete application or within 4-6 weeks of the submission of any required documents not included with the online application.

Application Requirements

• Completed application form

• $95.00 nonrefundable application fee (U.S. currency)
  Fee payment must accompany the online application.

• Transcripts from all post-secondary institutions attended.

  Domestic Transcripts From institutions in the U.S. or Canada

  • If your transcripts are from an institution in the U.S. or Canada, we strongly recommend submitting unofficial documents through the online application system at the time of application. Each transcript must contain the name of the institution, student name, a list of courses taken, grades or marks earned, and name of degree earned. Please note that documents showing completion of a curriculum or summary of courses are not sufficient.

  Candidates offered admission will later be required to supply official documents prior to enrollment for verification before the offer is considered official.

  • For those applicants who are offered admission, official transcripts must arrive in envelopes sealed by the issuing institutions certifying conferral of a bachelor’s degree. Copies, opened or unsealed envelopes, unofficial printouts, or facsimiles will not be accepted. If your institution has a process for emailing electronic transcripts (such as services available through eSCRIP-SAFE, Parchment, or National Student Clearinghouse), the registrar’s office may submit it/them to apply@sps.columbia.edu.

  • Many schools take a number of weeks to fulfill transcript requests; please plan accordingly. All transcripts submitted are considered property of the School of Professional Studies. They will not be returned to you, transferred, or forwarded to other institutions or other schools at Columbia University. Please do not submit an original copy of an academic transcript that cannot be replaced.

  • The admissions committee reserves the right to withdraw any offer of admission already made if there is a discrepancy between the self-reported transcript and the official transcript.

  International Transcripts From institutions outside the U.S. or Canada

  If your post-secondary credentials are from an institution outside the U.S. or Canada, the Office of Enrollment Management requires you to submit all post-secondary credentials (undergraduate and graduate) to World Education Services, Inc. (WES), a third-party verification agency for a course-by-course evaluation.

  Instructions for using WES

  WES must complete a course-by-course evaluation of all post-secondary credentials. Please select the WES basic course-by-course evaluation (with GPA and course-levels) and request to have WES send your evaluation to Columbia University School of Professional Studies. The school can be found by searching Columbia University and then selecting School of Professional Studies. The evaluation provided to the School of Professional Studies becomes an official academic record and sole property of the School of Professional Studies upon its receipt.

  WES evaluations will be reviewed by the School of Professional Studies administrators and the determination of degree equivalency to U.S. degrees is at the discretion of the School of Professional Studies.

• A résumé
  Please note if you passed any of the SOA/CAS exams.

• Three letters of recommendation
  Written by teachers or professional supervisors who are well-positioned to comment on your intellectual strengths and professional promise. Applicants who have received their bachelor’s degree within the last five years must submit at least one recommendation from a teacher who can comment on your academic aptitude.

  Applicants notify their recommenders of the request through the online application system and are strongly encouraged to do so as early as possible to compensate for any potential delays in submission on the part of the recommender. Recommendations are submitted through the online application system.

• Statement of academic purpose (500 to 750 words)
  The statement of academic purpose should address your purpose and interest in pursuing a certification in actuarial science, how the certification program fits into your overall professional growth, focusing in particular on the connection between the program and your academic and/or professional experience, how the program relates to your immediate and long-term professional plans, and how you expect to contribute to the field.

• Official scores on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) general test.
  The admissions committee pays particular attention to the quantitative reasoning score. For complete information regarding the GRE go to www.gre.org. School report code: 3602.

• An admissions interview may be required

•  Students whose native language is not English must include proof of English proficiency.
  Expand this section.

  English Language Proficiency

  Applicants taking the TOEFL must have a score of at least 100 on the Internet-based version (600 paper based). Applicants taking the IELTS must receive a score of 7.0 or higher. Applicants receiving scores below the posted minimums may be advised to apply directly to the American Language Program.

  Applicants whose native language is not English will be required to demonstrate proficiency in the English language by submitting official scores from either the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or IELTS (International English Language Testing System). The requirement is only waived if:

  • The applicant has completed all coursework for and earned their undergraduate degree from an accredited institution in a country where English is the sole official language. Please note that graduate level work does not exempt applicants from meeting this requirement.

  • The applicant has completed at least two years at an undergraduate U.S. institution or at an institution in a country where the sole official language is English and earned the undergraduate (or bachelor's) degree at that institution.

  Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit unofficial documents through the online application system at the time of application. Candidates offered admission will later be required to supply official scores sent directly from either TOEFL or IELTS prior to enrollment for verification before the admission offer is considered official. (Use school code 2594 to report TOEFL scores.)

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