News

In accordance with the Admissions Transformation Plan (ATP), the CAS anticipates publishing new Content Outlines (formerly Syllabi) later this month for the October/November 2023 Exams MAS-I, MAS-II, and 5. The following information will provide our stakeholders, primarily candidates and academics, with details on the similarities and differences between our former Syllabi and new Content Outlines.  

As previously announced, the Admissions Transformation Plan (ATP) incorporated a Job Task Analysis (JTA) in 2020 to inform enhancements to all CAS exams, beginning with the new Exams MAS-I, MAS-II and 5. The JTA resulted in recommendations for the high-level domains and tasks covered on each exam in the ACAS and FCAS exam pathway.

As we head into the busy end-of-year season, the CAS recognizes that it may be difficult to stay informed about forthcoming updates being implemented through our Admissions Transformation Plan (ATP), so we are providing a preview at this time.

In the spirit of our on-going commitment to transparency as we announce key milestones of the Admissions Transformation Plan (ATP), the CAS is sharing details regarding the process for deciding changes to topics covered on CAS exams. Over the past two years, the CAS utilized three separate analyses to ensure that the content presented on the ACAS and FCAS exams accurately represents a holistic viewpoint of the profession, and evaluates the skills needed to ensure CAS candidates and members are prepared to meet future skill demands.

The CAS in partnership with The Institutes is excited to announce that registration for the new Online Course, Introduction to Data & Analytics is now open! Students and candidates can register and access the course through The Institutes website. The first window available for candidates to take the exam will be January 15, 2023 – March 15, 2023.

The CAS is pleased to announce that as part of the announced Admissions Transformation Plan, computer-based practice exams for the MAS exams will be available exclusively for candidates that are registered for the fall 2022 sitting of MAS-I and/or MAS-II.

In September 2021, in conjunction with the release of the Admissions Transformation Plan, and motivated heavily by candidate feedback, staff and volunteer input, the decision was made to remove the guessing penalty. Effective with the Fall 2022 exam sittings, the guessing penalty for exams MAS-I and MAS-II will be eliminated.

The Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS) announced a new Online Course on Data Concepts in a December news post outlining changes to CAS’s 2023 credentialing requirements. This new course will provide candidates with P&C industry knowledge and data skills that will prepare them with job-ready capabilities for entry-level actuarial positions.

The upcoming April/May exam sitting will introduce a new essay response question type. In addition, we will now have questions that use more spreadsheet functionality; however, knowledge of specific spreadsheet formulas will not be required.