ACTSC 331Life Contingencies 2
- Units
- 0.50
- Faculty
- Mathematics
- Subject
- Actuarial Science
When it runs
- F24
- W25
- S25
- F25
- W26
- S26
- F26
- W27
- S27
Ran in 7 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.
Policy Values: Annual, 1/mthly, and continuous cases. Thiele's equation. Modified premium policy values. Multiple state models: applications in life contingencies; assumptions; Kolmogorov equations; premiums, policy values, multiple decrement models. Joint life models: valuation of insurance benefits on joint lives, dependent and independent cases.
Prerequisites
- Complete all of the following
- Earned a minimum grade of 60% in each of the following:
- ACTSC232 - Life Contingencies 1 (0.50)
- Enrolled in H-Actuarial Science, JH-Actuarial Science, or Actuarial Science Minor
- Earned a minimum grade of 60% in each of the following:
Antirequisites
None listed.
Leads to
Fall 2026 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 6082 | 37 / 66 | TTh 11:30–12:50 |
| TUT 101 | 7916 | 37 / 66 | F 11:30–12:20 |
Winter 2027 sections
| Section | Class | Enrolled | Meets |
|---|---|---|---|
| LEC 001 | 5571 | 0 / 48 | MW 14:30–15:50 |
| LEC 701 | 2213 | 33 / 9999 | Online or by arrangement |
| TUT 101 | 5989 | 0 / 48 | Jan 11 12:30–13:20 Jan 25 12:30–13:20 Feb 8 12:30–13:20 Feb 22 12:30–13:20 Mar 8 12:30–13:20 Mar 22 12:30–13:20 Apr 5 12:30–13:20 |
Reviewed on UW Flow
71% liked it34% easy88% useful
From 34 ratings and 9 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.
This course is very interesting and useful for exam MLC. It provides a very useful link to life insurance concepts. However, if you do not practice, even if you think you know the material well, you will not do well in the course. I feel like I understood the course material quite well, but I barely passed the course because I did not practice enough to be able to do problems quickly and efficiently - time constraint was a big problem for me on exams. Make sure you spend a lot of time on this course outside of class, if you want to do well in it.
Jan 2018 · liked it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this
very useful if you're taking exam FAM-L
Apr 2024 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Very well-organized course with Emily. The content picks up right where ACTSC 232 left off. Lots of focus on tests rather than assignments, which seems in line with actuarial exams. While the material was definitely challenging, it was quite worthwhile since each chapter was directly related to the fundamentals of life insurance. Would recommend taking it with Emily if you can!
Dec 2022 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
This course is very similar to actsc232 as in all the topics taught in this course is based on 232 and all the concepts makes common sense if you get it. The exams are insanely long but is fair. Just a bunch of tedious simple calculus.
Dec 2020 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this
Interesting material but you really need to put time in doing practice questions. The final is worth 65% and was very hard and long.
Aug 2020 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this
Discussed on r/uwaterloo
59 posts and comments in 41 threads mention ACTSC 331, March 2016 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.
Spring 2024
Math career thought dump 14 points, 17 comments
“I just finished my 1B term in Math/Business with probably an 85 - 89 average (marks for this sem haven't been released yet) and I genuinely feel a bit lost in what I want to pursue. …”
u/onlyinsurance-ca: “You 100% described actuarial. High income quickly, very stable 37.5 hours a week.plus strong chance of doing technical work right from the rest go. …”
u/onlyinsurance-ca: “… the next couple of exams are covered in actsci 232/331 and then some of the fourth year courses. …”
Fall 2023
Can't Understand the prof 1 point, 25 comments
“I don't want to come off as disrespectful but I have 2 courses this term with a professor that my classmates and I, hardly understand. His UW flow is at 5%. …”
u/Secure-Lake5784: “Are they geog courses per chance”
u/DarkEmperor7135: “pretty sure it’s actsc 331/363 based on op’s description”
Spring 2023
Fall Course Load Math 1 point, 3 comments
u/aglassofmangojuice: “Opinions on this course load: Actsc363, Stat331, Actsc331, Accounting Elective (wlu), Management Elective (wlu)”
u/onlyinsurance-ca: “I've read differing opinions on stat331. When I took it, it was the easiest stat's course I took, and enjoyable. Acts 331 is just like part b of Actsc 232. …”
u/aglassofmangojuice: “Thanks for the reply! I’m planning on November FAM (I am going down the Life side and already wrote P and FM). I was told Actsc232 and Actsc 363 are best prep courses for it and Actsc331 is good as well. Not sure if it is true however…”
Spring 2021
Discord Servers 1 point, 2 comments
u/bkhwong: “Are there any discord servers I can join to find ppl in the same course as me? I have actsc 331 363 372 and stat 332 this term”
Winter 2021
Actsci 331 - Final 2 points, 0 comments
Fall 2020
ACTSC 331 3 points, 2 comments
u/issue411: “How did you guys do??? I passed but damn”
ACTSC 231 grade 9 points, 12 comments
“I got a 50 in ACTSC 231, which means I don't meet the prerequisites for ACTSC 232. I can't help but wonder if I should pursue actsci anymore. …”
u/B789GEnx: “… That being said, ACTSC 232 and ACTSC 331, as well as many of your future SOA exams rely heavily on what you learn in 231. …”
u/Adept-Tank7302: “Once u pass actsc231, 232 and 331 are ezpz”
MTHEL300/ENGL378 in 1B? Is this a good idea? 0 points, 2 comments
u/OneFee: “Doesn't that course have a prereq of one of STAT 331, STAT 371, or ACTSC 331? You'd have to take one of these first”
AMATH 250 for Actuarial science major 1 point, 7 comments
“I am in 2A doing double major in Statistics and Actuarial Science. Does it make any difference if I take AMATH 250 in later years? Is it helpful for other senior year courses?”
u/angerygoosepopo: “It's kind of helpful for ACTSC 331 because you're solving a first order ordinary linear differential equation, but that was only the first lecture of amath 250. It's an easy course that you can take any time if you wanted to. …”
Actsc 331 3 points, 1 comment
u/driftingxsnow: “Sorry to hijack this post, but I'm taking Actsc 331 in the Winter term and would love to hear more about the course! Please dm me with any advice :)”
Stat 330 vs stat 331 vs stat 333 vs Actsc 331 4 points, 9 comments
u/litlifeofloo: “What’s the difficulty of the three courses? If you were to rank their difficulty, what would they be like? I am planning to take two of those courses next term but I don’t know which ones to take.”
u/thetermguy: “Stat 333>actsc 331>stat330 But some of those are prof dependent. 333 was tough for me. Stat330 was about the easiest and most pleasant stat course I took. But I've seen posts where people have said the opposite.”
u/litlifeofloo: “oh no 231 on steroids haha tht doesnt sound tht great. How did you like actsc 331?”
u/angerygoosepopo: “It really depends on the prof and your learning style. For me personally, &x200B; STAT 333 > STAT 330 > ACTSC 331 > STAT 331”
u/skelzor21: “Stat 333 > Actsc 331 > stat 331 > stat 330 i haven't taken S331 but 330 was very fun for me. I loved 230 and 231 so I liked it. Peijun Sang in Winter taught well. Stat 331 usually has good profs. Actsc 331 is just hard because the ques are challenging, not the concepts. …”
How manageable is this course load? (Actsci/Stats) 5 points, 15 comments
u/driftingxsnow: “… ACTSC 331 (3) 2. ACTSC 363 (4) 3. ACTSC 372 (2) 4. ACTSC 446 (4) 5. STAT 442 (5) &x200B; The ratings are based on a mix of UWFlow and some previous reddit posts. …”
u/angerygoosepopo: “… From my perspective, I rank STAT 442 > ACTSC 446 > ACTSC 372 > ACTSC 331 Note: I haven't taken STAT 442, but I'm rating this based on the similarity of the workload to 441 and the prof.”
Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026
- Undergraduate Calendar, 2026–27The official entry
- Requirements for Fall 2026Waterloo’s requisite checker
- Schedule of Classes, Fall 2026Instructors, rooms, live seats
- Quest Class SearchWhere you enrol
- Course outlinesSyllabi from past terms (UW login)
- UW FlowStudent ratings and reviews
- WClassesPast sections back to 2004, and who taught them