Can Actuarial Studies/Accounting become a special interest?

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And can it be pushed by constantly researching into it? I guess the question I'm getting at is can you develop a special interest by planning to become obsessed with it before it happens....or does it just happen naturally? I'm gonna quit my job as a teachers assistant because its all people interaction and doesnt allow me to be my aspie self at all and now wanna pursue a career in a special interest and since ive always had a mathematical mind, i assume actuarial studies would be a good bet but can this special interest develop over time? Just curious

In a way, you've already got a "special interest" starting. If you didn't, you simply wouldn't care enough to try accountancy out as a hobby. Really, it's your choice. Try it for a while and see if you really do like it.

+1

I do not wish to be a bubble burster by any means, but I may need to put my foot forward and deliver a warning. Keep in mind that I know I have Asperger's, and I am not sure if I have anything else accompanying it.

I am on the verge of quitting my job as an actuary because I find that I cannot deal with the stressors and life in the business environment. Actuarial studies I would say is 10% mathematical, 90% social, and I was recently put on written warning for the following two reasons:

1. Inability to concentrate on tasks for more than 30 minutes at a time.
2. A perceived inability to work with others based upon my mannerisms as an Aspie. I take the effort to talk to people, but it takes a lot out of me, and I cannot always help the small mannerisms like posture. I was slammed for aspects such as this, and it showed up as a serious red flag.

Keep in mind that I graduated valedictorian out of my high school class of 400 and my college class of 2,000. I have worked hard to develop social and presentation skills, but it is a very, very tough facade for an Aspie to put up around the clock. In fact, I spent years denying my syndrome because I felt I could overcome it, but that review basically showed me that it is something that will be a part of my life for a long time.


Not to say you cannot get a mathematics-based job in your life, since many Aspies are excellent at dealing with numbers. However, actuarial mathematics is more about being a businessman, and I am not lying when I say that being fired will be more of a relief than a disappointment.

To Aspbite: Are you serious?? I was actually going to attempt to become an actuary, but if it's really that bad in terms of social interaction, I may have to consider something else...

It was a rather rude awakening for me, and my experiences beckoned me to find answers at a psychiatrist. My family has a history of mental illness, and my bout with meningitis as an infant did not exactly help much, and although I am not officially-diagnosed, the psych says she "strongly suspects Aspergers" along with perhaps bipolar disorder.

Just as an example of how the condition plays a role...in fact, I will provide two:

1. I write a mathematically-based recommendation to a customer, which has valid and thoughtful mathematical assumptions, and my boss even verifies this. However, I say something to the effect of "we authorize this" in a professional manner, a manner that my boss says is as if I am "talking down" to the customer. I truthfully have no idea why it appears as if I am talking down to someone (something many aspies can relate to), but it raises a serious red flag with management, to the extent of being warned to not do it again.

My co-workers write recommendations that have flawed mathematical assumptions, but they are far more user-friendly, and are viewed as "model actuaries". The sizzle is often more important than the steak.

2. I write a report with valid numbers and strong accuracy, but I get (literally) screamed at because my lack of focus prevented me for remembering to change the date in the upper-lefthand corner. This was actually the event that led to my written warning, and subsequently eliminated my Christmas bonus this year.

Small details do often escape me, and I do make small slips, as many Aspies do, but they are not really material slips in terms of the numbers involved.


Combined with hearing my co-workers make fun of my posture and my mannerisms (my leg has a tendency to have nervous twitches in meetings), and it is not an easy environment to work in at all.

Had a similar experience with public accounting. The thing about these places is that the technical knowledge is secondary to the networking/social aspect. I'm not sure if it is something that can be overcome--I am hoping to land a position with a non-profit or a small company or firm where I can just do my job in peace without having to worry about "marketing myself" in order to keep my job.
I felt a sense of relief when they let me go after the first year, but am worried about my future.


It's too bad because as far as the technical aspect goes, it would be a great special interest--always plenty to research, with rules changing all of the time.

Some of the things Aspbite talks about sound like they are very nitpicky, and I wonder if the company was just looking for an excuse to from paying a Christmas bonus.

Sorry for joining the thread late (I only occasionally wander through WP)...but I'm an actuary and I agree with that comment.

For any profession, the particulars of the assignment and the tolerance of the culture towards aspiness will vary from company to company, or even job-to-job.

I've been exposed to jobs that felt similar to what Aspbite describes. I didn't take those jobs.

I've had pretty good luck in finding positions where much of my work is made up of projects or assignments that I can work on mostly independently. For example, my current job is one where I have a decent-sized list of projects which I need to have done by certain dates...but I'm free to work on whichever one captures my attention at the moment.

Part of being an actuary does involve communicating with others...a skill which takes some extra effort for aspies to master. I've focused my career on working inside insurance companies, rather than at consulting or accounting firms, where I have a more restricted audience, which generally tolerates actuaries being "a little odd", and where others will tend to filter your message if/when it needs to go to a broader group.

My current job is primarily project work for businesses scattered around the country...and I don't have to worry much about the stresses of face-to-face contact. I may fumble phone conversations a bit, but my customers are pretty tolerant of that and my preference for using email rather than the phone.

My prior job was even better suited for Aspergers -- it was an internal research position, where I got to play with data all day. Most of my findings were written up by the unit manager, and those few times where I did have to present on my own, I was expected to be a little odd and not always understandable. For those sorts of meetings, the research folks were expected to have a handler to help facilitate.

Maybe the situation differs somewhat depending on what country you're in...but at least in the States, there seem to be quite a few undiagnosed or closeted aspies in the actuarial profession. Aspies may not be "A-list" or "superstar" actuaries in the mind of the profession, but there's certainly plenty of room for a functioning aspie to have a satisfying, profitable actuarial career, if he/she is willing to put the extra effort and care into finding a compatible employer/assignment.

Crap. And here I thought that I had just found The Perfect Job for me. This is going to make me rethink my decision to leave my good paying job next fall to pursue that degree in actuarial studies. I get so giddy in math classes and I thought having a career as an actuary would bring on that same giddiness. It's disappointing to hear that there is such a large chunk of social interaction involved with being an actuary. Being social is definitely not my specialty. Back to the drawing board.

Thanks for the warning, AspBite.

And Joshandspot, I know just how you feel. All things actuary have become my latest special interest.

I've actually heard a lot of GOOD things about the profession. melissa17b here is actually an actuary and describes the profession in a much more positive light. http://www.wrongplanet.net/postt129311.html

just_some_guy_dave also has a point here about it depending on where you work.

I myself am not giving up on it. This is the best thing I have found for myself as far as professions to train for. I feel I have some pretty good social training just working in a computer lab anyway. I have an advantage I think though, if I can't think of something nice to say, I don't say anything at all so I come off as awkward but polite always. People actually like me (or seem to) and request me specifically at my job. I've really only found my social skills to be disabling when it comes to working in retail.