The Government Actuary's Department (GAD) is both a government department and an actuarial consulting firm, operating along commercial lines.
There are actuaries in public sector roles in many countries, but nowhere else is there such a strong concentration of actuarial talent within a government department, and nowhere else does the Government Actuary advise on such a comprehensive range of topics.
The Government Actuary's Department provides an actuarial consultancy service to the public sector. Advice is provided in many fields where actuarial skills play an important part, including social security, employee pension arrangements and statistical studies. GAD also advise overseas insurance industry regulators.
A wide breadth of experience is offered, from assisting in the formulation of government policies which may affect millions of people to making recommendations on the terms of a financial settlement involving a single individual. While the department's main clients are government departments in the United Kingdom, advice is increasingly being given to governments and other organisations in other parts of the world.
The work includes investigations, analytical work and advice to clients on a wide variety of actuarial, financial and statistical subjects and involves frequent contact with clients, including other government departments and public bodies.
The work of the Government Actuary's Department is varied, and you will be given the opportunity to broaden your experience by working in different areas.
As a Trainee Actuary, you will work directly with fully qualified actuaries and acquire professional expertise by working on current assignments in the department while studying for professional examinations using a combination of correspondence courses, personal study, discussion classes and tutorials. You must be prepared to apply yourself to a demanding course of study over a period of several years. As a Trainee Actuary, you will be given substantial support with study leave, work experience, counselling and course and examination fees, to enable you to obtain your professional qualifications as quickly as possible.
