What is the actuarial graduate program?
Sun Life Financial has developed a supportive environment that gives aspiring actuaries the resources they need to be successful. Sun Life's Actuarial Development Program is a great way for you to:
Accelerate your leadership development
- You'll learn directly from business leaders you work alongside and see how we lead as actuaries to help drive business success.
- You'll participate in a rotational program and get the opportunity to experience different areas of our business.
Make an impact that matters in the real world
- Here is your chance to work on real, challenging problems that have a direct impact on the results and success of both our company and our clients.
- We will look to you to help solve problems that don't always have an easy or existing answer and require new and innovative solutions.
Collaborate with other high performers in a supportive team environment
- We have a great team with diverse backgrounds and we continue to look for more great members.
- You'll get support from colleagues who have gone through the program already; colleagues become friends and allies.
- We work in a fun, open and collaborative environment.
Program requirements
To participate in the Actuarial Development Program, you must:
- Be working in a job recognized as an actuarial analyst position
- Demonstrate the intention to enroll in the qualifying actuarial exam coursework
- Maintain satisfactory progress toward completing the entire curriculum
- Maintain satisfactory work performance
Preparing for the exams
As an actuarial analyst in the program, you'll get the opportunity to rotate among different areas within Sun Life. This way, you'll gain exposure to different fields of actuarial work and find the area that's most interesting – and most suited – to you.
The Actuarial Development Program will help you pass the actuarial exams and develop the skills necessary for success in the actuarial field. Jointly sponsored by the Society of Actuaries and the Canadian Institute of Actuaries, this is an intense series of exams that require dedication, commitment and the discipline to maximize study time. You'll receive time off from work to study, compensation incentives for passing exams and exam fee reimbursement.
Student opportunities
In addition to our full-time actuarial staff, we also provide opportunities for co-ops and internships by offering roles that are geared towards students currently enrolled in a university program. You'll work on quality projects and gain valuable insight into the challenges and opportunities the actuarial profession can offer. Get a head start on your career – and start developing the skills you'll need before you graduate.
Professional development
Passing the exams is the foundation of your actuarial development, but that's just the beginning. Sun Life sponsors our actuarial staff to attend professional meetings, seminars, conferences and classes in order to support continued professional development and relationship building with actuaries from other companies. Sun Life values its employees' dedication to the profession.
Actuarial student and new grad profiles
Example of roles available in the Actuarial Graduate Program
This role provides an excellent opportunity for an individual with leadership characteristics to help tie together the medical research and actuarial modelling work that the Longevity Team is doing and to create solutions directly driving the success of our business.
Main Accountabilities:
- Longevity research
- Stay abreast of global longevity research (medical, environmental, social, etc.) and evaluate this research to determine its impact on Sun Life's view of future longevity
- Advance internal and external advocacy efforts including drafting internal distributions and external publications on longevity, supporting presentations to the Longevity Leadership Group, and participating in industry committees
- Actuarial best practices
- Stay abreast of emerging industry trends and longevity modelling techniques
- Contribute to the investigation and evaluation of longevity projection models and data sources
- Support risk management initiatives, including risk metric development and internal risk structuring projects
- Transaction support
- Support custom longevity underwriting for group annuity and longevity insurance transactions
- Prepare analysis and recommendations and share final results with the DBS Pricing Team
- Model development
- Use predictive modelling to continuously advance the longevity underwriting methodology used in the pricing of group annuity and longevity insurance products
- Create and maintain longevity models that reflect industry best practices
- Use these models to conduct longevity assumption reviews
The employee will play a key role in the development of the evolving framework, models and tools required for the actuarial support of group annuity product initiatives and ongoing management and analysis of annuity product portfolio including Guaranteed Income Annuity (GIA), Guaranteed Minimum Withdrawal Benefit (GMWB) and Defined Benefit Solutions products such as annuity buy-outs, annuity buy-ins and longevity insurance.
Main Accountabilities:
Portfolio Management: Support financial analysis and reporting of group annuity products including Source of Earnings and Canadian Asset Liability Method (CALM) testing
- Business Planning: Provide support in business planning processes and in other financial planning and projections, including actuarial appraisal value
- Collaboration: Provide support and partner with other members of the GRS Actuarial team as well as the GRS Finance, GRS Admin and Defined Benefit Solutions teams for other activities including any ad-hoc requests and special projects
- Model Improvements: Proactively drive model, process, methodology and documentation improvements by conducting innovative research to identify existing issues and to recommend and implement enhancements.
Main Accountabilities:
- Responsible for the accurate and timely delivery of group annuity and longevity insurance quotations, which includes preparing analysis and recommendations to the Director, Pricing
- Draft e-mail communications for pension consultants and plan sponsors to clarify various pricing issues and considerations for payout annuity and longevity insurance purchases
- Design, maintain, and improve pricing models
- Provide analytical and technical support to group annuity administration as required
- Support the development of customized quotations and intellectual capital
- Support the pricing and profitability reviews of existing products in accordance with the product design and pricing approval process
- Support the development and design of new products as required
- Stay abreast of market longevity trends and regulatory changes that may impact existing pricing initiatives
- Implement assumption and model changes
- Suggest and implement process improvements
- Maintain procedural documentation
Frequently asked questions
If you're an actuarial student or fellow interested in a future with Sun Life Financial, you may be curious about a few of these topics:
As soon as you start working at Sun Life Financial, you will be paired up with a more experienced actuarial student who will assist you in navigating the actuarial student program, introduce you to other actuarial students and answer questions you have about Sun Life Financial.
The Actuarial Community hosts meetings and forums each year sponsored by the Chief Actuary. Community meetings are used for general news and information-sharing, while forums are used as teaching sessions for advanced topics. Typically, each meeting is followed by a social session where students and fellows get together and network.
In addition to the work-related events, there are also social events throughout the year, such as sporting events, pub nights and exam celebrations. These are great opportunities to get to know other students and actuaries across the company.
Please consult your recruiter for details.
- well-rounded both in academics and extra-curricular activities
- strong academic performers
- demonstrably committed to passing actuarial exams
- technically inclined
- solid leaders and communicators
- fast learners,
- decisive and get positive results
- work well with others
Follow us on Instagram
Follow us on Twitter
Join us on Facebook
Watch our videos on YouTube
Still in school? Connect with us through our Sun Life Student Connect Group on LinkedIn.