Actuarial Sciences deals with the financial outcomes of random and unforeseen events such as birth, death, illnesses, disability and retirement, which affect people's lives, and disasters and occurrences such as fire, accidents, earthquake, flood and theft which affect people's properties. Actuaries are trained to analyze the risks that cause such events, to predict the probabilities and to build up security programs which decrease the financial effects of these events.

Every person and foundation can be exposed to different kinds of risks. As actuaries are experts in measuring and managing these risks, they highly contribute to the wellbeing of society in terms of physical and economic conditions. It is likely to encounter undesirable economic consequences unless the actuaries' advices have not been taken into account.

The aim of the actuarial education is to train creative, contemporary actuary candidates who are equipped with actuarial mathematics, statistics, mathematics, insurance, computer applications, economics and finance; supported by social sciences courses such as sociology, philosophy and psychology and who can use all information in all relevant cases when necessary.

In the 4-year Actuarial Sciences Undergraduate Program, students take mathematics, statistics, computer and economics oriented courses first. Then; expertise courses such as financial mathematics, actuarial mathematics, risk theory, mathematics of life and non-life insurance, pension mathematics, loss models, actuarial software and actuarial applications are taught. Students can also get minor degrees from departments such as Statistics and Business or Economics.

Candidates who want to be an actuary must have good knowledge of mathematics, statistics and finance. These candidates should also be interested in finance and doing mathematical analyses by using computer programs. They should be open minded and enterprising in nature.

Although actuaries can work in all fields which are related to economy, they mostly work in financial sectors, insurance and advisory firms, commercial banks, investment banks, investment firms and in public institutions such as the Social Security Administration and Undersecretary of Treasury as an expert.

Graduates can get the title of "Actuary" and have signing authority by taking national or international actuarial exams and by fulfilling the requirements of the "Code of Actuaries". As long as actuaries improve themselves in mathematics, statistics, economy, computer programming, finance, legislation, accountancy and insurance, working areas for actuaries are rather broad. Actuary occupation takes its place among the first five occupations in top ten in terms of money, prestige and job satisfaction in the USA and in Europe.

Since the actuary occupation is not well known by the society there are some difficulties in getting actuarial education. On the other hand; there is a need for actuaries in the society; therefore the occupation takes its place among the desired occupations around the world.