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Mestrado inActuarial Science

ISEG presents a master’s degree for people who want to make a difference in the insurance world.

Our Masters in Actuarial Science offers students the chance to get a solid academic foundation in up-to-date actuarial knowledge, statistics and finance, providing them with the skills and background required to become successful actuaries.

We designed our master’s programme, which is fully accredited by the UK’s Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) and listed by the US Society of Actuaries SoA) to cover the new IFoA syllabus, which now has a strong computational component. Our sylabus covers the core syllabi of the Actuarial Association of Europe and the International Actuarial Association, with a fee minor exceptions, related to concepts that must be coverd by the professional association.

EY Merit Award
Prize and internship awarded by EY to the best Portuguese student admitted to the Master’s in Actuarial Science.
Recognition
Ranked no. 10 in the World Top 50 Global Ranking 2024 in Insurance and Actuarial Sciences
Accreditation
Acreditação
Duration
4 semesters
Schedule
Daytime Classes
Taught in
English
Numerus Clausus
25
Need some help?
Please send us an email to

Top 7 reasons to do the Master’s in Actuarial Science

01

It’s one of the few non-British programmes fully accredited by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) in the UK. The new IFoA curriculum has been adopted since the 2018/19 school year. The master’s is also on the UCAP list of the Society of Actuaries (SOA) in the USA.

02

This programme provides in-depth coverage of the most up-to-date actuarial knowledge and skills that actuaries are required to use.

03

ISEG’s Masters in Actuarial Science is one of the 50 best masters in insurance according to the Eduniversal Best Masters ranking (currently ranked at no. 10).

04

ISEG has excellent modern facilities, including an extensive library, which is remarkably complete in Actuarial Science. Students have access to study rooms available during prolonged hours.

05

ISEG has a group of lecturers whose achievements in international research are on a par with the best international schools of Actuarial Science. Some of them are practitioner actuaries. Our academic staff is dedicated and always willing to support and advise students.

06

As success in the professional world is not just about passing exams and gaining exemptions, ISEG helps students acquire other skills. Research seminars, seminars with speakers from the industry organised by the ISEG Actuarial Science Club, a career development programme, and a career development team, which provides counselling services, are also at students’ disposal.

07

This programme offers many internship opportunities, an advantage when students apply for jobs.

10 things you’ll gain by joining ISEG

An outstanding faculty and benchmark research centres are responsible for placing ISEG at the forefront of Economics, Management and Finance.
Top 10 Reasons

The Next Step in Your Career

Your partner in achieving your career goals. Our consultants guarantee you all the necessary support, helping you prepare for your job search or find an internship.
Career Office

Broaden your horizons.

Our mobility programs allow students to explore any part of the world while studying abroad for a semester.
International Mobility Office
shape

Top 3 in the world

An ISEG team of students of the Actuarial Science Masters programme is in the top 3 of the world competition Student Research Case Study Challenge 2019, promoted by the American Society of Actuaries (SOA), repeating the result of the 2018 Challenge.

If you want to know more about ISEG’s Masters in Actuarial Science, let us help you:

After finishing my bachelor’s studies, I wanted to pursue a masters programme in Actuarial Science that could expand my knowledge and broaden my horizons as much as possible. Finding this Masters fulfilled my demand! During my two years at ISEG, I was more than satisfied with the professors who were at the same time experts in their fields, humble, and caring! Additionally, living in Lisbon was a very joyful experience! I can confidently say that the masters gave me a solid background in both Actuarial Science’s theoretical and practical aspects. I could see this during my last two internships and my PhD studies so far. In fact, this program is highly regarded by the academic and industrial sectors, as I have received several job offers and have been admitted to a PhD program in Actuarial Science without any additional requirement. Today, I can proudly say I made an optimal investment in these two years of my life!
Rodrigue Kazzi

Programme Details

The Masters in Actuarial Science requires a solid academic background in Mathematical Analysis, Probability and Statistics. This typically implies holding a bachelor’s degree, either national or foreign, in Mathematics, Mathematics with Economics, Statistics or some of the bachelor’s degrees in Economics, Finance or Management.

Applicants from other fields will be considered on a case-by-case basis. According to Article 17d) of Decree-Law No. 74/2006 of 24 March, other applications will also be considered, should they be deemed appropriate by the selection jury based on a curricular analysis.

Students in the final year of the 1st Cycle can apply by presenting the certificates of those Course Units already completed, subject to concluding the degree.

The admission and ranking of the candidates are explained in the Admission Regulation Document.


Syllabus

Year 1 – Semester 1Credits
Computation Tools for Actuaries (IFoA: CS1 -10%)4
Financial Markets and Investments (IFoA: CM2 -40%)6
Financial Mathematics (IFoA: CM1 -45%)6
Probability and Stochastic Processes (IFoA: CS1 -15%; CS2 -30%)8
Risk Models (IFoA: CS1 -35%)6
Year 1 – Semester 2Credits
Generalised Linear Models (IFoA: CS1 – 30%; CS2 – 10%)4
Loss Reserving (IFoA: CM2 – 10%)4
Risk Theory (IFoA: CS2 – 15%; CM2 – 10%)8
Survival Models and Life Contingencies (IFoA: CM1 – 55%)8
Time Series (IFoA: CS2 – 20%)6
Year 2 – Semester 1Credits
Models in Finance (IFoA: CM2 – 40%)6
Solvency Models4
Electives
Actuarial Data Science
Actuarial Topics (IFoA: CS2 – 25%)
Asset-Liability Management
 Finance and Financial Reporting (IFoA: CB1- 100%)
Pension Funds
Ratemaking and Experience Rating (IFoA: CS1 – 10%)

4
6
4
6
4
4
Year 2 – Semester 2Credits
Master’s Final Work – MFW
Dissertation
Project
Internship
30

*Students must pass a total of 18 CREDITS in elective units.

See the description of each Curricular Units here.

Duration
4 semesters
Schedule
Daytime Classes
Taught in
English
Numerus Clausus
25
Need some help?
Please send us an email to

Admissions & Fees

Applications for all masters at ISEG are online.


Admissions Requirements

Candidates for the Master in Actuarial Science are:

  • The Masters in Actuarial Science requires a solid academic background in Mathematical Analysis, Probability and Statistics. This normally implies holding a bachelor’s degree, either national or foreign institutions, in Mathematics, Mathematics with Economics, Statistics or some of the bachelor’s degrees in Economics, Finance or Management. Applicants from other fields will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
  • In accordance with Article 17 d) of Decree-Law No. 74/2006 of the 24th of March, altered and republished as Decree-Law No. 65/2018 of the 16th August, other applications considered to be appropriate by the selection panel will be evaluated on the basis of a curricular analysis.
  • Those students who have not yet completed the 1st Study Cycle (Bachelors) are eligible to apply conditionally, provided that they satisfy the conditions for obtaining the degree by the end of September (of the same academic year as their application).

Ranking and Selection Criteria

The Masters Scientific Commission will attribute a classification grade (calculated as described in the following section) to the students that meet the pre-requisites, based on their final grades of the 1st Cycle, and also on the curricular analysis, and sometimes by an interview.

Students with an attributed classification grade higher than 12.5 points will be considered for ranking, which is made according to that grade. Students with a grade higher than 14.5 points may be accepted in advance of the ranking.

Calculation of the attributed classification grade

  1. The application grade is derived from 4 sources:
  1. Average Final Grade of the 1st Cycle, taking into consideration the University attended and the Degree studied. Accordingly, a coefficient University/Degree is attributed (ranging from 0.8 to 1.2). The score is obtained by multiplying the average grade of the degree, on a scale of O to 20, after it has been standardized, by the respective coefficient.
  2. Bonus/penalty for grades of specific subjects. After evaluating those grades obtained in CUs that are considered to be fundamental for studying the Masters (namely: Mathematical Analysis, Probabilities, and Statistics), the jury may award a bonus or penalty based on the university attended and the grade obtained in these disciplines when compared with the average of the 1st Cycle. This score ranges from -2 to 2 points.
  3. The candidate’s further academic education can result in an extra score, ranging from 0 to 2 points.
  4. The candidate’s professional experience in areas relevant to the Masters can also be recognized by a score ranging from 0 to 2 points.
  5. As this Masters attracts students from various education systems, the final average grade of the 1st Cycle will be standardized on a scale of O to 20. This standardization of grades takes into account the type of education attended and possibly also information regarding percentiles. As an example, the table below shows the equivalence with British grades (used in many countries) and North American ones. This is merely illustrative, as in many cases the students’ transcripts contain information that helps attribute a more accurate conversion.

Application Documents

  • Certificate of the undergraduate degree
  • Academic Transcript
  • Curriculum Vitae
  • Motivation Letter
  • English Diploma (optional)
  • Reference Letter (optional)

All candidates should have an excellent command of the English language, written and spoken.


Tuition Fee

These are provisional tuition fees for 2024/25, subject to confirmation by the Universidade de Lisboa statutory bodies.

Students from    First Year Second Year Total
Within the European Union€ 3,500€ 2,000 € 5,500
Outside the European Union     € 4,500 € 2,500   € 7,000

Financial restrictions should never come in the way of your access to higher education, and that is why we believe in providing equal opportunities for everyone.

A specific tuition fee payment schedule may be agreed upon request by the student.


Student Visa

If you are not an EU, EEA, or Swiss citizen, you need a Student VISA.
Once you have decided to join the master’s programme and paid the 1st tuition fee to secure your place, you can issue the acceptance letter on the FENIX Portal. This document will be needed later to apply for a Student Visa. The student visa must be requested at the nearest Portuguese Embassy or Consular Office in the country of origin.

Duration
4 semesters
Schedule
Daytime Classes
Taught in
English
Numerus Clausus
25
Need some help?
Please send us an email to
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