Luca Pallucchini
Actuarial Science Summer 2018
|
Role
Actuarial Intern (Actuarial Development Program - ADP)
Location
Armonk, NY
When did you work there?
Summer 2018, Fall 2018
Please list your major(s) and minor(s).
Ph.D. in Mathematics
Provide a general description of the work at your internship.
• Developing actuarial database and reports based on RFPs and other data sources
• Creating claim probability distributions from the Truven commercial healthcare dataset using SAS
• Implementing procedures to support costing and experience analysis refinement
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
We collaborated in most of my projects. He was really helpful in explaining how Swiss Re works. He introduced me to many people in the company.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I was interviewed at the AS career reception. I received an offer 2 weeks later.
Were you assigned any special projects?
I did a research on the impact of new kind of drugs on health insurance premium. I used big databases (Truven) and data sciences tools.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay?
They gave me a stipend for housing. It was enough to rent a room (on Airbnb).
Describe the company's internship program
It is a 15 weeks internship. Everyone was really helpful and available to help. The official amount of hours you are supposed to work it is 37.5 hr per week. I usually worked 39-40 hr (they paid extra-time). There were many networking opportunities.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
Yes, it was a really good experience!
Actuarial Intern (Actuarial Development Program - ADP)
Location
Armonk, NY
When did you work there?
Summer 2018, Fall 2018
Please list your major(s) and minor(s).
Ph.D. in Mathematics
Provide a general description of the work at your internship.
• Developing actuarial database and reports based on RFPs and other data sources
• Creating claim probability distributions from the Truven commercial healthcare dataset using SAS
• Implementing procedures to support costing and experience analysis refinement
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
We collaborated in most of my projects. He was really helpful in explaining how Swiss Re works. He introduced me to many people in the company.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I was interviewed at the AS career reception. I received an offer 2 weeks later.
Were you assigned any special projects?
I did a research on the impact of new kind of drugs on health insurance premium. I used big databases (Truven) and data sciences tools.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay?
They gave me a stipend for housing. It was enough to rent a room (on Airbnb).
Describe the company's internship program
It is a 15 weeks internship. Everyone was really helpful and available to help. The official amount of hours you are supposed to work it is 37.5 hr per week. I usually worked 39-40 hr (they paid extra-time). There were many networking opportunities.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
Yes, it was a really good experience!
Jayde Lim Ah Tock
Actuarial Science Summer 2018
|
Role
Actuarial Intern (Actuarial Development Program - ADP)
Location
Armonk, New York
Please list your major(s) and minor(s).
Major: Actuarial Science Minors: Statistics, Management Information Systems
Provide a general description of the work at your internship.
1. My first project involved creating and presenting a consolidated dataset template used in EVM reporting for the Life & Health Actuarial Valuation team, saving at least 20 hours of manual entry work over Q2 and ensuring consistency between various output statements. The tool was created using Excel and I used a lot of mapping, VLookup and HLookup formulas to create it.
2. I also reconciled a report of manual calculations of projections with a report generated by a computer system, proving that the system could be used in the calculation of Gross Premium Valuation with appropriate filters and when run on an appropriate base.
3. I also compared a number of data sources and reports to support a single source of direct comparison between all three valuation bases. This project helped me understand the big picture of how things are related in the valuation process.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
My mentor/supervisor was really helpful in explaining the basic idea behind the different projects. He did not spoon-feed me so that I could think and come up with my own judgement, but he definitely still gave me enough guidance to get going on my projects. I never felt like I was asking too many questions or bothering him. He was always willing to help and to answer questions and provide guidance. He also helped me practice my presentations and gave me wonderful feedback that helped a lot during my presentations to the whole team.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
Introduction to Risk Management (RMI 2901) and Actuarial Modeling 1 (AS 3501) definitely helped me with the basic terminology as I worked in valuation (reserving). I wish that I had taken Actuarial Modeling II (AS 3502) prior to my internship to further enhance my knowledge on the calculation of reserves. I am currently in that class and there are concepts that I am now learning that relate to my internship experience.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I had a screening interview at the Fall 2017 Actuarial Science Career Reception, followed by a 30-minutes on-campus interview (at Temple) the following day. After two weeks, I received a phone call with a verbal offer, followed by a written offer via email a few days later. There were no on-site interviews (at Swiss Re), so it was really important to give a good impression and excel during the on-campus (Temple) interview.
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
I was assigned projects based on the skills listed on my resume. For example, I did not have any coding skills listed on my resume at the time of the Career Reception, so I did not work on projects that involved coding. Another intern had coding skills and was assigned to projects that involved coding. So, they do not assign you to something that you won't be able to do at all. There were also many training materials accessible during my internship that I could use to learn VBA, PowerQuery, PowerPivot, etc.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay?
Swiss Re provided a reasonable stipend to find housing. I went with an AirBnb for three months, and the total costs were within the stipend provided because I looked for housing early, as soon as I accepted the offer in November 2017.
Describe the company's internship program
1. There were weekly interns lunch and learns with high level speakers including the CEO of Swiss Re Americas.
2. There were many information sessions and training sessions, including SOA webcasts.
3. There were two opportunities to attend an Intern Conference in NYC organized by the Brokers Reinsurance Markets Association (BRMA), where I met other interns from other Brokerage and Reinsurance companies and heard a diverse panel of speakers from the industry.
4. There were opportunities to work in other Swiss Re offices and to work from home sometimes.
5. There were many social events organized both by HR and by the team I was part of, including escape rooms, a paint bar, some lunches and dinners, a scavenger hunt in NYC, a walking food tour in Manhattan, and even a kayaking and stand-up paddling session!
7. There was a day of community service that I was able to participate in.
8. There were many networking opportunities.
9. There were many meetings/information sessions via tele-presence where we could see and speak to people in other offices (Toronto, London, Zurich, Dallas, Washington DC, Fort Wayne, etc..) live.
10. The work load was perfect - not too much and not too little. I felt neither bored nor overwhelmed.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
I was very impressed with the diversity and integration at Swiss Re (the diversity of people there exceeded my expectations and really makes the company unique).
Even though I did not get to see the Swiss Re office and campus in Armonk, NY prior to accepting my internship offer, I really enjoyed the atmosphere and environment there and I was impressed with the artwork and the facilities offered at the campus including a nice cafeteria, a fitness center and tennis and basketball courts for employees and interns. The office also offered a great view on a lake and made it an appealing and serene environment to work in.
I had a great experience and it exceeded my overall expectations.
Were you provided time off besides the weekend? I needed a few days off in July for family reasons and Swiss Re was understanding of that. They also gave ADP interns a flexible end date after 12 weeks. Some of us interns worked 12 weeks, others 13, 14 and up to 15 weeks based on preferences and other summer plans. Besides, I enjoyed the flexibility of work hours - it was not really a 9am - 5pm job. I had the flexibility to come earlier/later in the morning and leave earlier/later as long as I worked 7.5 hours a day and made it to the office on time when there were office meetings.
Dress was business casual with jeans allowed on Fridays."
Actuarial Intern (Actuarial Development Program - ADP)
Location
Armonk, New York
Please list your major(s) and minor(s).
Major: Actuarial Science Minors: Statistics, Management Information Systems
Provide a general description of the work at your internship.
1. My first project involved creating and presenting a consolidated dataset template used in EVM reporting for the Life & Health Actuarial Valuation team, saving at least 20 hours of manual entry work over Q2 and ensuring consistency between various output statements. The tool was created using Excel and I used a lot of mapping, VLookup and HLookup formulas to create it.
2. I also reconciled a report of manual calculations of projections with a report generated by a computer system, proving that the system could be used in the calculation of Gross Premium Valuation with appropriate filters and when run on an appropriate base.
3. I also compared a number of data sources and reports to support a single source of direct comparison between all three valuation bases. This project helped me understand the big picture of how things are related in the valuation process.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
My mentor/supervisor was really helpful in explaining the basic idea behind the different projects. He did not spoon-feed me so that I could think and come up with my own judgement, but he definitely still gave me enough guidance to get going on my projects. I never felt like I was asking too many questions or bothering him. He was always willing to help and to answer questions and provide guidance. He also helped me practice my presentations and gave me wonderful feedback that helped a lot during my presentations to the whole team.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
Introduction to Risk Management (RMI 2901) and Actuarial Modeling 1 (AS 3501) definitely helped me with the basic terminology as I worked in valuation (reserving). I wish that I had taken Actuarial Modeling II (AS 3502) prior to my internship to further enhance my knowledge on the calculation of reserves. I am currently in that class and there are concepts that I am now learning that relate to my internship experience.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I had a screening interview at the Fall 2017 Actuarial Science Career Reception, followed by a 30-minutes on-campus interview (at Temple) the following day. After two weeks, I received a phone call with a verbal offer, followed by a written offer via email a few days later. There were no on-site interviews (at Swiss Re), so it was really important to give a good impression and excel during the on-campus (Temple) interview.
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
I was assigned projects based on the skills listed on my resume. For example, I did not have any coding skills listed on my resume at the time of the Career Reception, so I did not work on projects that involved coding. Another intern had coding skills and was assigned to projects that involved coding. So, they do not assign you to something that you won't be able to do at all. There were also many training materials accessible during my internship that I could use to learn VBA, PowerQuery, PowerPivot, etc.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay?
Swiss Re provided a reasonable stipend to find housing. I went with an AirBnb for three months, and the total costs were within the stipend provided because I looked for housing early, as soon as I accepted the offer in November 2017.
Describe the company's internship program
1. There were weekly interns lunch and learns with high level speakers including the CEO of Swiss Re Americas.
2. There were many information sessions and training sessions, including SOA webcasts.
3. There were two opportunities to attend an Intern Conference in NYC organized by the Brokers Reinsurance Markets Association (BRMA), where I met other interns from other Brokerage and Reinsurance companies and heard a diverse panel of speakers from the industry.
4. There were opportunities to work in other Swiss Re offices and to work from home sometimes.
5. There were many social events organized both by HR and by the team I was part of, including escape rooms, a paint bar, some lunches and dinners, a scavenger hunt in NYC, a walking food tour in Manhattan, and even a kayaking and stand-up paddling session!
7. There was a day of community service that I was able to participate in.
8. There were many networking opportunities.
9. There were many meetings/information sessions via tele-presence where we could see and speak to people in other offices (Toronto, London, Zurich, Dallas, Washington DC, Fort Wayne, etc..) live.
10. The work load was perfect - not too much and not too little. I felt neither bored nor overwhelmed.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
I was very impressed with the diversity and integration at Swiss Re (the diversity of people there exceeded my expectations and really makes the company unique).
Even though I did not get to see the Swiss Re office and campus in Armonk, NY prior to accepting my internship offer, I really enjoyed the atmosphere and environment there and I was impressed with the artwork and the facilities offered at the campus including a nice cafeteria, a fitness center and tennis and basketball courts for employees and interns. The office also offered a great view on a lake and made it an appealing and serene environment to work in.
I had a great experience and it exceeded my overall expectations.
Were you provided time off besides the weekend? I needed a few days off in July for family reasons and Swiss Re was understanding of that. They also gave ADP interns a flexible end date after 12 weeks. Some of us interns worked 12 weeks, others 13, 14 and up to 15 weeks based on preferences and other summer plans. Besides, I enjoyed the flexibility of work hours - it was not really a 9am - 5pm job. I had the flexibility to come earlier/later in the morning and leave earlier/later as long as I worked 7.5 hours a day and made it to the office on time when there were office meetings.
Dress was business casual with jeans allowed on Fridays."
Sohan Vijayanagar
Actuarial Science Spring 2017
|
Provide a General Description of the Internship. Include daily tasks completed, the company and its employees, and any other information.
I was given one project to work on for the whole summer. The majority of my time was taken up by working on this project. About a quarter of my time was taken up by speaker series, case studies and technical trainings.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
I had a mentor on my Intern Committee. They provided feedback on how we were doing with participation in the speaker series and other corporate events. We could ask them any questions about the summer or the hiring process, but they were mainly for feedback. I had another mentor outside of the Intern Committee. She was close to may age and was more of a peer mentor. She helped with questions about the transition from college to the workforce and other similar questions that we might not feel comfortable asking the Intern Committee since they had an influence in our hiring decision.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
I thought the material learned in my modeling classes was the most applicable especially the reserving material. Knowing insurance terms and abbreviations helped a lot, and basic knowledge of Excel made it easier when trying to learn Access and working with more advanced skills in Excel.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I had an initial 10 minute interview with the recruiter at the intern reception, and then I had a second round on campus. The second interview lasted around a half hour and was mainly getting to know you questions with a few critical thinking questions like describing an actuarial concept to someone who does not know really anything about math or estimating the number of taxis in New York City. Then I had a super day. I went to Cigna's Philadelphia office for breakfast where I met my interview buddy, who just showed me around all day. After breakfast I had three 45 minute interviews, first with the AEDP program director and then other senior directors. Finally I had a lunch interview. It took only a few days to find out about the super day and about my internship offer. I had to apply online after my second round interview and then they sent my offer through their employee portal which I needed to accept online.
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
I had one side project that I worked on briefly throughout the summer. It was adding a new feature into Cigna's manual underwriting tool for their European/global healthcare business. I worked on the excel version of the underwriting tool and had to use both Access and VBA to complete the task.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay? (Internship Lunches, Housing, Sports Games, Happy Hours, etc.)
We had some work haProvide a General Description of the Internship. Include daily tasks completed, the company and its employees, and any other information.
Did a lot of reading. Learned to draft a reinsurance treaty. Made a presentation on experience studies. Worked on a claims project.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
The organization was flat so I was free to reach out to any member of the team for help.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
Yes. I believe AS 3501 (Actuarial Modeling 1) helped me grasp certain L&H reinsurance topics with ease
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
Applied via email. Two Phone Interviews
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
Worked with an actuarial trainee to provide an experience study report by gathering actual and expected values from SAS data tables onto a pivot table on MS Excel. Compiled claims data for approximately 40 companies from 12 countries using SAS
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay? (Internship Lunches, Housing, Sports Games, Happy Hours, etc.)
Lunches, Hotel Stay, Airline Travel Expense etc.
Describe the company's internship program(atmosphere, work load, work, housing, outside work activities, etc.).
I was assigned a lot of reading to understand reinsurance. Atmosphere was casual and the organization was relatively flat
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
Yes
Were you provided time off besides the weekend?
Yes. 1.5 flex days per month
If you had to relocate, describe the process of adapting to a new city.
It took me a while
ppy hours and went to a Phillies game. We were also given the opportunity to purchase one manual at Cigna's expense and were provided housing.
Describe the company's internship program(atmosphere, work load, work, housing, outside work activities, etc.).
The internship was a fun experience. Everyone was very approachable even people who were three or four levels above me. They were willing to answer any questions over coffee or go to lunch. The community was very close knit. We had trainings for both Excel and Access. We also had a speaker series which touched on all the different segments and roles within Cigna that actuaries typically hold. Finally there was a series of case competitions to help simulate real business situations that Cigna faces. There was definitely a steep learning curve but the work load was not unbearable and my manager was a great resource.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
Yes
Were you provided time off besides the weekend?
We were not given time off because our internship was such a short period of time.
I was given one project to work on for the whole summer. The majority of my time was taken up by working on this project. About a quarter of my time was taken up by speaker series, case studies and technical trainings.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
I had a mentor on my Intern Committee. They provided feedback on how we were doing with participation in the speaker series and other corporate events. We could ask them any questions about the summer or the hiring process, but they were mainly for feedback. I had another mentor outside of the Intern Committee. She was close to may age and was more of a peer mentor. She helped with questions about the transition from college to the workforce and other similar questions that we might not feel comfortable asking the Intern Committee since they had an influence in our hiring decision.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
I thought the material learned in my modeling classes was the most applicable especially the reserving material. Knowing insurance terms and abbreviations helped a lot, and basic knowledge of Excel made it easier when trying to learn Access and working with more advanced skills in Excel.
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
I had an initial 10 minute interview with the recruiter at the intern reception, and then I had a second round on campus. The second interview lasted around a half hour and was mainly getting to know you questions with a few critical thinking questions like describing an actuarial concept to someone who does not know really anything about math or estimating the number of taxis in New York City. Then I had a super day. I went to Cigna's Philadelphia office for breakfast where I met my interview buddy, who just showed me around all day. After breakfast I had three 45 minute interviews, first with the AEDP program director and then other senior directors. Finally I had a lunch interview. It took only a few days to find out about the super day and about my internship offer. I had to apply online after my second round interview and then they sent my offer through their employee portal which I needed to accept online.
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
I had one side project that I worked on briefly throughout the summer. It was adding a new feature into Cigna's manual underwriting tool for their European/global healthcare business. I worked on the excel version of the underwriting tool and had to use both Access and VBA to complete the task.
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay? (Internship Lunches, Housing, Sports Games, Happy Hours, etc.)
We had some work haProvide a General Description of the Internship. Include daily tasks completed, the company and its employees, and any other information.
Did a lot of reading. Learned to draft a reinsurance treaty. Made a presentation on experience studies. Worked on a claims project.
Did you have a mentor?
Yes
If so, how did he/she help you during your internship?
The organization was flat so I was free to reach out to any member of the team for help.
Did you feel your RMI/AS classes better prepared you for the internship?
Yes. I believe AS 3501 (Actuarial Modeling 1) helped me grasp certain L&H reinsurance topics with ease
Interviewing/Hiring Process Comments:
Applied via email. Two Phone Interviews
Were you assigned any special projects? If so please describe.
Worked with an actuarial trainee to provide an experience study report by gathering actual and expected values from SAS data tables onto a pivot table on MS Excel. Compiled claims data for approximately 40 companies from 12 countries using SAS
What were the supplemental benefits besides the pay? (Internship Lunches, Housing, Sports Games, Happy Hours, etc.)
Lunches, Hotel Stay, Airline Travel Expense etc.
Describe the company's internship program(atmosphere, work load, work, housing, outside work activities, etc.).
I was assigned a lot of reading to understand reinsurance. Atmosphere was casual and the organization was relatively flat
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
Yes
Were you provided time off besides the weekend?
Yes. 1.5 flex days per month
If you had to relocate, describe the process of adapting to a new city.
It took me a while
ppy hours and went to a Phillies game. We were also given the opportunity to purchase one manual at Cigna's expense and were provided housing.
Describe the company's internship program(atmosphere, work load, work, housing, outside work activities, etc.).
The internship was a fun experience. Everyone was very approachable even people who were three or four levels above me. They were willing to answer any questions over coffee or go to lunch. The community was very close knit. We had trainings for both Excel and Access. We also had a speaker series which touched on all the different segments and roles within Cigna that actuaries typically hold. Finally there was a series of case competitions to help simulate real business situations that Cigna faces. There was definitely a steep learning curve but the work load was not unbearable and my manager was a great resource.
Was the internship what you expected after the interviewing/hiring process?
Yes
Were you provided time off besides the weekend?
We were not given time off because our internship was such a short period of time.