When considering undergraduate courses for college, every student has been through the trouble of selecting the right discipline of studies. This is a concern prevailing and repeating for every academic year as there haven’t been any substantial developments in terms of aligning the regular courses with professional training.

This has been one of the reasons why students pursue dual education streams which helps them in attaining professional qualifications along with their academic studies. But this process hinders their overall development and consumes a lot of time since a huge pool of students undertake distance learning for professional courses. This leads to poor interpersonal skills and students also miss out on the interactive and integrated approach of classroom education.

There has been an observation of lack in quality of bachelor’s and master’s degree courses, especially in the technical education domain where students must choose from the options not suitable to their acumen and sometimes, preference as well.

There is a need to prepare these students in such a way where their future professional development inversely affects the growth of their personality. To fulfill this requirement, a prominent institution in India has started availing courses in Actuarial and Quantitative Studies.

Established in 2018, the Institute of Actuarial and Quantitative Studies (IAQS) is a chief instructive foundation helping students to pursue Actuarial Science and Quantitative Finance studies in India through a formal education system.

The Bachelor’s degree to students is presented by the University of Mumbai. This curated degree is a special mix of Actuarial Science and Mathematical Finance catering to its developing interdependencies. From the past few years, IAQS has seen a tremendous upsurge in the need for measurable information in the finance related field and simultaneously developing actuarial open doors in the quantitative finance space. Its campus is situated in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

IAQS’s mission is to provide supreme and outreaching training in the stream of Actuarial Science and Quantitative Finance extensively utilized in the BFSI business and to mitigate any issues prevailing in the educational sector and enhance career opportunities.

The institute’s vision is to change the learning experience of understudies and shed a spotlight on the all-encompassing turn of events including the sustenance of learned pioneers. “Our objective is to master the necessary skills to gain a comprehensive foundation and ensuring depth in the field of Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance (BFSI) industry,” shares the staff of IAQS.

Benevolent Personalities

IAQS’s Program Director is Akash Rughani. His experience curtails in providing end-to-end services in the Actuarial and Data Science stream. He has also been mentoring young actuarial and financial analyst aspirants for the last eight years. This teaching experience has enabled Akash to understand and solve different gaps in the existing education system. “At IAQS, the courses have been developed to sync education with the realities of the industry and compliment professional qualifications. They are designed to impart knowledge coupled with holistic development,” says Akash.

To support the strategic progression of the course and to keep up with the latest changes in the industry, IAQS has come up with an Advisory Board Panel. The panel includes eminent members from the BFSI sector, who, with their valuable inputs help the institute create a strong curriculum. Its panel members include names like Thomas Mathew. He is the Former Chairman-in-charge and Managing Director (MD), LIC of India, and Ex-member of the Quality Review Board (Institute of Actuaries of India).

The panel also comprises of respected personnel like Nilesh Shah, Managing Director of Kotak AMC Ltd. He is also the Chairman of AMFI and a member of the PM Economic Advisory Council.

Another name on the list is D Sivandhan. He is a retired IPS Officer and Ex. Commissioner of Police, Mumbai. Also, JV Prasad is the Director of FIAI (Willis Towers Watson) and Ex. appointed Actuary of ICICI Lombard. Dr. Pratibha Jain is the Founder and Managing Director and Edu-aboard Consultant. She is also one of the prominent personalities of IAQS.

The other two names on the institute’s board are Rajesh Khairajani who is a Partner in KNAV International and Inde-Global Advisory, and Sauvik Banerjee, who is CTO of Tata Digital, Author and also a TEDx speaker, respectively.

These experts guide the students to have a perspective of workplace realities and help them better relate and connect to the knowledge imparted. They make the students aware of various concepts relating to their curriculum, in a more informed way by sharing their real-life experiences with the students. This helps students to expand their knowledge and understanding to a much higher level.

A Distinctive Curriculum

Institute of Actuarial and Quantitative Studies offers a bachelor’s degree in Actuarial Science and Quantitative Finance (B.Sc. in ASQF). It is granted by the University of Mumbai, which is recognized worldwide. This full-time 3-year Degree operates on three conspicuous verticals, namely, Actuarial Science, Data Science, and Quantitative Finance. Enabling students, a road of learning, this degree targets to impart information through top industry specialists and all the while shaping a student’s relational aptitudes.

The curriculum inculcates proficient courses like Actuarial Science, CFA, FRM and CAIA, and at the finish of the penultimate year; students need to finish a required internship and furthermore select electives for specialization.

The students must clear an entrance exam for seeking admission into the course. This selection test is called the Quantitative Aptitude Test (QAT). The individuals who clear this passage followed by a personal interview, get inducted into their selected course. IAQS permits all students to apply for this program. There is no restriction on the basis of science, arts, or commerce. All students with an aptitude for mathematics, finance, risk, and investment can apply for the course. All students who have cleared HSC (Science/Commerce/Arts) or any other equivalent examinations such as ISC, A-levels, etc. are all eligible to appear from the entrance exam.

Student-life Dynamics at IAQS

Students at IAQS are urged to seek after humanitarian effort, submit and offer back to society. Students extend themselves to various areas of society in activities such as beach clean-up, visiting Gaushalas, and teaching underprivileged kids, etc.

Having a degree with global education, students become fully competent for job roles in various fields like Actuarial Science, Investment Banking, Risk Management, Risk Modelling, Equity Research, Asset – Liability Management, Data Science, Financial Analysis, and Economics.

It can rightly be said that IAQS is one of the premier institutes in India providing a new set of courses that broadens the career perspectives of students in this new-age world.