I’m sitting at my local mall typing this post. The sloppy snowfall we had on Saturday knocked out all the power in my neighborhood, and specifically internet connections. It may be quite a while before my house is back online
The best way to contact me now is still via email (marypat.campbell@gmail.com), and I will answer ASAP. But ASAP may be slower than usual. I’m probably not going to be able to answer emails in the wee hours of the morning (as I usually do), so please send emails as soon as you have questions.
To flag your emails, please type “TIA AFE:” at the beginning of the subject header, so I can see them right away.
Best wishes on the exam!
Mary Pat Uncategorized
Just a couple more weeks until Fall 2011 sitting of AFE. I want to point out the items in the Review section of the course:
- Exam strategy — general strategy for approaching the exam on exam day itself
- Video problem session — I go over one specific exam problem that a lot of people had trouble with – and talk about strategies of approaching specific problems. Making the exam strategy video more particular
- Case study review — make sure you know what’s in the case study before exam day! Exam day should NOT be the first time you’re reading the case study
- Old exam guide — a lot of the readings have changed over the years, so it’s not a good idea to look at these problems verbatim (and definitely not the solutions). I tried to make as close as possible a connection to new readings on the syllabus that cover old topics. Don’t focus too much on this, as some new topics, like EVT and catastrophe risk, are completely missed. (and I wouldn’t be surprised to see an EVT and/or cat risk question on this sitting)
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Spreadsheet examples — these illustrate three specific readings, if you want to get a feel of how the math works. Obviously, these go beyond what you can do on exam day, but some of the concepts like EVT and Copulas can be difficult if you don’t have a concrete examples to look at.
- Review cards — these are quick cards covering each reading for a quick review of the topics on the exam. You can use this to help you gauge where you’re strong and where you’re weak with respect to recall. If you are very strong on a topic, don’t spend much time in review on it. Use this time to try to shore up where you’re weak.
The best way to contact me is my gmail address: marypat.campbell@gmail.com
Best wishes on the exam!
Mary Pat Uncategorized
I will update this post as errors are found.
I made an error in my original notes for the Extreme Value Theory reading in Section 2/3. I have reuploaded the Section 2/3 notes, and the downloads for that reading (which includes the spreadsheet). The video will continue to show the error for now.
I am aware that the videos for the FSA text chapters 2-4 say “BACKGROUND”, which is not the case in the current syllabus. I am prioritizing producing videos for the new readings, and will revisit those chapters afterwards.
Mary Pat Uncategorized
I have been running behind with getting some of the longer videos produced, so rather than force them to be put up in the current order, some of the smaller, later videos will be going up first.
There will be a second video for study note FE-C177-11 — the sections 1-3 are background, and the rest of the note is testable.
All of the videos for section 2 and 3 will be up by the end of this week.
Mary Pat Uncategorized
I’m re-uploading the new videos from Section 1, due to overly low audio levels.
The content hasn’t changed — so if you see the icon that there’s a new video there (and you had watched it before just fine), then don’t worry about it.
If you are having trouble with the videos – the audio cuts out part of the way through, or the audio level is too high or low, or any issue – please email me ASAP: marypat.campbell@gmail.com – so that I can repair the videos.
Thanks!
Mary Pat Uncategorized
Thought I’d point out this to my students — one of the members of the Actuarial Outpost is starting a google group for studying for AFE for Fall 2011.
This group is for anybody – so people there will not necessarily be students of my online seminar. If you have a question specifically about my seminar, it’s best to email me at marypat.campbell@gmail.com.
To join the google group, you’re going to need to have an AO login, and then send a private message to carsonch with your email address so you can be invited to the group.
Mary Pat Uncategorized
Sorry about the delays, everyone. I had to fix some computer issues (operational risk!), but it seems to be on track now.
The first few new videos are up, and I should be back on schedule by Monday, July 18 (so section 1 should be finished by then).
In addition to the new videos, with each lecture I have a PDF file for the notes that go with the lecture (that’s the green down arrow next to the lesson). When a section is complete, I will be making a single PDF that has all the notes in it, for your convenience.
If you run into any trouble, please email me at marypat.campbell@gmail.com
Happy studying!
Mary Pat Uncategorized
Hello everybody!
This is a reminder that not all the lecture videos are up due to massive changes to the syllabus.
I have put a Suggested Study Schedule in the “Before You Begin” section — I have it starting in July, because I assume that’s when exam results for prior exams will come through, and people will start around then. (And, notice — I have people doing at least a little bit every day — I find slow & steady is the best way with the written exams, as you have a lot of material to absorb, and it’s not all from a single textbook.) Obviously, feel free to adjust the schedule to your own needs. I’ve highlighted the new readings, so you can see how much has changed from the Spring 2010 sitting.
I will be putting up new videos in Section 1 this week, and should be putting up videos pretty evenly from now until the seminar is complete. There may be a pause while I wait for the SOA to put out the case study, but we’ll worry about that when we come to it.
Feel free to contact me if you have any questions. The best way is via email: marypat.campbell@gmail.com.
Mary Pat Uncategorized
Sorry for all the sawdust and scaffolding…. the syllabus has changed a great deal between the last sitting of AFE and the fall 2011 sitting.
Currently, the videos showing are from the prior seminar and are the readings that are continuing on the syllabus. I want to give a caveat, though — chapters 1 – 4 of Financial Statement Analysis are no longer BACKGROUND ONLY, according to the syllabus. I will need to change those particular lectures to reflect that, but in the interim, I have the old lectures up. The content will not change, just the emphasis.
In addition, it seems that the “Download all handouts” link currently has all the old material, and I’m going to have to have that removed for a short period while I fix that.
Later this week, I will be putting up the PDFs for the old lectures, as well as put up a schedule for the readings/videos so you can see when you can expect the new videos.
Sorry for any confusion. Happy studying!
Mary Pat Uncategorized
The last videos are up — a couple worked-out examples of VA guarantee hedging.
In one case (the “full” one), I have a spreadsheet simulation so you can see all the cash flows.
In the other case (the “simple” one), I have a problem that’s more like what could be given on the exam — along with an example of what to do in a multipart problem when you can’t do an early part.
Mary Pat Uncategorized