I was interviewed for a co-op/internship position at The Personal Insurance Company just outside Toronto. It was my third work term of six work terms, and I was going into the interview with no prior actuarial experience and with the intent of writing my first SOA Exam P in May. I was the fifth of sixth candidates being interviewed for the position.

I was interviewed by one FSA and one HR representative. The interview went on for about 35 minutes or so. The first 15 minutes was essentially a sales pitch, with the HR rep. selling the company, telling me how great the company was to work for etc. All in all, I was impressed by his presentation.

The actual interview was about 20 minutes. Each person asked me the standard questions. What are your strengths? What are your areas of development? I thought I answered all the questions confidently, we exchanged jokes, and I established a good rapport with the FSA and the HR rep in particular. At the end the HR guy hinted something to the effect of “we’d like to have you join us” and I was confident that I would secure the job.

Much to my dismay, I was disheartened to learn that I was not ranked for the position, so I presume the last candidate performed better at the interview.

Now it's my time to turn the table on to you guys - how did your very first Actuarial interview go?