Actuarial Analyst Apprentice Review

I work in the retirement department of Aon and support consultants with day-to-day jobs such as: individual member calculations, larger scale calculations such as for the valuation of a scheme, and also governance-related jobs relating to GDPR. I have also had involvement with E&O (Errors and Omissions) projects whereby we need to recalculate members' benefits following the discovery of a previous batch of errors, and also work relating to the buy-in and buy-out of schemes, whereby schemes pay a premium to an insurer covering the liabilities of their scheme, so that the insurer takes on the responsibility of paying the benefits to members in the future.

I have become a lot more organised, having to manage my own workload and juggle several tasks at once. I have also improved my presenting skills, having had experience of presenting through my apprenticeship and also through my job in general. I have also improved my written communications skills, writing emails on a daily basis and having experience of drafting reports.

I enjoy the programme very much. There is plenty of support and resources available when I need it and the study / coursework targets are reasonable but firm to ensure you manage your apprenticeship well and complete everything on time. I think there is a good breadth of targets to ensure you get involved with a variety of work.

I feel incredibly valued by Aon. My managed and all colleagues in general are very supportive and committed to aiding my development. Aon also offers many colleague perks such as a free Employee Assistance Programme and Aon Stars (a rewards system) which makes me feel valued and well compensated for working hard.

The programme is well structured in that there are monthly study targets and logbook (coursework) targets to ensure I complete everything I need to on time. The support from my study coach helps keep me organised in this respect, and there is more leniency when going through exams so that the coursework is less demanding.

I receive all the support I need from BPP. My skills coach is excellent at helping me manage my logbook through emails and monthly catch ups, and the tutors are great at helping to support you through exams. The tutorials are very helpful and there is always further help at hand if needed.

I am happy with the support I receive from my employer. My manager has been very helpful at helping me manage my apprenticeship around work and making sure I take advantage of any relevant training opportunities, and also allowing me flexibility where needed to make sure I receive my 20% off the job training.

As an apprentice who doesn't live at home, I have struggled with managing my money including paying rent and bills. That being said it is a very generous apprenticeship starting salary in comparison to other employers, and I have recently received my first pay rise after 18 months which verifies that the hard work I put in is acknowledged and appreciated.

There are some opportunities for networking with other apprentices although these are few and far between and largely related to work. All the opportunities I can think of are involved in work, such as training days and group projects, but I'm not sure what else I would expect from my apprenticeship.

Yes

Aon are a great employer who respect colleagues and genuinely care about colleague wellbeing. The only issue I would have is that, in my location in particular, resource is very stretched and colleagues often have to work long hard days to meet client demands, so work-life balance is difficult sometimes.

Be yourself. While you must be technically competent to pursue a career at Aon, we have a great culture and a diverse and friendly workforce. I feel that Aon are very committed to hiring people who will fit in with this culture, and that this is maybe more important than experience or ability. I would advise anyone who was thinking of applying to Aon to go for it. Our culture is very supportive and flexible which makes it a great company to work for.