Choosing between a life insurance and a non-life insurance actuarial internship can feel like standing at a crossroads, especially when you’re just starting out. Both paths offer valuable experiences and career prospects, but they differ quite a bit in day-to-day work, the skills you’ll develop, and the industries you’ll impact. Having been through actuarial internships myself and spoken to many peers, I want to share insights that can help you make an informed choice and get the most out of your internship.
At its core, the life insurance actuarial path revolves around assessing risks related to human life and health. You’re dealing with products like life insurance policies, annuities, pensions, and health insurance plans. The work typically involves predicting mortality rates, policy lapses, and health trends to help companies set premiums and reserves. Because life insurance often involves long-term contracts, much of the analysis is about projecting financial outcomes many years down the line. This means you’ll use a lot of statistical modeling, mortality tables, and assumptions about future demographic changes. For example, you might analyze how changing life expectancy or advances in medical technology could impact the company’s liabilities. This path tends to attract people who enjoy deep analytical work combined with the satisfaction of helping individuals and families plan for the future[1][2].
On the flip side, non-life (or general) insurance covers a broad range of risks like property damage, automobile accidents, liability claims, and natural disasters. The work here is often more fast-paced because claims and losses occur more frequently and can be more unpredictable. Actuaries in this space analyze data to price policies for homeowners, drivers, and businesses, often adjusting for regional risks like flood zones or crime rates. For example, after a hurricane, a non-life actuary might assess the financial impact on insurance claims and help set reserves to cover those losses. The focus is often on short- to medium-term events, and you’ll get hands-on experience with catastrophe modeling, claims analysis, and risk management strategies. It’s a great path if you like working with diverse data sets and enjoy seeing how your work directly affects the company’s ability to respond to real-world events[2][4].
When it comes to internships, life insurance programs often emphasize long-term financial modeling and product development. You might find yourself working on projects to refine mortality assumptions or develop pricing models for new annuity products. For example, an intern at a life insurance company might analyze historical mortality data to improve the accuracy of future premium calculations, ensuring the company remains financially stable over decades. These internships can also involve collaboration with finance and marketing teams, giving you a broad perspective on how actuarial work supports business goals[1][6].
Non-life insurance internships, meanwhile, often immerse you in data analysis related to claims frequency, severity, and emerging risks like climate change. You may be tasked with building predictive models that estimate the likelihood of certain types of claims or calculating the reserves needed to cover recent disasters. For instance, after a major storm, you could help evaluate the potential claim costs and advise on appropriate premium adjustments. These internships usually expose you to a variety of insurance lines, from auto to commercial liability, and often require quick, data-driven decisions[4][5].
If you’re wondering which path might suit you best, here are some practical considerations:
Interest in long-term vs short-term risk: If you enjoy thinking about financial impacts spanning decades, life insurance is a natural fit. If you prefer quicker feedback cycles and dynamic risk environments, non-life might appeal more.
Type of data and modeling: Life insurance work involves actuarial models based on mortality and morbidity tables, often with a financial focus. Non-life actuaries work with more diverse datasets, including environmental, economic, and claims data, requiring flexible modeling approaches.
Career flexibility: About half of actuaries work in life and health insurance, making it a large and stable sector. Non-life insurance also offers many opportunities, especially as risks evolve with climate and technology changes. Additionally, actuaries are increasingly branching into non-traditional roles outside insurance, so gaining broad skills early can be an advantage[2][3].
Work environment and pace: Life insurance actuarial work is often methodical and project-based, while non-life actuarial work can be more fast-paced, reacting to real-time events like natural disasters or economic shifts.
For those applying to internships, a few actionable tips can help you stand out and make the most of your experience:
Be open to both paths: Early in your career, flexibility can open doors. Even if you have a preference, applying to both life and non-life insurance internships can increase your chances of landing a spot and discovering unexpected interests[5].
Develop strong technical skills: Excel, VBA, SQL, and programming languages like R or Python are valuable in both paths. Showing that you can handle data manipulation and build models will set you apart.
Ask about mentorship and projects: Look for internships with structured mentorship programs. For example, Allianz Life’s internship pairs each intern with a mentor, which helps with both technical learning and career guidance[6].
Seek practical exposure: Try to get involved in projects that impact actual business decisions. Whether it’s pricing a new product or assessing catastrophe risk, hands-on work deepens your understanding and builds confidence.
Network with actuaries in both areas: Talk to professionals working in life and non-life insurance to get personal stories about their day-to-day and long-term career paths. This can help you make a choice aligned with your interests and strengths.
From personal experience, I found my first actuarial internship opened my eyes to the differences between these paths. Initially, I leaned toward non-life for its dynamic nature, but after a summer in life insurance, I appreciated the blend of finance, statistics, and social impact. The key is that both fields develop critical thinking, technical expertise, and business acumen—skills that will serve you no matter where you land.
To put some numbers on the table, about 50% of actuaries work in life and health insurance, making it a substantial sector with steady demand[5]. Meanwhile, non-life insurance covers a huge range of products that respond to ever-changing risks, which means actuaries in this field often have to be creative and adaptable.
Ultimately, whether you choose life or non-life insurance for your actuarial internship, you’re stepping into a profession that combines math, economics, and real-world problem-solving to help individuals and companies manage uncertainty. Keep an open mind, seek learning opportunities, and be proactive in building your skills. The experiences you gain during your internship will be invaluable as you launch your actuarial career.