Exam 7 | Study Tips

Explore CAS Exam study tips and other information to help you stay prepared and confident for your exam

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Study Tips | Exam 7

Effective study strategies are key to passing CAS Exam 7. Check out our exam specific study tips:

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TO PASS EXAM 7

The journey to passing Exam 7 is one of commitment, dedication, and rigorous practice. It's not just about memorizing facts but understanding the underlying concepts, refining your time management skills, and adapting to the CBT format. The challenge may seem daunting, but with the right approach, resources, and mindset, success is within your grasp.

INTRODUCTION

Exam 7 consists of roughly 600 pages of material, not all of which appears on every exam. Unlike the other Fellowship exams there aren't any readings that are substantially larger than others. Some of the source materials are single wiki articles while others have been split out to focus your attention on key aspects.

To help you study efficiently BattleActs has ranked the articles based on our opinion of how likely they are to show up on an exam. Since the material within the readings builds up, we recommend you initially study them from the beginning to the end rather than reading the articles based on their rank. Use the Recommended Reading Order table for your initial first run through the material. After your first (or second) pass through the material use the ranking table to revisit the material in a way which should maximize your likelihood of seeing the material during your exam.

CONNECT IDEAS
FROM MULTIPLE PAPERS

INCORPORATES INTEGRATIVE QUESTIONS

TIME MANAGEMENT
IS KEY

REQUIRES A DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF MATERIAL

MATERIAL CAN BE THEORETICAL

EXAM QUESTIONS MORE DIFFICULT THAN CONTENT

HOW IS EXAM 7 DIFFERENT?

The material covered can be quite theoretical. Working as a Reserving Actuary isn't necessarily an advantage for this exam as you often do things somewhat differently in practice.
The material covered in Exam 7 may seem relatively easy for some but the exam questions can be difficult.
Exam 7 requires developing a deep understanding between the data used and the theoretical concepts underpinning the methods.
It requires connecting ideas from multiple papers as it is one of three exams which incorporate Integrative Questions (IQs). You will definitely need to do more in-depth studying than what is required for 5 & 6.
The syllabus has recently evolved so exam takers lack a deep bank of previous exam questions to practice from. Save valuable time by reading the Syllabus Changes article. This feature means you don't need to spend valuable study time hunting through articles trying to figure out what has changed.
Seems like time management is becoming more and more of a factor on exam day. You need to have a deep understanding of the material and have practice and practiced the calculation problems so you can quickly answer questions on exam day.
There may be one or two IQs on any exam. With the recent syllabus changes reducing the volume of material it seems more likely you'll have two. These account for 20% - 25% of the total exam points so you should allow at least an hour for these questions.
IQs usually have a lot of sub-parts which may depend on each other. It's okay to say you made up a (plausible) answer to an earlier part if it means you can make progress on another part. With CBT, it's even easier to update your work if you later solve an earlier part.

STUDYING FOR EXAM 7

Take a little extra time upfront to get organized and you will save yourself a lot of time in the end.

Focus your study time. Use the Exam 7 Readings Ranking Table for this. We've ranked the readings and indicated how much time to spend on each one!! Tip - for Exam 7, as the material from a single source reading can be spread across multiple wiki articles, we recommend you study them from beginning to end first via our Recommended Reading Order and then use the Ranking Table for your second pass through the material.
Not all topics are tested equally, so they don't deserve equal amounts of your attention.
Set up a study schedule. Look at a calendar to see how much time you have until exam day. Use our recommendations on how much time to spend on each article to draw up a study schedule. Leave the last few weeks for review and practice exams.
Start studying. We recommend you do a quick read through of your chosen wiki article, then scan the source article and go back again to the wiki article for in-depth studying. Some people choose to skip reading the source material.
Memorize and practice the fundamentals. Do the quizzes (BattleCards) and calculation problems. Once you have mastered this material, move on to what is less frequently tested.
Test your retention. Remember to practice by writing or typing out the answers and use active studying by explaining the concepts in your own words. Use our BRQ score to provide you with an objective measure of how well you know the material.
Stay motivated. Use the Leaderboard to see how you're progressing versus everyone else. (You can appear anonymously if you wish.)

BattleActs is tailored to help you structure your studies efficiently, ensures deep understanding of content, keeps you motivated and engaged, and provides the best approach to mastering calculation problems.

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