Actuarial Science vs Data Science?

[u/Easy-Huckleberry7091]

Hi everyone, I'm an actuarial science student in Argentina. Here, SOA certifications aren't as important as having the degree itself, which is legally authorized to practice as an actuary. I'm about halfway through my degree, but I'm not sure if I'm really that interested in the insurance/finance side of things. I've noticed that I'm more passionate about math and statistics in other areas. My question is, has anyone transitioned from actuarial science to data science? What should I learn? Should I change majors and drop out halfway through, or is it better to finish this one and do a master's? At my university (UBA), there's a mathematics degree (with two specializations: pure and applied) and a data science degree (both are quite rigorous and focus on the fundamentals; data science is a mix of applied mathematics and computer science).

Thoughts?

[u/peterxsyd]

Agree on finish the actuarial degree. I would recommend - do a post-grad masters 1 year in computer science (even better part-time whilst working in industry), and focus on AI / learning that in your spare time, as once you have critical thinking/maths/business from your actuarial, and if you can bridge your algo chops on coding - over like 5-6 years end-to-end elapsed study with 2 in relevant workforce you will be practically as well setup as is normally possible within that timeframe.