Help me choose between 2 offers

S

success108

Dryer sheet aficionado
Joined
Oct 27, 2005
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I'm currently employed as an actuarial analyst for a pension consulting firm. The work is a bit boring (accounting stuff) and including travel time it takes up 55-60 hrs/wk. If any of you are familiar with the actuarial career, you will know that I'm also studying my butt off for exams, which takes another 15-20 hrs/wk during exam season.

I recently received 2 offers, here is a break down:
  1. Life insurance - Product design analyst
    Pros:
    • Total time ~45 hrs/wk including travel time.
    • Creative work
    • Lots of programming, which I enjoy
    • Relaxed culture, family feel when I interviewed there
    Cons:
    • Slight pay cut (-$1,800/yr) but bigger bonus so it's a wash
    • No rotation program between different actuarial departments (annuities, reserving, investments)
  2. Property and Casualty (P&C) Insurance - Home Insurance Pricing Analyst
    Pros:
    • Mega Co., lots of room for growth
    • P&C has the highest job satisfaction out of all of the actuarial fields
    • Pay raise (+ 5%)
    • Good rotation program, rotate every 1.5 years between depts
    • Creative and more mathematical work
    Cons:
    • 60+ hrs/wk because of travel time (extreme commute, 3.5+ hrs/day)
    • Cut-throat business culture
    • Strict exam policy, if you don't pass you get a notice of termination
    • Greater number of and more difficult exams
If you had to choose between the 2, which one would you go with?
 
Sounds like it depends on you. If you're a go-getter, like change and want to deal with political animals, then its job #2. If you're a family type and/or the job isnt your life/#1 priority, and/or you dont like a lot of change/sudden moves/loud noises/etc then go with job #1.
 
Personally, I'd choose number 1 because of the hours and because 2 is so cutthroat. I did my time working long hours and at 59 I really would rather not beat myself to death like that any more. And, I don't tolerate cutthroat environments if they go over the line and become abusive.

But the important thing is, which one sounds best to you? :cool:
 
By the way: I'd also add that the "5% higher pay" in j*b #2 would be completely eaten up -- and then some -- by the cost of that hellacious commute. And every time gas prices spike, it's like a big pay cut.
 
How old are you and do you have or imminently plan to have a family?
 
door number 1.

biggest reason i saw - time. you need to pass those exams.

getting your certification/degree/etc, which will lead to promotions, career broadening opps, and career visibility of the finest kind.

as my dear mom always told me "they can't take your education away"

good luck in making your decision and your new job.
 
success108 said:
I'm currently employed as an actuarial analyst for a pension consulting firm. The work is a bit boring (accounting stuff) and including travel time it takes up 55-60 hrs/wk. If any of you are familiar with the actuarial career, you will know that I'm also studying my butt off for exams, which takes another 15-20 hrs/wk during exam season.

I recently received 2 offers, here is a break down:
  1. Life insurance - Product design analyst
    Pros:
    • Total time ~45 hrs/wk including travel time.
    • Creative work
    • Lots of programming, which I enjoy
    • Relaxed culture, family feel when I interviewed there
    Cons:
    • Slight pay cut (-$1,800/yr) but bigger bonus so it's a wash
    • No rotation program between different actuarial departments (annuities, reserving, investments)
  2. Property and Casualty (P&C) Insurance - Home Insurance Pricing Analyst
    Pros:
    • Mega Co., lots of room for growth
    • P&C has the highest job satisfaction out of all of the actuarial fields
    • Pay raise (+ 5%)
    • Good rotation program, rotate every 1.5 years between depts
    • Creative and more mathematical work
    Cons:
    • 60+ hrs/wk because of travel time (extreme commute, 3.5+ hrs/day)
    • Cut-throat business culture
    • Strict exam policy, if you don't pass you get a notice of termination
    • Greater number of and more difficult exams
If you had to choose between the 2, which one would you go with?
Click to expand...

Option #1. Suck a paycheck, save your butt off,get off the hamster wheel early.........;)
 
ziggy29 said:
By the way: I'd also add that the "5% higher pay" in j*b #2 would be completely eaten up -- and then some -- by the cost of that hellacious commute. And every time gas prices spike, it's like a big pay cut.
Click to expand...
About half of it will be eaten up by the commute. I will be taking the train most of the way and the co. pays for half of the cost of public transportation.

brewer12345 said:
How old are you and do you have or imminently plan to have a family?
Click to expand...
I'm in my 20s and married. If I was a bachelor I would probably relocate to the P&C job because I've always been interested in working in that field. However, we currently live in a very nice part of town and we are within walking distance of my wife's job. We are both very happy with her job - low stress, flexible hours, decent pay, and great retirement vehicles (she gets the equivalent of two 401ks, a cash balance plan, and a pension plan).

We've discussed starting a family but it is not imminent.


Thanks for your inputs. I'm leaning toward 1 because time is valuable to me. If I compare the $/hr value, the life insurance position is 25% more valuable than my current job or the P&C offer.
 
I gues I would suggest you think abut where each of these jobs will lead you in your career. My suspicion is that #2 would give you a lot more opportunity down the road and quite possibly much higher earnings over time. I would probably pick #2 in that case, since I tend to get bored easily and career advancement was especially important to me at your age.

And you can study on the train. That's how I did at least half of the work for my MBA.
 
I'm into quality of life issues, not income, so I'd pick #1.

But this is also the guy who, once I landed a straight day work/weekends & holidays off position in a 24/7 agency, stopped taking promotional exams because a promotion would have meant returning to rotating shift work. The day work job also meant about a $5K pay cut. But my wife was about doing cartwheels in the front yard because we could have a normal life. Hard to put a price tag on that.
 
Ugh. Option #2 sounds like a high-stress hamster wheel with no guarantee of satisfaction.

Quality of life is really important and Option #1 sounds like a better quality of life with what may be the same compensation. Option #2 sounds awful.
 
As you can see, people who have a common interest in getting the hell out of the work force aren't the most ambitious bunch out there. :2funny:
 
brewer12345 said:
I guess I would suggest you think abut where each of these jobs will lead you in your career. My suspicion is that #2 would give you a lot more opportunity down the road and quite possibly much higher earnings over time. I would probably pick #2 in that case, since I tend to get bored easily and career advancement was especially important to me at your age.

And you can study on the train. That's how I did at least half of the work for my MBA.
Click to expand...
You're right, #2 does offer more opportunity, higher earnings, and especially more challenging work down the road. That is the reason why I am debating this issue.

Martha said:
If you pick 2, move closer to work. Long commutes are highly unhealthy.
Click to expand...
My wife would then have to commute (I don't want her to go through that) and we would be forced to live in an unpleasant neighborhood.

So it's either 1) great opportunity, unhealthy and no time for myself, or 2) less opportunity, less challenging, but greater personal time.

My goal is to kick the bucket eventually so maybe I should just take it easy until then...
 
If you go with option 1, what other opportunities exist for either personal or professional development? 20 hrs a week savings can get you an MBA, pottery class, volunteer time with a local org you like, etc. And, if you plan to have kids eventually, 20 hours is a huge loss (if you see yourself as a family man, that is).

Then again, I took a $25k pay cut to get out of the situation I was in. I favored more free time over more money.
 
success108 said:
[*]P&C has the highest job satisfaction out of all of the actuarial fields
Click to expand...

I'd be more concerned with the job satisfaction of the interviewing company than the job satisfaction of the particular field you'd be doing the work in. YMMV.
 
3.5 hours per day commuting is insane. I'm in the 2+ hour group. If that deal is better overall you are better off moving.
 
Cut throat business culture demanding lots of hours and long commute may be an advantage to the Type A Type A who is confident of beating all peers in a hostile environment where survival is questionable but rewards are great. If that's you then this may be just what you want. The (few) winners in these kinds of places can get huge payoffs.

I cannot imagine being happy there or staying there more than the absolute minimum time possible. It sounds like hell on earth to me. I'd opt for the friendly environment of #1 and if a rotation policy is lacking work from the inside to make one. But then it's a personal choice and depends on personality and desires as much as the details of the offers. You want to find a fit for you.
 
Those exams are stressful enough without the threat of termination if you miss one. I remember my boss flunking CFA #2 because his wife just had a kid two weeks before and he got no sleep whatsoever heading into it.

You never know what your options might be down the road, so even if you take #1, maybe later you'll get an offer that has all the upside of #2 without some of the downside.
 
I would choose door #1.
 
I am in kind of a similar situation myself. Having been in the high stress position for 8 years i am faced with two options, and i am leaning towards the lower stress (but same pay) option.

I would go with #1 myself, 3.5 hour commute does is for me...
 
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