About Bafs Actuarial & Financial Studies in University College Dublin
If you enjoy studying Mathematics and you have strong analytical and problem-solving skills, the UCD BAFS (Hons) degree could be for you. It will prepare you for a professional career in the actuarial or financial professions, but it has also been designed to be broader and more diverse than most traditional courses in actuarial science. It takes a combination of strong analytical skills, business knowledge and understanding of human behaviour to design and manage programmes that control risk and guarantee sufficient funds for the insurance and pension sectors. For example, the actuary works out the risk (e.g. the likelihood of a fire happening) and calculates how much the customer should pay for insurance cover to ensure that the insurance company has sufficient funds to pay out if the incident occurs.
Most BAFS graduates take positions as actuarial trainees in the following:
- Life insurance
- Pensions
- Health insurance
- General insurance
Should you achieve a sufficiently high standard in the degree, you will gain some (or all) exemptions from the Core Technical series examinations (CT1:8) as well as the Core Applications CA1 examination of the Institute of Actuaries, or the Faculty of Actuaries. Some graduates also work in banking or finance as business or financial analysts. As a graduate of the BAFS degree, you are also eligible to pursue graduate study in statistics, computer science, economics, mathematics, management science, finance and other specialist business subjects.
Academic qualification equivalents
- Successful graduation from an academic secondary school program or equivalent (For most countries, the same academic preparation as is required for university entrance in that country is required for consideration.
- Program-Specific Prerequisite courses completed at the senior level (e.g. Grade 12);
English language requirements (one of the below):
- IELTS: An average score of 6.5 over all components and a minimum of 6.0 in each band on the Academic Version.
- TOEFL: minimum score of 600 in the paper-based Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL PBT), with Test of Written English at 475 +. A minimum score of 90 is required in the Internet based TOEFL (iBT) with a score of at least 20 in each section
- PTE: Minimum of 63 and at least 59 for each item in the Communicative Skills section..
University College Dublin Highlights
Founded |
1854 |
University Type |
Public University |
Campus Setting |
Urban |
Total number of Students |
33,000+ |
Total number of Graduate Students |
9,645 |
Number of International Students |
8,428 |
% of International Staff |
30% |
No. of Campuses |
3 |
No. of Accommodation Complexes |
8 |
Global Employability Ranking |
#1 in Ireland
#78 in World |
Acceptance rate |
10-20% |
Retention rate (1st year) |
94% |
Average Cost of Attendance |
About 23,800 EUR |
Research funding |
122.4 million EUR |
Applications Accepted |
Online |
Work-Study |
Available |
Intake Type |
Semester wise |
Mode of Program |
Full time and online |
Official Website |
ucd.ie |
University College Dublin Average Tution Fees And Other Expenses
- University fees are fixed each year, however additional expenses while studying in Ireland must be planned beforehand.
- Tuition fee for the academic year 2020-2021 is given below:
Tuition Fee
Programmes |
Undergraduate |
Graduate |
Arts and Humanities |
18,700 |
7,955-11,885 |
Business |
18,700 |
7,955-11,885 |
Engineering and Architecture |
24,200 |
8,915-13,360 |
Social Sciences and Law |
18,700 |
7,955-11,885 |
Health and Agricultural Sciences |
24,200 |
8,915-13,360 |
Science |
24,200 |
8,915-13,360 |
University College Dublin Cost Of Living
Types of Expense |
Monthly Cost (EUR) |
Rent |
835 |
Food |
250 |
Electricity/Gas/Bins |
30 |
Travel |
80 |
Books and materials |
70 |
Clothes or Medical |
45 |
Mobile phone |
20 |
Miscellaneous |
130 |
Total |
1,460 |