Risk & Actuarial

School Announcements

UNSW Business School ranked 1st in the world for Risk and Actuarial studies

UNSW Risk and Actuarial Studies have recently been recognised as the #1 Business School globally in the UNL Ranking in Actuarial Science and Insurance research. This is an excellent demonstration of academic excellence by members of the school. It complements the recognition by both the local and global industry in the quality, relevance, and social impact of the research via prizes (see below) as well as collaborative projects sponsored by government and industry, including in particular in the vital area of ageing and longevity via the ARC Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR) - the only ARC Centre of Excellence hosted by a Business School. Members of the school also hold editorial positions in the leading academic journals in the field (including ASTIN Bulletin: The Journal of the International Actuarial Association, Insurance: Mathematics and Economics, North American Actuarial Journal and Journal of Pension Economics and Finance); make increasing impact on practice through contributions on boards of global associations such as AFIR, ASTIN, and IPRA (the International Pension Research Association); and transfer their knowledge to students through delivery and development of a forward-looking curriculum informed by both research and industry.

For more information about the UNSW Business Ranking, see UNSW Business School ranked 1st in the world for Risk and Actuarial studies.

Prizes Awarded to Academics in Risk and Actuarial Studies

• Greg Taylor, Alan Xian, Benjamin Avanzi and Bernard Wong were awarded the Taylor Fry Silver Prize for their paper "How to Proxy The Unmodellable: Analysing Granular Insurance Claims in The Presence of Unobservable or Complex Claims" at the Actuaries Institute’s 2018 General Insurance Seminar Event on 12th November 2018. Their paper was judged by an independent panel to have significantly advanced the actuarial profession's knowledge.
• Hazel Bateman received the 2018 ICA Best Paper Award at the International Congress of Actuaries (ICA) 2018 for her research on “Saving Preferences in Retirement: The Impact of Mandatory Annuitization, Flexibility and Health Status”, co-authored with Jennifer Alonso-García, Johan Bonekamp, Arthur van Soest and Ralph Stevens.
• Mengyi Xu received the 2018 ICA IAAHS Best Paper Award at the International Congress of Actuaries (ICA) 2018 for her research on “Demand for Annuities and Long-Term Care Insurance with Recursive Utility: Impact of Housing”, co-authored with Jennifer Alonso-García, Adam Shao and Michael Sherris.
• Benjamin Avanzi, Greg Taylor, and Bernard Wong were awarded the 2017 Hachemeister Prize for their ASTIN Bulletin paper “Correlations Between Insurance Lines of Business: An Illusion or a Real Phenomenon? Some Methodological Considerations”. The Hachemeister Prize is awarded annually to an ASTIN Bulletin or ASTIN or AFIR Colloquium paper based on its potential to impact property/casualty practice in North America.
  

Professor of Practice in Risk and Actuarial Studies


Elaine Collins joined the School of Risk and Actuarial Studies as a Professor of Practice on 2nd October 2018. Elaine has over 25 years’ experience in the insurance industry, with a focus on strategic risk to company operations. She currently has three Board roles, including being a Non-Executive Director of Zurich Insurance and the Motor Accidents Insurance Board and a Board Member of Australian Reinsurance Pool Corporation.


UNSW Business School has appointed five Professors of Practice as part of a Faculty-wide strategy to embed experience within industry as part of the curriculum. Elaine will have particular focus on building collaboration between the school and industry in both education and research, and to assist with the school’s gender initiatives. She will also be passing on her knowledge, and how it applies in the industry, to our students.


Seminars