ZACH HINEY, KNIGHT WIRE GUEST WRITER
When most people think about science majors at Wartburg, they come up with programs such as chemistry or biology. However, there’s another major – the actuarial science major.
Dr. Brian Birgen serves as department head of this program.
“The main purpose of this major is to prepare students for a career as an actuary,” Birgen said. “An actuarial puts a numerical value to risk. They use probability models to predict outcomes.”
Taking part in this major has other benefits as well.
“This major helps teach students how to work with data in a business setting,” Birgen said.
There are many different courses that must be taken as an actuarial science major, including economics, accounting and calculus, among others.
Like other majors at Wartburg, there are different paths that can be taken to achieve the major. This gives some flexibility to students and allows them to take different classes and still complete the major on time. Additionally, this program gives students highly appealing skills to employers.
“There are a lot of off-ramps. You can start on one path and switch to another, like economics or computer science,” Birgen said.
If students have questions regarding the actuarial science program or want to start on the path to completing it, contact Birgen at brian.birgen@wartburg.edu.
Knight Wire 
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