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From: Curtis
Date: 15 Jun 2003
Time: 19:23:54 -0400
Remote Name: 172.197.99.106
I just took the course one exam. I do not know your book but I bought several study materials. Some were not recomended by the SOA but they were on point in terms of the title of the book and turned out to be missing many of the concepts covered in the practice exams. Hence, I would be careful if I were you and check to the table of contents of your book against the chapters of the books listed study guide in order to make sure that your book is complete. I would also compare the problems. Your book miight emphasis proofs too much or contain few problems that are similar to those on the sample exams. This was what I found. If you do buy another book, I would recommend Bean's Probability: the science of uncertainty and its accompanying solutions manual. It was relatively easy to read and understand and the solutions were explained reasonably well. My only criticism would be that has a little too much information. That is, it is superset of what is covered on exam 1, but not too much of a superset, and I am sure I will use the extra information in future exams or at work (if I ever find an actuary job). I also bought CSM's Study Manual Spring 2003, and was disappointed. I would not buy any other CSM materials. I also checked out Shelton's book from the Berkeley Library and found it to be pretty good at explaining the material but did not like the problem sets. I would have needed a solutions manual or a professor in order to use this to prepare for the exam. I also did not like McGannon's prep book. It is probably the least expensive resource you can buy, and I felt the least helpful. I guess you get what you pay for. Anyway, I realize that I did not answer your question, but I hope you will find these comments helpful. P.S. Amazon.com does not carry all the books and study guides recommended by the SOA, but Amazon does let its readers post reviews. I did not agree with at least one bad review Bean got, but I did agree with the reviews of Shelton's book as being too advanced for most students--especially those who are studying alone and cannot seek assistance from a professor or fellow student.