Are you ready to solve real-world problems using maths and data? The Scottish Actuarial Innovation Challenge invites S4 to S6 pupils from across Scotland to take on a unique challenge – this year’s focus is space tourism. Win prizes up to £1,000 and discover what it’s like to be an actuary.
This year’s challenge is set by Aeropulse Scotland, a new space company aiming to launch the UK’s first commercial space tourism service from the Highlands. Teams will analyse risks, weather, and finances to help plan safe, profitable operations. You will get real datasets and a briefing document when the challenge launches.
The competition is led by the IFoA’s Scottish Board.
*Teachers can offer general guidance as teams develop their approach to the challenge, but their involvement should remain limited. Students are expected to carry out the work and produce the final output themselves.
The competition includes a qualifying round followed by a final round:
We understand many schools have assessments and other commitments throughout the year, especially between December and May. That is why the challenge is designed to run over several months, giving teams plenty of flexibility to plan their time.
You won’t need to work on it every day. We estimate the total time commitment for the qualifying round to be around 16 hours per team. That works out to about 4 to 8 hours per pupil, depending on the size of your team and how you choose to divide up the work.
We encourage teams to plan ahead, break the project into manageable parts and make the most of the time available.
If you have any questions on the challenge, please submit your query here to Jane Braithwaite, member of the IFoA Scottish Board and Assistant Professor at Heriot-Watt University.
We run an annual case study competition for university students across South Asia. It brings together the brightest undergraduate minds to solve real-world actuarial problems, and the Scottish Actuarial Innovators Challenge takes on a similar format.
In 2024, over 150 teams registered from over 40 colleges. The overwhelming participation showed the growing interest in actuarial science and innovation among students across India and South Asia.
The challenge encouraged participants to develop innovative insurance solutions for disadvantaged communities, blending creativity with technical expertise.
