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Products & Seminars
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Does the Actuarial Bookstore sell all of the
textbooks for each exam?
Generally speaking, yes, we sell all of the
textbooks for each exam. The CAS has listed some
recommended textbooks on the syllabus for Exam 3
that are out-of-print. Most out-of-print
textbooks can be purchased from specialty
retailers but typically you will have to pay a
significant premium to do so.
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Which
textbooks should I select?
The SOA and CAS no longer specify all of the
required textbooks for each exam. For the first
four exams, actuarial students are now given
suggested textbooks or Option A/B/C textbooks as
well as the required texts. It is our
understanding that this change was made based on
the academic theory that it helps boost
students’ learning of the material.
All of the required textbooks should be
purchased/borrowed for each exam. There is no
substitute for the underlying textbook material.
Suggested textbooks and the Option A/B/C
textbooks are listed because the SOA and CAS
have determined that they cover the exam
material thoroughly. Our recommendation is to
purchase/borrow a Suggested/Option A/B/C
textbook that has a corresponding solutions
manual. Many, but not all, of the textbooks have
helpful solutions manuals. The use of solutions
manuals are optional – depending upon the
textbook about half of all actuarial students
purchase the corresponding solutions manual.
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How do I select a study manual and/or other
supplemental materials?
There are many study manuals and other
supplemental materials available to actuarial
students to help them with the exams. These
materials are a “must have” because they
significantly cut your study time and improve
your chances of passing the exam(s). All study
manuals you with detailed outlines of the
material, and most provide sample problems/exams
with detailed solutions. Samples of the manuals
are provided by most publishers and these are
available as you browse the material listed on
our website for each exam. Descriptions of each
manual are also provided in this section. All
study manuals are produced by well-known and
well-respected actuarial educators and
publishers.
In addition, the Actuarial Bookstore offers the
widest possible array of other helpful tools
including flashcards, practice problem/exam &
solution sets, DVD seminars as well as
registration for live seminars. Product
descriptions of all products are provided and
many samples of each product are also available.
Please note: the
Actuarial Bookstore also sells SOA/CAS approved
calculators. Please see this
FAQ section
for important information regarding calculators. |
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Do you sell
SOA or CAS study notes?
We do not sell these materials. Study notes are
only available from the SOA or the CAS. |
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How can I
learn more about a particular product?
Our website has complete descriptions on nearly
all of our products and where ever possible, we
have also listed product samples provided by the
publishers. These samples are available for
review as you browse the material listed on our
website for each exam. After reviewing this
information, if you feel that you need further
help, please
contact us.
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What
calculator do I need?
Only the approved calculators described in the
following paragraphs may be brought into the
examination room. Candidates may use the battery
or solar-powered models of the following Texas
Instruments calculators:
BA-35
BA II Plus
BA II Plus Professional
TI-30X II (IIS solar or IIB battery)
TI-30X
TI-30Xa
The CAS/SOA logos are not required on the
calculator. Candidates may use more than one of
the approved calculators during the examination.
For those using the BA II Plus, BA II Plus
Professional, or TI-30X II (IIS solar or IIB
battery) models, candidates will be required to
show examination proctors that the memory has
been cleared prior to the start of the
examination. Calculator instructions cannot be
brought into the examination room.
Any unauthorized calculator brought to the
examination center will be confiscated for the
duration of the examination. Candidates using a
calculator other than the approved models will
be subject to examination disqualification or
other disciplinary action.
It is the candidate's responsibility to see that
the calculator used during the examination is in
good working order. Supervisors will have a
spare approved calculator available for a
candidate whose calculator may malfunction. It
will not be distributed to a candidate without a
calculator or whose unauthorized calculator has
been confiscated.
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How quickly do I receive electronically
distributed products?
You should receive your electronically delivered
study aids (as an email attachment) within
minutes of receiving your email order
confirmation. If you do not receive this 2 nd
email with its attachment then one of two things
has typically happened: 1. Your company has
blocked the delivery of this item; or 2. Your
internet service provider has blocked the
delivery of this item.
We are quite experienced in getting around these
problems. One way or another, you will receive
your attachment. Please
contact us and we will solve this problem
promptly.
If you ordered a product distributed through a
secure download, such as the Mo’5 products, we
will automatically email you a user name and
password that allows you temporary access to a
secure page on our website. On this secure page,
you are able to download the Mo’5 product. This
secure access download email should be delivered
to you within minutes of receiving your email
confirmation. |
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Can I register for live seminars through the
Actuarial Bookstore?
Yes. The Actuarial Bookstore registers actuarial
students for many different seminars. These
actuarial seminars are available for purchase in
their specific exam category (along with the
textbooks) or by selecting “Exam Registration”
on the
Exams Listing section of our website. |
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Does the Actuarial Bookstore offer discounts?
The Actuarial Bookstore offers all our
customers, large and small, the lowest possible
prices, everyday. As a result, discounts are
not offered to individual students. If
however, you are purchasing for a large number
of actuarial students, please visit our
corporate accounts page.
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Ordering |
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How can I order? What is the fastest way to
order?
The Actuarial Bookstore accepts on-line,
telephone, fax, regular mail or email orders.
The fastest way to order is to place your order
on-line. However, telephone, fax and email
orders are almost always processed within 1
business day.
Order forms are available for download on our
home page.
Given security concerns we do not recommend
email orders. Credit card information received
in this manner is not secure. Your Actuarial
Bookstore account information is
password-protected for your privacy and
security. The Actuarial Bookstore uses
industry-standard SSL-encryption to protect data
transmissions.
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What payment methods are accepted?When is my
credit/debit card charged?
We accept Visa, Mastercard, Discover and
American Express/Optima debit and credit card
payments. Your credit/debit card will be charged
at the time your order is placed not the day
that the order is shipped.
We also accept check/money order payments. All
checks/money orders must be in U.S. funds, drawn
on a U.S. or Canadian bank and be made payable
to “The Actuarial Bookstore”. Please include a
completed and valid order form with your payment
and send both to: PO Box 69, Greenland, NH
03840. Electronic (bank/wire) transfers are not
accepted.
Corporate account customers may be eligible
to order using purchase orders. Please
contact us for details.
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What do you
mean by pre-order? Why should I pre-order?
Many actuarial study materials are not available
at the start of each May or November “exam
season”. The reason for this is that the SOA and
CAS often do not release the syllabus
information to the authors/publishers until 6 or
7 weeks prior to the start of the new exam
season. This leaves the authors/publishers very
little time to update and publish the revised
study manuals. Depending upon the publisher and
the number of revisions required, most manuals
are available for shipment by June 1 st to 15 th
for the Fall Exams and December 1 st to 15 th
for the Spring exams.
The Actuarial Bookstore attempts to let all
customers know the expected availability date
prior to purchase. We cannot control
whether or not these dates will be met however,
we do try to contact our customers if
significant delays are expected. Most pre-orders
are filled the very same day we receive the
inventory at our warehouse. For this reason, we
strongly urge customers to pre-order because
shipments are made on a first-to-order,
first-to-ship basis. If you do not pre-order,
further delays are possible. Please note, when
you pre-order your credit card is charged at the
time to order is placed not when the item is
shipped.
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Does it
matter what type of internet browser or computer
I use?
The Actuarial Bookstore has developed its
website to be universally browser-friendly. We
no longer require that our customers use
Internet Explorer. |
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Was my order
processed correctly?
The Actuarial Bookstore automatically confirms
all orders and shipments via email. These
confirmations are sent electronically within
seconds of the order being properly processed or
shipped. Assuming you provided us with an
accurate email address, you should receive
confirmation within minutes of completing your
order. If you did not receive this confirmation
and feel you entered your email address
correctly, please
contact us. |
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How do I know
if an item is on backorder?
If an item is on backorder, it is not
listed on the “Your Order Has Shipped” email
confirmation. We send as many shipping
confirmations as necessary for each order.
Shipping confirmations indicate that the
shipment will be leaving the warehouse that same
business day. Please see this FAQ section for
additional details regarding
delivery of backordered items.
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How do I know
my seminar registration is confirmed?
If you register for one of the many live
seminars the Actuarial Bookstore offers for
purchase, we will simultaneously email
registration confirmation to both you and the
seminar provider. You should receive this
confirmation within minutes of registering using
our website. If you register over the telephone,
fax or by regular mail, confirmation will be
emailed the same day that payment is received.
Please
contact us if you have not received an email
confirmation by the following business day.
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How can I
cancel my order?
Please
contact us immediately if you want to cancel
your order. Our operations are highly efficient.
Within seconds of completing your order, it is
sent to the warehouse for fulfillment. During
regular business hours, orders are processed for
shipment very quickly. The sooner you contact
us, the better chance we have of stopping the
shipment.
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Shipping |
How quickly
can I get my order?
Most U.S. and international orders are shipped,
partially or completely, within 1 business day
of receiving your order. Delivery to most US,
Canadian and worldwide locations takes between 2
– 5 business days (not including the day the
order is shipped). Delays in shipping and
delivery of your order will occur if items are
backordered. In these instances, we frequently
partial-ship your order and send additional
shipments as soon as the backordered materials
become available. The decision to partial-ship
an order is at the complete discretion of the
Actuarial Bookstore. Please see our shipping
information section (listed in the top
navigational bar) for additional details.
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When will my
backordered items ship?
The Actuarial Bookstore tries our very best to
keep all materials in-stock at all times. There
are times, however, when products become
temporarily unavailable. Most often these delays
are less than 1 week. If delays are expected to
be greater than 1 week, we are likely to
partial-ship your order. The remaining
backordered items are shipped the same day we
receive the inventory at our warehouse.
Backordered items are sent via UPS Ground to
U.S. customers and via UPS Worldwide Express to
international customers.
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When will my pre-ordered items ship?
Depending upon the publisher and the number of
revisions required, most pre-ordered manuals are
available for shipment by June 1 st to 15 th for
the Fall Exams and December 1 st to 15 th for
the Spring exams. The Actuarial Bookstore
attempts to let all customers know the expected
availability date prior to purchase. We cannot
control whether or not these dates will be met
however, we do try to contact our customers if
significant delays are expected. Most pre-orders
are filled the very same day we receive the
inventory at our warehouse. For this reason, we
strongly urge customers to pre-order because
shipments are made on a first-to-order,
first-to-ship basis. If you do not pre-order,
further delays are possible. Pre-ordered items
are sent via UPS Ground to U.S. customers and
via UPS Worldwide Express to international
customers.
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Do you ship to my country?
The Actuarial Bookstore ships to nearly every
country in the world. Notable exceptions are
Afghanistan, Iran, Libya and North Korea. Most
international shipments are sent via UPS
Worldwide Express. |
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I didn’t
receive a tracking number. My tracking number
is invalid.
Nearly all orders are shipped by a trackable
delivery method and the Actuarial Bookstore
includes this tracking number in our shipment
confirmation emails. If you haven’t received a 2
nd email confirming the shipment of your order,
you order has not yet shipped. Tracking numbers
are not assigned until the day the order is
shipped.
Please note:
There is a delay between when the delivery
company assigns the number (at the warehouse
pick-up) and when this number is posted on its
website. Orders placed earlier in the day are
typically posted on the UPS or USPS websites
that same evening. If your tracking number does
not appear by the next business day, please
contact us.
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Is a
signature required for delivery?
A signature is required for all shipments sent
to commercial addresses. A signature is not
typically required if your order is delivered to
a residential address. However, if the UPS
delivery person believes that the location
presents the risk of theft/loss, a signature may
be required and a note will be placed on your
door. If you are concerned about the security of
the delivery location, please have your order
shipped to a commercial address. The Actuarial
Bookstore is not responsible for the contents of
the package once it delivered (with or without
signature). |
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Can I save money on international shipping by
using an alternative method?
The Actuarial Bookstore does not offer
alternative international shipping methods. We
are very experienced in international shipping.
Over the years, the Actuarial Bookstore has
found that UPS Worldwide Express offers our
international customers the best overall value,
balancing cost with the need to assure
customs-cleared delivery in a timely fashion.
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I received a
damaged item or my shipment arrived missing
items.
Customers must notify the Actuarial Bookstore
within 5 business days of the receipt of their
order regarding any damage, defective products
or shipment discrepancies to be eligible for a
damage refund or a replacement order. Returns of
these items often require special procedures.
Please
contact us promptly.
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Returns |
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30 Day Return
Policy
Standard Returns:
Actuarial Bookstore offers a full refund for
most items returned within 30 calendar days of
the date that the order was delivered. Unless
previously approved by the Actuarial Bookstore,
all returns must be made within calendar 30
days.
Return Policy for Bundled Packages:
The cost savings associated with our bundled
packages (Temple Actuarial Institute Pack,
Carmody Jam Deluxe Package, Course 5 Value
Packages) is lost if you return one or more
items of the package. The Course 5 Package #1
gives you a savings of $28. If you decide to
return a part of this package, your refund will
be less $28. For example, if you return the
McGill, Fundamentals of Private Pensions, you
will get a refund of $50, which is the $78 text
minus the $28 package value. If the entire
package is returned, you will receive a refund
equal to the package price that you paid.
Damaged/Defective Returns & Shipping
Discrepancies:
Customers must notify the Actuarial Bookstore
within 5 business days of the receipt of the
order regarding any damage, defective products
or shipment discrepancies to be eligible for a
damage refund or a replacement order. Returns of
these items often require special procedures.
Please
contact us promptly.
To be eligible for this return policy, returned
books and/or other study materials must be free
of any noticeable wear or damage. Returned
software, audio CDs and DVDs must be unopened
and accompanied by its original documentation to
be eligible for a refund. Electronically
distributed study materials and GV Ramanathan
Practice exams are not eligible refunds.
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Where
do I send my return?
For your convenience, your packing slip has a
pre-printed, yellow return label. Please use
this label and send all returns to the following
address:
Actuarial Bookstore Returns
1915 10th Ave. West
Mobridge, SD 57601
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How do I
return the items?
Please include a copy of the packing slip and
please write a brief explanation for your return
on this packing slip. (Example: “Item not
needed.”) We ask this so that the warehouse
knows who is returning the items and to make
sure that damaged items are not placed back on
our shelves for resale.
Important: Please make sure to pack the items
very well with plenty of material to minimize
the shifting of the contents of the box. Items
that are returned damaged are not eligible for
refund. Some covers get bent back easily so it
is important that the items are packed well
enough to not shift during shipment.
You may wish to consider sending your return by
a trackable method (non-express) such as UPS
Ground. Paying additional for tracking service
and shipping insurance is completely at the
customer’s discretion and will not be refunded
by the Actuarial Bookstore.
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When will I
receive my refund?
The Actuarial Bookstore processes customer
returns once a week. Nearly all customer returns
are completed within two weeks of receipt of the
items at the warehouse. If you paid by credit
card, we will refund the same credit card used
for payment. An email notification of this
credit will be sent to you the day the refund is
processed. Check payments are refunded directly
to the person or company who paid for the order.
Refunds are typically sent to the bill to
address associated with the order. |
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Who is
responsible for the return shipping charges?
Return item shipping is typically the
responsibility of the customer. However, if the
Actuarial Bookstore made an error in shipping or
the items arrived damaged/defective, we will
reimburse you for your return expenses (for
non-express methods of shipping).
Paying additional for tracking service and
shipping insurance is completely at the
customer’s discretion and will not be refunded
by the Actuarial Bookstore.
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