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N**N
Great self-study book for Exam P!
This book is just want I needed to ease back into Statistics as it’s been over 10 years since I've touched a math book! It’s easy to follow and understand. My situation is much like another reviewer who said they needed a step by step book. Thanks to that reviewer, I decided to buy this book as oppose to some other one. Although I’m only in Ch 2, I feel much more confident with my abilities and as I work through the book, the materials are becoming more and more familiar.
J**E
Perfect for the P/1
I'll try to re-review after I've taken my P/1, but I'm using the book to teach myself the material for the exam (though I have a decent background in stats and probability). I'm really enjoying the textbook so far (which is weird to say about a textbook), and it's relatively painless to understand the material. I didn't realize it when I purchased it, but the answers for problem sets are in the back, which is great for learning by working through them.Most textbooks are pretty hard to self-study with, but this one does a good job.
J**R
Exactly what I was looking for
This book is exactly what I was looking for. I'm studying for the P exam, and this book helped me out with the basic concepts involved. I do not think that it is a standalone guide to get me through the exam, but combined with my other method (the infinite actuary), I feel very prepared. I will update this review after I sit for the exam.This book spoon-feeds you the basics, which is exactly what I needed. I was completely new to statistics and probability when I started studying for the P exam. I didn't even know what a standard deviation was, but my calculus was strong. I began studying the P exam program on the infinite actuary, but I felt like they threw too many difficult problems at me too quickly. I wanted a more crawl-walk-run approach. This book covers crawl and walk. After I work through a chapter in this book and do the exercises, I feel ready to tackle rougher problems on the infinite actuary or previous exam problems.Pros:Clearly explains each topic - all text examples are meant to strengthen your intuitive understandingCovers most if not all of the necessary topics on the examConcise, small, and easy to carry aroundYou do not need a pencil and paper handy to get something out of reading it - you can read it in waiting rooms or a little before bed and still get something out of itPlenty of crawl/walk level problems to make sure you understand each topicConsNo solutions manual availableSmall and short - some may expect more contentCheap binding and quality for the priceA bit pricey, but I feel like I got the most out of it
J**B
Nice reference
Like this book and it has all the answers in the back so you know if you’ve solved the question correctly, nice for the actuarial exam p
D**Y
Adequate (barely)
Geez, but your 75 bucks doesn't buy a lot these days -- an indifferently produced, mediocre, paperback text.Most people interested in this title will be studying for the SOA/CAS Exam 1 (now P). Yes, there is enough here to let you pass the exam. Maybe. A fair amount of the material in this book (especially the more exotic probability distributions) simply isn't important enough to appear on the exam, and some of the material on the exam is not covered here. This is a fine starting point for learning basic probability theory (or better, as a refresher) but is inadequate as a stand-alone preparation for the exam. The review questions (and solutions) available online are a better representation -- though not perfect, as Exam P has fewer but harder questions than Exam 1 -- of what to expect on the exam.Hasset and Stewart is a great starting point, but I would strongly recommend that you supplement with both McGannon's "Study Guide and Solutions Manual for Exam P" and the old Exam 1/P's available online.
U**5
Good book for Exam P/1
Bought this book to study for actuarial Exam P/1 and was able to use this book in combination with plenty of practice problems to pass the exam on my first try. I would recommend this book to anyone looking to take the exam and go down the actuarial path.
K**M
Great book
Great clear cut examples. There’s a lot of questions to do. Information is clear
A**A
Good book to learn the basic theory
This book is a recommended text for the SOA Exam P but it alone is not sufficient enough to practice for the exam. You can use this to understand the theory before moving on to a harder book such as the First Course in Probability, A (8th Edition) by Sheldon Ross. Exercises are too easy when compared with the real actuarial exam problems but may help to get the basic theory down. Overall, it is a good book to get started with.