The new FSA pathway: what has changed and how candidates are doing

In short

• From November 2025 the FSA is earned through courses, and each technical course ends in a proctored exam. Results now come back in about 4 weeks instead of 11, and the busiest courses run up to three times a year.
• For life and annuity candidates, the toughest hurdle so far is ILA 101, the first course in the ILA sequence. Its pass rate has been about 41% to 43% at each of the first three sittings.
• The ASA is under review. The SOA Board is looking at more practical application, AI and a more streamlined pathway, but no changes have been announced yet.
• CAS now requires the PCPA for ACAS, and for candidates on the CIA's Pathways 1 and 2, piecemeal SOA and CAS fellowship credits stopped counting at the end of 2025.
• The Fellowship still pays. In the Pay Index, roles for Fellows at US life and annuity insurers pay about 16% more base than roles for Associates at 3 to 5 years, and in dollar terms the gap widens with experience.

Credentials are the backbone of an actuarial career, and they have changed a great deal in the last two years. If you are a student, a newly qualified Associate, or a manager planning your team's exam support, here is where things stand in September 2026.

The new FSA pathway

The SOA announced its redesigned Fellowship pathway in 2023 and launched it in autumn 2025. The first courses ran in November 2025.

• Structure. After the ASA, candidates complete four technical courses, including a 101 and 201 sequence in one practice area, plus the Decision Making and Communications (DMAC) course and the Fellowship Admissions Course (FAC).
• Life and annuities. The Individual Life and Annuities sequence is ILA 101, then ILA 201-U for the US or ILA 201-I for international markets. Only one geographic version counts.
• Other practice areas include Corporate Finance and ERM (CFE 101 and 201) and Retirement (RET 101, 201 and the Canadian RET 301), plus cross-practice courses, and candidates can mix courses across practice areas.
• Faster results. Grading has been cut from 11 weeks to 4 for nearly all courses. From 2026 the high-demand courses can run up to three times a year, in March, July and November.
• No lost credit. The SOA says all previous FSA exams transition directly to courses, and credits do not expire.

How candidates are doing

Pass rates for the first three sittings of the main courses:

• ILA 101: 40.6% (November 2025), 42.6% (March 2026), 42.9% (July 2026)
• ILA 201-U: 56.2%, 61.4%, 49.2%
• ILA 201-I: 51.9%, 58.2%, 52.7%
• CFE 101: 40.8%, 58.5%, 60.1%

ILA 101 is the one to plan for. It has the largest candidate numbers, around 650 to 690 per sitting, and fewer than half pass. For managers, that is a good reason to protect study time for people sitting it.

ASA exams: recent pass rates

The ASA exam line-up has been stable since the 2022 and 2023 redesign that introduced FAM, ALTAM, ASTAM and the ATPA assessment. Recent results:

• Exam P: 44.7% (May 2026)
• Exam FM: 46.0% (June 2026)
• Exam FAM: 57.0% (July 2026)
• Exam SRM: 67.7% (May 2026)
• Exam PA: 65.1% (April 2026)
• ALTAM: 45.8% and ASTAM: 50.9% (April 2026)

Exam P and FM now run six times a year, FAM and SRM three times, and PA, ALTAM and ASTAM twice. From spring 2027 the SOA expects to offer FM on campus at participating universities.

The ASA is under review

This is the change to watch. In June 2025 the SOA Board approved a task force to review the ASA pathway. In early 2026 it surveyed all ASAs and FSAs about what a new Associate needs to know, including AI. At its June 2026 meeting the Board reviewed recommendations to "enhance practical application, incorporate AI… and streamline the pathway", and approved market research and an impact assessment.

No new structure or dates have been announced. If you are partway through the ASA, keep going. Past redesigns have come with transition rules that credit exams already passed.

CAS and CIA

• CAS: the PCPA exam and project have been required for ACAS since 1 January 2026. CAS exams are computer-based, with MAS-I and MAS-II offered four times a year. In June 2026 CAS approved a broader waiver policy that can cover all ACAS basic education requirements, though not Exams 7 to 9.
• CIA: there are three qualification pathways to ACIA and FCIA. The option to use piecemeal SOA or CAS fellowship-level credits towards FCIA ended on 31 December 2025, unless the candidate had passed one CIA fellowship exam by then. Holders of a full FSA or FCAS can still qualify through Pathway 3, which has its own requirements. The CIA has also announced a new bilingual entry route to ACIA for people from non-accredited programmes, with the course expected by mid-2027.

Governance

The SOA has a new CEO, Clar Rosso, who started in May 2026. A 2025 governance package won 62.1% support but fell short of the two-thirds needed. In September 2026 Fellows approved two revised proposals, cutting the Board from 18 members to 12 and separating the roles of President and Chair. A third, letting ASAs with at least 10 years of membership serve on the Board, won 54.5% and did not pass.

What it means for students and employers

• The credential still pays. In the Pay Index, roles for US Fellows with 3 to 5 years at life and annuity insurers advertise a typical base of about $145,000, against about $125,000 for Associates with the same experience, a gap of about 16%. See our pay piece for more.
• Timelines have not shortened overall. The SOA says the FSA generally takes six to ten years, and the new pathway was not designed to change that. Faster grading and more sittings do mean less dead time between attempts.
• Exam support is part of the offer. Study hours, paid sittings, raises on passing and flexibility around sittings all have real value. If you are comparing jobs, compare the exam policies too.
• For hiring managers: candidates close to Fellowship are worth considering for senior roles. In the job adverts we track, only about a third of AVP-level roles strictly require a Fellowship.

If you are weighing a move mid-exams, or want a view on what your credentials are worth in the market, get in touch.

Sources

• SOA, 2026 election results and Bylaws proposal outcomes, September 2026.
• SOA: Fellow of the Society of Actuaries; Flexible pathway and courses; Faster grading; FSA pathway courses and transition, May 2024.
• SOA exam and course results: FSA November 2025; FSA March 2026; FSA July 2026; P May 2026; FM June 2026; FAM July 2026; SRM May 2026; PA April 2026; ALTAM April 2026; ASTAM April 2026.
• SOA: Exam schedule; June 2025 Board recap; November 2025 Board recap; ASA job analysis survey, February 2026; June 2026 Board recap; 2025 bylaws vote results; new CEO announcement, March 2026; Earning credentials.
• CAS: Credential requirements; PCPA transition date; 2026 exam schedule; updated waiver policy, June 2026.
• CIA: Qualification pathways; Transition rules; New bilingual offering, 2 September 2026.
• CTS Actuarial Pay Index, September 2026 (pay figures and AVP role requirements).