I'm also an actuary, and I agree with all of this. I personally had a better experience with my undergraduate coursework thanks to a flexible program - I took no exam prep courses and close to 30 credits' worth of CS courses - but it's definitely the norm for an actuarial science major to essentially be an exam prep major.
There are lots of data science roles at insurance companies, many of which seek out current and former actuaries, so that's probably the easiest foot-in-the-door role to transition out of the field if that's more in line with what you're looking for. However, I'm sure those roles are pretty boring as data science goes.
There are lots of data science roles at insurance companies, many of which seek out current and former actuaries, so that's probably the easiest foot-in-the-door role to transition out of the field if that's more in line with what you're looking for. However, I'm sure those roles are pretty boring as data science goes.