The unit was quite challenging as it can be quite theoretical and

conceptual at the start. This can sometimes lead to confusion as

the first half of the unit builds upon the first two weeks and

becomes more challenging as weeks go on. Due to the heavy

emphasis on the theoretical work at the start of the unit, it can be

difficult to see how it is relevant, however, the second half the

unit shows how the content is applied and shows more real world

application of the content. Therefore, the second half of the

semester was relatively easier and straightforward than the first

half.

The lectures were taught well despite the challenging nature of

the content in the first half. Expectations were made clear that

proofs were not required and instead a focus on mathematical

intuition were required. This allowed for the pressure on learning

the fundamental maths to be decreased and instead an intuitive

understanding of the content was taught which allowed the

content to be more achievable.

The tutorials were quite helpful as the tutors would provide

worked solutions to all (time permitting) questions for that week.

It was a good opportunity to clarify with the tutor why each step

was done and to get an understanding of the mechanics of each

question. In saying this, there was an option to view a recorded

tutorial, which meant that skipping a tutorial was not that big of a

deal, however, if there was not a recorded alternative, tutorials

were extremely helpful.

The weekly quizzes were quite straight forward, with a lot of the

questions being simple enough to get the answers from the

lecture slides. These quizzes allowed for a good basic review of

the week's content. The two assignments were quite lenient in the

marking. The first assignment combined pure mathematical

questions and questions which required more discussion and

intuition. The second assignment was based on the Lee-Carter

model and provided students with an opportunity to delve deeper

into understanding the model and marking was generous to those

who understood the complexity and intricacies of the model.

There is a lot of content in this unit and it requires an ongoing

effort and a large effort come exam time. Despite being difficult,

with enough effort the exam is quite achievable and high marks

can be attained.

Overall, the unit requires a lot of work early on and leading up the

exam. The complex nature of the first half requires significant

effort to ensure one understands the concepts in depth enough to

apply it to the more real world content in the second half of the

semester.