Level Up Virtual Event Review

WTW's Level Up programme offered a structured virtual introduction to the actuarial and risk consulting profession across several days of online content. The programme covered core areas of WTW's business including insurance consulting, risk modelling and employee benefits, giving an early look at how actuarial thinking is applied across different client mandates.
Day-to-day, the programme was delivered through a mix of live virtual sessions and interactive elements via an online platform. This included presentations from actuaries and consultants across different practice areas, walkthroughs of real-world client scenarios, and group exercises designed to simulate the kind of problem-solving central to actuarial work. There were also dedicated sessions with early careers and graduate recruitment teams covering WTW's training pathways and the actuarial exam structure.
Despite being delivered virtually, there were structured networking opportunities with current graduates and senior colleagues through breakout sessions and online Q&As, which gave a candid picture of what progression and day-to-day life at WTW actually looks like beyond the formal programme materials.

As someone coming from a financial mathematics background with a primary focus on markets and investment, the programme was genuinely eye-opening in terms of the breadth of what WTW does. Going in, my understanding of the firm was fairly surface-level, I knew it as an insurance and risk consultancy but the programme revealed just how wide the scope of work actually is, spanning pensions, employee benefits, catastrophe risk modelling, M&A advisory and climate risk, among others.
What struck me most was how quantitatively demanding many of the roles are. The actuarial pathway in particular requires a level of mathematical rigour that I found immediately compelling given my degree, and understanding the exam structure and progression route made the career path feel much more tangible than it had before.
Learning about the different practice areas also helped me appreciate that WTW isn't a monolithic firm, the nature of the work varies significantly depending on which team you sit in, and that variety is genuinely appealing. By the end of the programme I had a much clearer picture of where my own interests and skills could fit, and it meaningfully shifted how I think about the actuarial profession as a career option.

The programme helped develop both my technical understanding and my broader professional awareness in ways I hadn't anticipated going in. On the technical side, being introduced to the frameworks actuaries use to model and price risk and seeing how those frameworks are applied to real client problems added a useful new dimension to the quantitative skills I've been building through my Financial Mathematics degree. It reinforced concepts around probability, modelling and uncertainty that I encounter academically, but grounded them in a commercial context that lectures alone don't provide.
Beyond the technical, the programme sharpened my ability to absorb and synthesise large amounts of unfamiliar information quickly. Each session introduced a new area of the business, and keeping up with the pace of content across different practice areas required active engagement rather than passive listening. The group exercises also pushed me to articulate technical ideas clearly to others, which is a skill I'm conscious of developing as I move toward client-facing professional roles.
Perhaps most valuably, the programme developed my understanding of what it actually means to work at the intersection of mathematics and business, something that sits at the core of actuarial work but isn't always obvious from the outside. That conceptual clarity feels like a skill in itself.

From the interactions I had throughout the programme, WTW came across as a firm that takes the development of its early talent seriously. The presenters and employees who gave up their time to speak with us were consistently approachable and candid, willing to give honest answers about their own career journeys rather than simply delivering a polished sales pitch for the firm. That openness set a tone that felt collegiate rather than corporate.
The virtual format could easily have made the programme feel impersonal, but the structured networking sessions and breakout discussions created a genuine sense of community among participants and with the WTW staff involved. There was a clear effort to make the programme feel interactive and two-way rather than a series of one-directional presentations.
More broadly, the culture came across as one that values intellectual curiosity and precision, which makes sense given the nature of actuarial work. But it didn't feel dry or overly formal. The people I spoke with seemed genuinely engaged with the problems they work on, and that enthusiasm for the work itself was probably the most telling indicator of what the day-to-day culture is actually like. It left me with a positive impression of WTW as a place where the work is taken seriously without the atmosphere being stifling.

I found the programme genuinely enjoyable and more substantive than I had expected going in. Virtual insight programmes can sometimes feel like a series of disconnected presentations with limited opportunity to engage meaningfully, but WTW structured the content in a way that built progressively and kept me invested throughout.
The parts I found most compelling were the sessions that brought the quantitative side of the work to life. Seeing how actuarial and risk modelling techniques are deployed in real client contexts made the subject matter feel immediate and relevant in a way that is difficult to replicate in a purely academic setting. As someone studying Financial Mathematics, those moments of connection between theory and practice were particularly satisfying.
If I am being honest, I came into the programme with insurance and risk consulting sitting fairly low in my list of sectors to explore. By the end of it that had shifted noticeably. The breadth of the work, the intellectual rigour it demands and the quality of the people I interacted with all contributed to that. The programme did exactly what a good insight programme should do, which is to leave you with a clearer and more positive picture of the firm and the profession than you arrived with.
On balance I would rate it among the more valuable programmes I have taken part in, not because it was the most glamorous or high-profile, but because it genuinely changed how I think about a career path I had not previously considered seriously.

Yes

The most important piece of advice I would give is to come in with a genuine curiosity about the intersection of mathematics and business rather than treating it purely as a stepping stone into finance. WTW is looking for people who are drawn to the problem-solving nature of actuarial and risk work specifically, and that comes across in how you engage during the programme and how you write your application. Generic finance ambition does not land as well here as a considered interest in what WTW actually does.
On the application itself, be specific. The firm covers an enormous range of practice areas and demonstrating that you have taken the time to understand what distinguishes pensions consulting from catastrophe risk modelling, for example, signals the kind of intellectual curiosity they value. Vague references to wanting to work in a challenging environment will not set you apart.
During the programme itself, engage actively in the networking sessions and ask questions that go beyond the surface. The people presenting are often willing to have genuinely candid conversations about their careers and the firm, and making the most of that access will both enrich your experience and leave a positive impression.
Finally, if you have a quantitative background, lean into it. The actuarial pathway is mathematically demanding and WTW values candidates who are comfortable with that rigour and excited by it rather than intimidated. Frame your academic experience in terms of how it equips you for the kind of analytical work the firm does, and you will be in a strong position.