Actuarial Science Support

We are fortunate to have excellent support from our alumni and industry friends.

Permanently Endowed Funds

We have three endowed funds. At the top of the list is Fortis Health Insurance Professorship in Actuarial Science. In 1992, the then Time Insurance Company contributed $250,000 in honor of their 100th anniversary and as a tribute to then President Kenneth R. Willis. In 2001, the name was changed to Fortis Health Insurance to reflect the company's new name. 

The next endowed fund is the Hickman/Larson Professorship in Actuarial Science. Rather than a single donor, funds for this professorship were contributed by a large contingent of actuarial science alums. The name honors the program founder, Bob Larson, as well as Jim Hickman, emeritus faculty  and Dean of the Business School. Contributions to this fund began in 1991 and are ongoing. Hickman was the initial recipient in 1992 (for one year). Please visit the Hickman/Larson Fund page for additional information about this fund. Please visit our Distinguished Donors page for a list of significant contributors to this fund.

Our third permanently endowed fund is the Bicknell Scholarship Fund. This fund began in 1985. The name honors emeritus Professor Bill Bicknell, who was with the program 1956-1983. This fund is used to provide scholarships for actuarial science students. Please visit the Bicknell Scholarship Fund page for additional information about this fund. Please visit our Distinguished Donors page for a list of significant contributors to this fund.

Annual Support

Donors have a choice of contributing to the Bicknell Fund, the Hickman/Larson Fund or our Actuarial Science Program Fund. In addition to these endowed funds, we also receive many gifts from alumni and corporate sponsors for our program. Like the Bicknell Fund, these gifts are directed primarily towards student scholarships. (We also make an annual library contribution to purchase some key actuarial journals.)  We spend about $50,000 per year on 30 to 35 students. These include our High School scholarship winners (our largest award, $2,000). Please visit our Distinguished Donors page for a list of significant contributors to this fund.

For simplicity, we have combined all three funds to report recent contributions. Please visit the:

2001-2002 Individual Contributions page

2002-2003 Individual Contributions page

2003-2004 Individual Contributions page

2004-2005 Individual Contributions page

2005-2006 Individual Contributions page

2006-2007 Individual Contributions page

2001-2002 Corporate Contributions page

2002-2003 Corporate Contributions page

2003-2004 Corporate Contributions page

2004-2005 Corporate Contributions page

2005-2006 Corporate Contributions page

2006-2007 Corporate Contributions page

Your generous gifts make a significant difference in the lives of our students.

Of course, we continuously search for additional sources of support for our students. Our typical awards are $1,000 and $1,500 per year, to about 30 to 35 students (high school seniors to juniors). However, we graduate about 25 students a year, so many students go unfunded. Moreover, in-state tuition alone (2002-2003) is $4,470 and estimated annual expenses for attending UW-Madison is $13,340 (see UW-Admissions). Thus, we could easily justify much higher award amounts for our top students. Please download a more complete document, entitled a "Case for Supporting the UW-Madison Actuarial Science Program."

We hope that you will be excited about the possibility of supporting our efforts. Please contact us to find out how you can help. Further, you can visit the UW-Foundation site to make a contribution to our programs on-line.