The history of the Department went as far back as 1929, when
Raffles College first opened its doors. The then science
faculty offered courses in Mathematics, Chemistry and
Physics, with a population of ten students and three faculty
members including one in mathematics. The first Head of the
Department of Mathematics
(from
1931 to 1959)
was
Professor
A. Oppenheim, who was a student of G. H Hardy but
received his PhD from the University of Chicago, and also of
the Oppenheim Conjecture fame. From 1929,
major developments followed in the educational system of
Singapore, leading eventually to the establishment of the
National University of Singapore in 1980. During this
period, the Department grew its undergraduate and research
programmes, but both remained relatively small. A detailed
account of the Department's history can be viewed
here.
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