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NUS Economics Society

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History of Department

75 years on!

Commemorative Issue >

Highlights

Acknowledgements

Editor: Mr Koh Weining

Design: Mr Wong Jun Jie, Ms Connie Lam Sheung Yuk, Ms Lee Shao Li

Contributors: Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong, Dr. Lee Soo Ann,

Emeritus Professor Lim Chong Yah, Mr Koh Kay Yew, Professor Basant K. Kapur, Mr Robert Chua, Ms Valerie Chow, Mr Francis Tan, Mr Yap Kim Leng, Ms Chiang Huimin

Sponsor: OCBC Bank

Content

Page 4

Message by SM GOH

Page 5-11

Recollection

Page 17-18

Past Alumni Events

Page 19

NUS Economics Alumni

Committee Members

Page 3

Foreword by

Dr Lee Soo Ann

Ed

itor’s N

ote

Having only graduated in 2009 from NUS, I was (and still am) undoubtedly the „baby‟ of the NUS Economics Alumni. The first commemorative magazine for the NUS Economics Alumni was thus an excellent opportunity for me to understand more about the functions and importance of this alumnus.

Since this is the Alumni‟s first commemorative magazine, it seems befitting that the magazine serves as a looking glass into the varied and colorful experiences of our Economics Alumni across 6 different decades. Therefore, we have included as the main article for this magazine, 7 recollections from Alumni members from as early as the 1950s to the present decade. To wrap up the recollections, the dynamic and fun-loving students from the NUS Economics Society have prepared an article that showcases their life in NUS today. Besides these, we have prepared several other articles on the history of the department and the events and activities of the Economics Alumni for your reading pleasure.

Indeed, given the many contributions to the magazine, I wish to thank the many contributors, without whom this magazine would not have been possible. Special thanks go out to Dr Lee Soo Ann for his relentless support in this publication and the NUS Economics Society for their help with the design.

In retrospect, I guess my education in NUS has been extended as the production process of this magazine proved to be an insightful journey! For one, it has shown me that our „Alma Matters‟ as with such an illustrated profile of members, the Alumni can be an excellent platform for past graduates to meet and network, and in the process, perhaps give something back to the needy students of today. On this note, I hope you will enjoy the magazine as much as I enjoyed producing it.

Koh Weining, class of 2009

Honorary Assistant Secretary

wning84@gmail.com

May,2010

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I am delighted to welcome you to this dinner which also commemorates the 75th year of the teaching of economics in NUS

(more accurately its predecessor institution, Raffles College). As is recounted in “75 years on”, there has been much morphing

in terms of institutions, but the same spirit of enquiry and service to others is there today, as it was in 1935. Yet it was only

three years ago that economics alumni came together as a group, and I am grateful that the department has supported its

formation from its inception.

Today we are taking one step forward in helping the needy in our very midst in the launch of NUS Economics Alumni bursaries.

An anonymous donor has pledged $50K and many more have followed his example. I hope that you will not only enjoy the

fellowship and entertainment in our Alumni-organised events, but also take the opportunity to give what you can in the donation

form found in this magazine. This is what economics is all about, that of helping each other in the society we are in, more so in

the very institution that has helped us, the students majoring in economics who are assessed as being needy by NUS

administrators. Our committee and the NUS development office and Registrar‟s office will administer the bursaries which

hopefully can be awarded in the forthcoming academic year.

I wish to thank Mr Koh Weining, last year‟s first class honours graduate and class valedictorian, for putting together this

publication at short notice and in excellent quality. The economics department has always been a large one in the faculty of arts

and social sciences, whose dean Professor Brenda Yeoh has kindly agreed to be here with us tonight as our guest of honour,

but we are also known to be a department of quality over its 75 years of existence. I trust that we will continue to be so through

the bearing of its alumni who are in all walks of life today, enriching Singapore and the world through their life and conduct. The

volunteers who have served with me in the last three years contributed generously of their time and talents and may we as

economics graduates make that our theme in the years to come. Thank you, and God bless,

Dr.Lee Soo Ann, class of 1960

Chairman

Foreword by Dr. Lee Soo Ann

This is what economics is all about, that of

helping each other in the society we are in… “ ” - Dr. Lee Soo Ann

3

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irst, I would like to congratulate the NUS Economics Alumni for commemorating the 75th anniversary of the teaching of economics at the tertiary level. It is heartening that the study of economics in Singapore has evolved into a subject of choice among students.

But for me, I nearly did not do economics. After my first year‟s results were out, my geography professor called me up. To his query, I told him that I was going to do economics for my honours, and that I hoped to be a professor one day. He tried to persuade me to do geography instead, arguing that I would do well in geography and that there would be little difference in being a professor of geography or economics. I was deeply touched by his interest in me. But in the end, I decided to stick to economics as it could be put to more practical use and would give me a better understanding of the real world. Indeed, the application of economics has never been more important, given the recent events in the past 2-3 years. The collapse of the US housing bubble in 2007 and the subsequent global financial and economic crisis have challenged the doctrine that markets can be fully relied upon to be self-regulating and efficient. While many people criticised the economics profession for not predicting or preventing the crisis, I would rather emphasise the positive role that economists played in urging timely monetary and fiscal interventions by governments around the world, including Singapore. This market intervention has arrested the downturn and contributed to the global recovery. If nothing else, the crisis has reinforced the fact that governments and markets need each other. Economic regulations carry compliance costs, but when applied prudently, they change behaviours, and ultimately enhance national competitiveness. Policy makers should therefore have a good grasp of economics. In Singapore, we can see how economics shape public policy everywhere. More importantly, where appropriate, we have departed from economic orthodoxy to suit our circumstances. For example, our monetary policy is exceptional for being centred on the management of our exchange rate instead of the interest rate because of our small and open economy. Long before it became fashionable, we were pursuing bilateral and multilateral Free Trade Agreements to improve the competitiveness of our companies in foreign markets. We were pioneers in applying the Vehicle Quota and Electronic Road Pricing systems to manage road demand. Our healthcare financing system is designed to avoid the pitfalls of adverse selection and moral hazard present in health insurance systems elsewhere. Amongst developed economies, we are quite unique in being able to deliver universal healthcare access with good health outcomes at affordable rates.

In the coming years, there are more multi-faceted challenges such as an ageing population, the rising cost of healthcare, increasing productivity and climate change. Tackling them will require a deep understanding of economics, sound analysis and imaginative application of economic theory. I look forward to the active contribution of the NUS Economics Alumni in advancing the debate on how Singapore can better meet these challenges.

F

Message by Senior Minister

the application of economics has never been more

important, given the recent events in the past 2-3

years……..

“ ” - Senior Minister of Singapore Goh Chok Tong

4

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50s

his is just a brief recollection of

life as a university student in

Singapore in the early 1950s at

the University of Malaya, then

the only English-speaking University in

what is to-day‟s Singapore and Malaysia.

Two special characteristics stood out

then. One is that all of us from “up-

country”, meaning present day Peninsula

Malaysia, were put in hostels in

Singapore. The main hostel was the

Dunearn Road Hostel. Some Singapore

students too, particularly the honours

year students, had to stay in the hostels.

Students‟ life, aside from lectures,

tutorials and examinations, was centred

on life as hostelites.

We lost four childhood years during the

Japanese Occupation, and most of us

were two to four years older when we

joined the University after the War.

Though being forced to grow up rather

quickly, we missed our home all the same.

Our home could be as far away as Perlis,

Kedah, Penang, Kelantan or Terengganu.

I came from Malacca. Our public and

weekend holidays were thus also spent in

the hostels. We rubbed shoulders with

one another from all over Singapore and

Malaysia as hostelites. I first stayed for

one year at Oei Tiong Ham Hall at the

Bukit Timah Campus, and then for three

years, at the Dunearn Road Hostel. We

had no choice for room-mates, except for

the honours year. Two of us were put in

a room and we could be of different

ethnic and religious group and reading

different subjects. All of us too went to

eat in the same dining hall, for breakfast,

lunch and dinner. For supper, a

volunteer or two would take the Green

Bus or Tay Koh Yat Bus to bring back

char kway teow, mee rebus or chai tao

kway from the food sellers at Newton or

Tekka. Ragging was rife, mostly uncouth

and uncivilized. In year two, which was

the “honeymoon year” then, having no

formal examination, I too indulged in

ragging but of the very much more

gentlemanly and civilized type. Among

the few people that I ragged, and

interestingly, were S.R. Nathan and

Edwin Thumboo. More than half-a-

century later, in one of our reunion

dinners in Singapore with a lot of

participants from Malaysia, we all

naturally stood up when President

Nathan came to our table. He quietly

whispered to me in the view of others, but

for my ears only, thus: “Chong Yah,

tonight you cannot rag me!”. Both of us

smiled, a little naughtily and nostalgically.

The other diners did not know what that

was all about. As for Edwin, when I

became the elected Dean of the Faculty

of Arts and Social Sciences in our alma

mater, without the need of a second

thought, I appointed him as one of my

two Vice-Deans. This illustrious poet

later became a very eminent Dean in his

own right. My honours year room-mate

was Pang Tee Pow. He became the first

Permanent Secretary in our newly-formed

Ministry of Defence after Independence in

1965. A great loss to his family, relatives,

friends and to me and to Singapore, he

died young of cancer, most unfortunately.

Higher education then was very elitist.

The lecture classes were small, most of

the time not more than 30. The tutorial

classes were much smaller still, at times

one or two students only. In the more

T

Recollections

50s | 60s | 70s | 80s | 90s | 2000

While the NUS Economics Alumni is only 3 years old, the experiences of our esteemed members span over several decades! In this 7 page spread on recollections from Alumni from different decades, we have put together the experiences and insights of 6 generations of Alumni from the 1950s to the 2000s. Enjoy!

Life as a University

Student in Singapore in the Early 1950s

5

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50s popular disciplines, this could go to four

or five. I thus knew my tutorial partners

very well and often shared our complaints

and compliments of our tutors together.

Our lecturers, then not called professors,

except for the Head of the Department,

were close to us and we to them. Invited

together to their homes for dinner was

common, and much welcomed. The food

was quite different from the mass-cooking

food at our hostels. And the after dinner

coffee was delicious and a much

welcome change. One evening, Rama

Iyer (who later became an important

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of

Finance in Malaya/Malaysia), and I had a

memorable vegetarian dinner in a

downtown restaurant in Singapore with

Joan Robinson, the famous economist

from Cambridge. She was on her way

home from China. Professor Lim Tay

Boh invited both of us, his honours year

students, to join him to dine with Joan

Robinson. It was meetings like this that

had contributed to my decision later to be

an academic economist, a professor of

economics, one day. At any rate, I had

hardly any choice. Most of the disciplines

available today in NUS, NTU and SMU

were not available then, including

sociology, political science, philosophy,

law, business administration, accounting,

engineering and architecture. Indeed, I

recall that as the Honorary Secretary of

the newly formed University of Malaya

Debating Union (UMDU), I accompanied

the Union‟s President (Thiagarajan, also

later known as Tan Kah Jin) to Malacca

Street to invite a brilliant returning lawyer

from Cambridge, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, to

support the debating proposition to the

effect that the University of Malaya

should

establish

a Law

Faculty

as soon

as

possible.

Needless

to say, Mr

Lee‟s team won with complete unanimity

of support and acclamation from the

student audience. The debate was at Eu

Tong Sen Hall, where all our

Convocations (known today as

Commencements) were held with brilliant

speeches from University Chancellors

like Mr Malcolm MacDonald, the very

distinguished Commission General for

the United Kingdom in Southeast Asia.

The Bt.Timah campus where I studied was small (only about 2,000 students in both Arts and Science) and I got to know other students well. About 2/3 came from the Federation of Malaya and 1/3 of those were Malays so it was a broadening experience for me. Life was quite free, there being 8 courses to study, but assessment is only in the final exam. Essays for tutorials were not counted as there was no continuous assessment as now. I spent lots of time in the library reading books in other subjects! Lecturers were mainly British and I learned to appreciate good spoken and written English. As there was no exam at the end of the first semester, only at the end of the second, I enjoyed every year and could play the violin in the university orchestra (my future wife sang in the choir!) and go on an archaeological

expedition to Kedah. My most interesting course was in history of art as there was a small art museum in the campus itself.

MY MOST

MEMORABLE EXPERIENCE In my honours year, I found social accounting quite puzzling and during class I was called upon to explain something on the blackboard. I made a fool of myself. I eventually recovered and when I joined the university as an assistant lecturer three years later, guess what subject I taught! It was social accounting! I also eventually wrote a book on that called "economic planning and project evaluation".

HOW MY ECONOMICS

EDUCATION HELPED ME IN MY

CAREER

It was quite a broad economics curriculum and a useful subject was agricultural economics, though Singapore is by no means agricultural. It helped understand the rest of the world better. After graduation, I joined the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and seven years later, I was seconded to the Ministry of Finance from the university as a senior economist. A few years later I obtained a consulting position as economic adviser to the United Overseas Bank which had been founded a short time before. In the meanwhile I joined the university after returning with my master's and moved up the ranks to become a full professor twenty years after graduation. I was thus able to have a comprehensive career covering government, business and academia. I

WHAT A YEAR IN NUS WAS

LIKE IN MY TIME Dr. Lee Soo Ann

thank NUS for giving me a comprehensive

foundation, yet rigorous. 6

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60s 60s

Being YOUNG in the 60s

uring our undergraduate years from 1963 to 1966 the University of Singapore was still relatively open. Different political tendencies and thoughts freely contended for support among the student community. The University Library and especially its Current Periodicals section was well stocked with publications

from many countries and political persuasions. Student political bodies like the University Socialist Club where I was an office bearer, was able to organize political forums and talks with outside speakers with minimal formalities. Many such events were well attended not only by students but also open to the public. Prior approval from the University Administration was unnecessary. Neither was prior registration required of anyone attending the events.

Singapore joined the new Federation of Malaysia in September 1963, and as political jousting increased between the PAP and the Alliance after the former‟s aggressive expansion into Peninsula Malaysia, the campus soon became another battlefield between the State and Central Governments for support in a key constituency like the undergrads.

Academic freedom and autonomy emerged as key concerns among the student community in the various tertiary institutions including Nantah, Polytechnic, and Ngee Ann College. The proposed introduction of the „suitability certificate‟ to screen the admission of new undergrads based on their activities in school days and not on their academic credentials became the driving force behind campus agitation and unrest. It culminated in the demand for a National Union of Singapore Students in late 1966.

In academic year 1965/6 I was elected President of the University of Singapore‟s Economics Society. Ably supported by my classmates, Tang Wee Lip as Treasurer and See Chak Mun as Secretary, we organized a busy program of activities. The two that merit to be highlighted were the Talk on “Malaysian Common Market – Problems and Prospects” by Tun Tan Siew Sin, Malaysian Minister of Finance at the Annual Dinner and Dance of the Society, which attracted a record turnout of 150 participants from members and friends, and a survey of the employment prospects facing graduates in the class of 66.

The Economics Faculty was endowed by a bright young and open minded faculty, mostly locals, many of whom were only a few years our senior. New and sometimes less conventional ideas were able to thrive in such a liberal environment as it was not stifled by the heavyweight of authority and bureaucracy. As our Economics class of 66 was small by any standards with only twenty one students, we benefited from closer interaction with the faculty and with each other. Up to this day we take pride that annual reunions are still held in August of each year.

I had chosen to major in Economics even though I had excelled in Political Science in my freshman year in 1963/4 as I thought the discipline was more rigorous. The isolation of key variables in an attempt to establish causal relationships was invaluable. Ideally I would have preferred to pursue Political Economy if it was available but bourgeois academia had decades earlier separated Economics from its social context and elevated the „market‟ to be the supreme arbiter of production and price based on “rational” decision making of the actors or stake holders involved. The absence of Economic History (i.e. history of Economic thought) from our syllabus was acutely felt.

D

“It was blissful to be young then”. (Wordsworth).

Looking back at our undergraduate years nearly half a century later, I am filled with nostalgia for those years where we were full of hope and promise, having just emerged from the shackles of British colonial rule and thought that the world laid at our feet and society could be shaped according to our aspirations and ideals. My only regret if any was that the Arts course had been reduced to three years with Honours awarded based on academic results in the final year when earlier it was offered as a fourth year of study. I have no doubts that the additional year would have enriched our intellects and education far more and mature our minds to face the challenges after graduation. Left Koh Kay Yew,

right Dr. Lee Soo Ann 7

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“ ”

70s I have very pleasant memories of my student days in the Bukit Timah campus from mid-1967 to early-1970. (Some time during the early or mid-60‟s, the University had switched from a four- to a three- years Honours programme (before switching back in the 1970‟s), and so my undergraduate studies lasted three years.) In my first year I read Economics, Political Science, and Sociology, and in the second and third years I read only Economics, comprising eight courses in the second year, and seven courses and an Honours Thesis (then termed Academic Exercise).

I had excellent teachers, including Professors Lim Chong Yah, Chia Siow Yue, Lee Soo Ann, Augustine Tan, Amina Tyabji, among others. In my case, I should make a special mention of Professor Augustine Tan, not only for his fascinating and rigorous course in International Trade, but for being my Academic Exercise supervisor, and for strongly advising me to pursue a PhD in Economics. I owe my choice of an academic career to him, for which I will always be most grateful (whether my students over the years are also grateful is, of course, a separate issue!). My undergraduate studies provided me with a superb foundation for my subsequent graduate studies, for which I will always be indebted to my teachers.

I also participated in various campus activities, including being an active member of the Democratic Socialist Club, and serving as an Associate Editor of the students‟ newspaper, The Undergrad. My friends and I developed a keen political and social consciousness, and it is a matter of some regret to me that students nowadays don‟t seem to cultivate this to the same extent.

Economics is a unique subject in many respects. It is both theoretical and practical, both aesthetically beautiful and functional, and provides both excellent „training of the mind‟ and invaluable real-world knowledge. Further progress in the discipline will I believe require both continual deepening – the use of increasingly advanced mathematical and computational methods – and continual broadening – exploring linkages with other disciplines such as Psychology, Philosophy, and Sociology – and in these lie both the immense potential of the subject, and the immense challenges it faces. Let us all continue to read widely in, and enjoy, the subject, and related disciplines!

Economics is a unique subject in many respects……. Economics is a unique subject in many respects. ……

It is both theoretical &

practical

knowledge.

& practical

8

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80

s

80s 0

As a student of Economics during my Varsity

days, I began to view what I read in the

newspapers and magazines in a much

different light – you begin to critically think

about financial and socio-economic issues

being reported, and became more insightful in

seeing the connectivity between economic

theory and actual application in normal day-to-

day events in Singapore and around the world.

But I must confess I had pretty much an

uneventful, even mundane, campus life – I

remember one week in my freshman year, the

blissful highlight for the week was being able to

afford a newly printed revised edition of Paul A.

Samuelson‟s best-selling and somewhat

controversial “Economics” textbook.

Upon graduation, after a short stint as a

commodity futures trader, I entered the then

new “hip”, sexy, sunrise industry – Information

Technology - in 1981, when Atari, Space

Invaders, Apple II & “Lisa”, PC-DOS, and

Wang word processors (and soon after, IBM‟s

legendary PCs) were all the rage, and I frankly

wondered how I could apply the lessons I

learned in an industry which was, then and

now, so engineering and innovation-oriented,

and which constantly evolved at fibre-optic

speed.

However, after having worked for 3 decades

for MNCs, SMEs, Start-ups and Government

agencies (both Singapore and South Korea),

I realise that no matter what sector or

industry you are in, developing an “eye” for

key socio-economic imperatives and drivers,

like deploying “green” technology, processes

and practices (as seen in many IT data

centers today), are vital for economically

sustainable and socially responsible

enterprises, and ultimately business

longevity.

Why? Because the economy is a sub-system

relative to the total system, the eco-sphere

(with its ever-depleting scarce resources), and

business leaders need to re-shape strategies

and organizational behaviour, and so that there

is a balanced, managed growth which can be

sustainable. Today, Governments, global

MNCs and large national companies are

already aggressively adopting the

“sustainability” agenda (because of regulatory,

PR, branding, opportunistic revenue

generation, cost-reduction or many other

factors).

For example, when I worked for the South

Korean government (2002-2007), the country

had passed a law requiring all retailers to

charge customers for items that are “single

one-time use” such as plastic shopping bags

and paper cups & plates. The results were

significant – the use of paper bags decreased

by nearly 25%, as many Koreans now bring

their own shopping bags to stores and their

own cups to cafes to avoid the charges. By

putting a “price on wastage”, the South Korean

government created economic incentives for

environmentally-friendly behaviour. These

regulations impact the sustainability through

the channel of economics.

Relative to large behemoth organisations

like MNCs, start-ups and SMEs have a

greater flexibility to respond to fast-

changing business environment and

government regulations, and be quicker in

integrating sustainability directly into their

business plans. Indeed, many of these

small companies‟ business partners and

customers (like global MNCs, government

bodies, and national corporations) are

increasingly looking to do deal with

suppliers and retailers that share their

socio-economic and environmental values.

Failing to adapt to these imperatives and

drivers can result in loss of future business

for these small companies. Finally,

Governments today, are starting to apply

the same stringent environmental laws and

regulations to start-ups and SMEs, that

once affected mostly larger companies.

For entrepreneurs, start-ups and SMEs,

there is no escaping the socio-economic

realities of the trend towards sustainability.

This is important because start-ups and

SMEs make up over 90% of all businesses

in the world – in the USA, in the last

century, 95 % of significant innovations in

products and services came from firms

with fewer than 25 employees (Babson

Center for Entrepreneurship). Thus, suffice

to say, our world‟s economic and

environmental sustainability will not be

possible without this segment on the band.

The

Eco

no

mic

s

of

Su

stai

nab

le

Ente

rpri

ses

for

Entr

ep

ren

eu

rs &

SMEs

9

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Economics

Black Scholes Formula

It was a no-brainer to study Economics in NUS after my A-levels. That was one of my better subjects then and quite easily I

took up the subject. Not knowing that in university, there is more to Economics then Micro and Macro Economics which are

certainly more difficult to learn! Also, not foreseeing the foreign lecturers with discerning accents that may be difficult to

distinguish at the same time made the lectures an “entertaining” session. Nonetheless, a variety of lecturers from the Economics

made my 3 years in NUS Economics Faculty a memorable one. Learnt lots of different economic theories, models and lots of

calculations too! The numbers part was my favourite but there were too many equations in a lifetime of a student! And rightly

should have brought me to Finance or Banking career but instead led me to a Retail sector career which I have been pursuing for

more than 10 years.

One would say, “What does Economics have to do with Retail?” Well, heaps as that is one sector where one is able to

experience the main economic fundamentals where the Supply and Demand of Goods & Services are traded. Prices are set;

profits or losses are gained; and businesses grew or get wiped out by the market forces. I would say, I have been lucky to be

able to start my career in product management – buying the stocks; setting the prices and managing the sales of the products –

the 3 key areas of a Buyer role in Retail sector. That is the start of my career in learning and managing the economics of how a

Retail business works. It is exciting and challenging at the same time. Fast pace; always planning ahead; thinking how to sell

one‟s products; and at the right price for profitable margins. What can I say? It was truly a real and 1st hand “economics”

experience that cannot be taught from textbooks.

From this work experience, I had moved onwards to brand management roles – managing and controlling the P&L of my

brands. It is not just about the top-line but also the bottom-line results for my brands which challenges me even more in my Retail

career. My goal is to pursue onwards to a general management career which encompasses not just business management but

also stakeholders‟ management. There is no experience in business economics like true experience which was had from my

Economics studies days in NUS which leads me to say:“Economics – A Wise Choice Indeed!”

Economics >what it led me to be

C (S,t) = SN(d1) – Ke-r(T-t) N(D2)

PortfolioVariance:

90s

10

[Type text]

20

00

2

0

00

ike almost every other cohort, the economics department during the 1998 matriculation year was the largest in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Belonging to a large department had its definite advantages. For one, there were always ample opportunities to buy that one-edition-ago microeconomics textbook during the occasional textbook sale organized by the Economics & Statistics Society. In addition, I could easily find a bunch of economics students at the

same level of „academic confusion‟ (usually the group that sits/sleeps comfortably at the last row of every lecture hall) to form a study group with. We would often get together after each lecture or tutorial class to divide and distribute the tutorial questions equally amongst us to solve by the following week. Now, that‟s a first course in Pareto optimality through the specialization of labour! Now, if there were more students than the number of tutorial questions, we get to learn about the “free-rider problem” first hand. Furthermore, I do not think I will reveal too much on the exploitation of the (near) zero marginal cost concept in relation to the academically-advanced students “selling” (Note that the “sale” here may not necessarily imply a monetary transaction) tutorial answers which they have completed within the hour of receiving it to the next potential buyer.

What started off as mass mystification of the elementary economic theories during the first year became clearer as students proceed into the second year. In fact, economics students started to speak the same lingo. Suddenly, other than wondering if you can get an Adam Smith apple juice at the Arts canteen, everyone else seemed to be engaged in serious showing off by solving stochastic differential equations at the Arts canteen next to some English Literature students. Then, there were some who argued on the impossibility to observe White Noise since the karaoke music in the tavern is not visible. Others played rounds and rounds of Bayesian games by the pool table. Yet even a lot more students contemplated on applying Nash equilibrium theories to decide on whether to make a first move on that hot economics hunk/babe that you think may be interested in you too. In the end, both parties applied the theory, and decided not to make any move for the rest of the semester. So much for the real-life realization of the Prisoners‟ dilemma and my own little explanation on why you have to be an outlier if your other half is also an economist!

Economics education aside, it is interesting to realise that most of the students are simply normal, fun-loving creatures outside the curriculum. The short (but sweet) honours year brought us much closer as we suddenly realise that around 80% of our cohort left the „ivory towers‟ to seek greater challenges and hopefully apply the knowledge they had acquired from 3 years of university education. The cohort suddenly shrank in size. By right, the competition has intensified and the race to complete the honours year dissertation and the complex 4000-level modules should have pressured students to visit the library more often. However for the 2002 honours cohort, we saw an opposite phenomenon. Instead, we started to play more than ever, meeting up for volleyball and ultimate Frisbee sessions on Saturday afternoons at Siloso Beach, enjoying countless nights of beer and games of pool at Prince Edward Tavern, and even taking a trip with our favourite microeconomics lecturer to Pulau Ubin during the December holidays.

After our final exams, 27 of us even took a vacation trip together to Pulau Tioman to wrap up our honours year. Each of us came to realise that after we leave NUS, we may not have the opportunity to catch up as often as we would like, but the nice memories and photographs of our times together will accompany us in many episodes of reminiscing later in our lives. For most of us, undergraduate studies was the final leg of our formal education and I believed that everyone treasured the times that we shared together. I am indeed pleased to have shared these four years of my life balancing work and fun with my university classmates and the many great professors whom left a great impression on us.

L

A class like no other A class like no other One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feelings. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is a vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child.

- Carl Jung

11

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ENS has done an outstanding job serving the student

body - career talks by professional economists,

representing student interests to the administration

and fun orientation camps – the society has done

them and so much more. On a personal level, the

society has added much soul to my varsity life: I’ve

had the opportunity to follow, to lead and to forge

close friendships. Thank you ENS for the fun times

and fond memories!

Since 1961, the NUS Economics Society (ENS) has been working alongside the

economics department to enhance the undergraduate NUS Economics

experience and promote NUS Economics nation-wide. Our network also extends

beyond the campus to include our alumni and external organisations, with whom

we work to bring forth exciting new programmes.

OCBC Gold Medal (Top Year 1 FASS Student)

Sherwood Memorial Book Prize winner

Public Policy Challenge 08 Champion

MOE Local Teaching Award Scholar

46th ENS President

47th Student Welfare Committee Head

NUS University Scholars Programme

NUS Global Merit Scholarship holder

Being in the society has helped me to see the

potential a small group of people has to transform the

university experience of themselves and others into

an even more fruitful one. Change and improvements

cannot be hoped for, they have to be initiated.

-Dawn Lee

“

”

“

-Kaimin

”

NUS Economics Society Having read the experiences of past Alumni, we transit to the life of students in NUS today! In this article, the students of the NUS Economics Society share their experiences on what life in NUS is like for them today by giving insights on the functions and events of the society.

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Events

NUS Economics Society (ENS) has organized many events over the years which include National Economics and Finance

Management Quiz (NEFMQ), an annual event organized for students from Polytechnics, Junior Colleges and the International

Baccalaureate programme. This quiz was held in collaboration with MoneySense for the past two years – an organization which

aims to educate the public on finance management. We also organized several talks and seminars for students for instance MAS

Moneysense Talk, Career Talk by MTI and CIC, as well as the Economics of Golf Talk. Through these talks, we hope to create career

opportunities as well as equip members with life skills that can come in handy in time of graduation and in their future career. ENS

also held many social events for the members to bond and know each other better. We have our annual chalet which served as a

wonderful opportunity for everyone in ENS family to mingle around. We also have Moon cake festival and Chinese New Year

celebrations where everyone chatted, play games and formed friendships. On top of that, we also have our annual ENS Bazaar, a

very significant event of the Economics Society which sees a plethora of vendors selling their products and food items. One can also

catch a glimpse of a range of overseas arts talent and world class gathering of dance luminaries showcasing various cultures. Not

forgetting our annual Economics Camp which is one of the biggest events in ENS! The goal of the camp is to assimilate the freshmen

to the campus environment through the fostering of new friendships and have fun.

Post Camp Gathering for

all the freshmen & leaders

Annual Chalet!!

Annual Freshmen

Orientation!!

NEFMQ!!

Website: http://www.nus-ens.com/

Department of Economics, National University of Singapore

10 Kent Ridge Crescent, Singapore 11920

Tel/Fax: 67779117

Email: econs.soc@gmail.com

>

Events

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Raffles College was founded in 1929 by the Straits Settlements

(the British colony comprising Malacca, Penang and Singapore)

government for the teaching of the humanities and the sciences

at the tertiary level in Singapore. Its buildings now constitute the

Bt.Timah Campus of NUS. Shortly after its founding, the first

readership in economics was advertised in 1933. Ralph Arakie,

M.Sc.(Econ) from the London School of Economics (L.S.E.) was

appointed and arrived at the end of 1934, to start the teaching of

economics in 1935. At L.S.E., he had been a brilliant research

student. In an appreciation of Mr.Arakie, a former student Moni

Sundram wrote that “he disdained pomp and circumstance,

preferring to be a guide, philosopher, counsellor and friend to his

students who responded by according him both affection and

respect… he chose to lecture without recourse to notes..”

Such was the warm and intimate way that teaching in economics

started in Singapore. However he died after two years, relatively

young, in 1936, through tragic circumstances. His successor was

Thomas Henry Silcock who arrived in January 1938. Professor

Silcock was then only 28 and had obtained his

doctorate from Oxford University: he was to lead the department

until he resigned in 1960. Many batches of honours graduates

assumed leading positions in the government, business and

academia of both Malaysia and Singapore. Before he passed

away in 1983, he wrote a privately circulated book about the

department in which he recounted the careers of many honours

graduates.

Raffles College combined with the KE VII School of Medicine to

form the University of Malaya in 1949, an entity supported by the

two governments of the then Federation of Malaya and of the

Colony of Singapore. An honours year in economics was started

in 1951. In 1957 the Federation of Malaya became fully

independent, Singapore remaining a colony. This led to the the

formation in 1962 of the University of Singapore, a new campus

being built in Pantai Valley outside Kuala Lumpur, the capital of

the Federation, the name “University of Malaya” being retained

by it. The University of Singapore (SU) continued to be at the

Bukit Timah campus, the medical/dental campus continuing on at

Outram Road. Despite this separation, many Malayan/Malaysian

History of Department

75Years ON!

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students continued to come down to the Bukit Timah campus to

study economics.

A photograph of the 1940 student economics society at Raffles

College showed some seventy five economics students,

including those taking it as a subsidiary level. Among those in

the photograph were Mr.Lee Kuan Yew and his wife, Geok Choo,

as well as Tun Abdul Razak, the second Prime Minister of

Malaysia. Dr.Goh Keng Swee (later to become Finance, Defence

and Education Minister in Singapore, as well as Deputy Prime

Minister) was also in it, though at that time he had already

graduated from the College and was an economics tutor in the

College. Professor Silcock was a brilliant scholar who had

rejected opportunities in the Indian and Colonial Civil Service in

favour of an academic life. He was the

son and grandson of Christian

missionaries, and was born in China

where his parents served.

It is not surprising then that Professor

Silcock initiated social work training as

a subset of the department. An

outstanding pioneering social work

student was Mr.S.Nathan, now

President of Singapore. He also initiated the training of

Singaporean staff to replace British expatriate staff. Together

with Dr. Goh was a Lim Tay Boh who after obtaining a Raffles

College diploma, then went on to obtain a first class honours in

economics from Cambridge University and returned to teach

after WW II. While a lecturer, he went on leave and obtained his

doctorate from L.S.E. After Professor Silcock‟s departure at the

age of 50, Dr.Lim Tay Boh became the next professor (head of

department). During his term, Mr.Goh Chok Tong obtained a first

class honours degree in economics from the department.

Professor Lim went on to become Vice-Chancellor of the then

University of Singapore but he died in office in 1975 when he

was 60.

Another local staff recruited was a brilliant statistician from L.S.E.,

Dr. You Poh Seng, who became the next professor or head of

department which expanded to cover the teaching of statistics as

well. In 1979 he retired at age 60, to become director of the

Singapore Institute of Management, now SIM University.

Succeeding him was Lim Chong Yah, a brilliant state scholar

from Malacca who had came to study at the University of Malaya

in 1951-55. He also like Professor Silcock, obtained his doctorate

from Oxford University and served as head for sixteen years from

1976, during which he led the department through the change of

the University of Singapore into the National University of

Singapore (NUS) in 1980. In that year, Nanyang University

closed and its economics and statistics staff were transferred to

NUS making the department much larger. In 1979, the

department relocated to the new Kent Ridge campus of NUS.

Under the leadership of Professor Lim, the department expanded

to nearly 100 teaching staff, and played a prominent part in the

public life of Singapore.

Economics was taught to students

in other schools, such as the

Faculties of Science, Engineering

and Law. Besides social work, the

department also assisted in the

expansion of accountancy and

business administration teaching

in Singapore. Two years after he

was promoted to a full

professorship in 1981, Professor

Lee Soo Ann was transferred to the Faculty of Accountancy and

Business Administration as Dean, succeeding Professor You

Poh Seng as director of the then SU school of accountancy and

business administration.

Professor Lim was succeeded, when he retired at age 60 as

head in 1992, by Professor Basant Kapur who had graduated

with a first class honours in 1970 from the University of

Singapore and went on to obtain his doctorate from Stanford

University. Professor Kapur led the department for six years until

1998 after which there were a number of acting appointments.

NUS underwent a sea change in 2000 with the appointment of a

new president who sought to make NUS a global university.

New criteria for staff tenure were set, and the department turned

full circle with non-Singaporean heads being appointed, first

Professor Ake Blomquist (Canada), then Professor Parkesh

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Chander (India), and now Professor Sun Yeneng (China) who is

jointly with the NUS department of mathematics.

Economics students are still mainly Singaporean, but there are

also students from elsewhere,

such as Malaysia, China and

Vietnam. There are also numerous

exchange students. Many

economics students now go for a

term or two to the University of

British Columbia, the Stockholm

School of Economics as well the

NUS overseas colleges in Palo

Alto and Shanghai.

What began as the teaching of undergraduate economics in a

British colony has now become the teaching of economics in a

global city. Over 100 students are

enrolled in postgraduate economics:

many master‟s and Ph.D. graduates

return to China, India and elsewhere.

After 1999 when the teaching of

statistics was shifted to the Faculty of

Science, the teaching of economics

has now reverted to what it simply was

in 1935. However economics students can now pursue dual

degree programs with Australian National University as well as

joint degrees with some other faculties in NUS. NUS economics

alumni include Ho Kwon Ping in the

business sector and Ravi Menon, the

permanent secretary of MTI.

Over a hundred now graduate with an

honours degree in economics, as

compared to 2 in 1951: such has been

the transformation in the last 75 years!

The department is now in the top 10 in

all Asia with its own journal “The

Singapore Economic Review. Through

its SCAPE (the Singapore Centre for

Applied and Policy Research), the department continues its

tradition of researching on topical issues. As in the 1980s,

economics is a very much sought after

discipline in the Faculty of Arts & Social

Sciences and continues to attract students

taking its modules from all other faculties in

NUS, from abroad and from other

universities in Singapore on exchange.

Written by: Dr Lee Soo Ann

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Economics Alumni Events

Wine Appreciation Night hosted by Solymer Asia (2007)

The event, held at Far East Square saw more than 20 members having an enjoyable time learning and sampling a variety of Spanish wine.

Mooncake Festival Celebration with invited speakers Mr Yang Yew Chong, Chinese Studies Alumni and A/P Victor Savage, Department of Geography, NUS (2007)

Though the historical and cultural origins of the Moon-cake Festival and toponymics, the study of place names, did not have much in common, that did not stop the Economics, History and Chinese Studies Alumni from successfully organising a talk on both topics. Mr Yang Yew Chong began with a presentation on the history behind the Moon-cake Festival. After a short intermission where moon-cakes were served, A/P Victor Savage gave a talk on how some places in Singapore came to be named. Utilising his personal collection of old photos, A/P Savage riveted the audience with his engaging lesson on a lesser known aspect of Singapore's past.

"Sustaining Financial Peace of Mind - Lessons from the Endowment Approach" by Mr. Wee Sin Tho, Chief Strategist for the NUS Endowment Programme (2008)

A total of 25 Economics Alumni members had an engaging and informative session with Mr Wee at the Tan Chin Tuan Function Room at YMCA Orchard. Mr Wee highlighted the challenges and concerns regarding retirement, health costs and the costs of living.

Tea Session with graduating students with talk by Mr Tang Wee Lip, Vice-Chairman of the NUS Economics Alumni (2008)

About 30 graduating students gathered at the new FASS lounge for a refreshing talk by Mr. Tang who has had varied experiences in both the public and private sectors over four decades. He offered words of advice regarding career paths and also shared on the important questions to ask when embarking on a career.

A SNAPSHOT OF NUS ECONOMICS ALUMNI EVENTS

To cater to diverse interests of approximately 1300 alumni members, the NUS Economics Alumni has held several workshops and social activities since its launch on 2nd Mar 2007 at the Cathay Preview Lounge. Highlights of some of our past activities are as follows

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"Eloquence Essentials 2008", a workshop by the NUS Toastmaster's Club

3 speakers from the NUS Alumni Toastmasters Club conducted the session on the various techniques of speaking off-the-cuff and presenting speeches confidently. It was truly a “learning by doing” endeavour and Mr. Daniel Lo, a committee member and private banker emerged the “best speaker” for the night.

ENS Annual Career Talk & Golf Talk by Mr Lip Ooi, PGA Professional (2009)

NUS Economics Alumni collaborated with the NUS Economics Undergraduate Society (ENS) in organising a career talk for the students and also invited Mr Lip Ooi, a PGA Professional, to share on “The Economics of Golf”.

Second NUS Economics Alumni Annual Dinner (2009)

The NUS Economics Alumni held its second annual dinner at Goodwood Hill. As before, the event was very well attended with about 100 alumni and friends from the graduating class of 1950s to recent graduates from the Economics Department.

The guest of honour was Emeritus Professor Lim Chong Yah who gave us a historical journey of the Economics Department, including the role played by a large number of alumni from the department in the founding years of Singapore.

Prof Lim and Peter Law also showed us that age is no barrier to singing. Despite the rain and the prevailing global financial crisis, the ambience was good and spirit was high.

Book Talk by Mr Koh Kay Yew, co-editor of the book “The Fajar Generation – The University Socialist Club and the Politics of Postwar Malaya and Singapore" (2010)

Mr Koh was the secretary general and president of the University Socialist Club (USC) in 1964/5, and president of the University of Singapore Economics Society in 1965/6.

In the 1950s and 60s, the USC and its organ Fajar were a leading voice advocating the cause of the constitutional struggle for freedom and independence in peninsular Malaya and Singapore. The talk gave the younger alumni members a snapshot of the political atmosphere during that period as many were too young to remember such events, and they also never knew that NUS at one time was a hotbed of revolutionary activity!

Compiled by: Ms Chiang Huimin 18

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Honorary Chairman: Dr.Lee Soo Ann from Class of 1960 and taught at NUS until 1988 when he went to a seminary for two years, after which he served in the bible society of Singapore until end 2003. Since 2000, he has been a part-time senior fellow in the department of economics at NUS. He has led a few non-governmental organizations and now serves in a few profit-making companies. He authored Singapore: From Place to Nation and co-authored EC3371 Development Economics with Todaro and Smith, these being used as the textbooks for the two courses he now teaches at NUS. He currently chairs NUS Economics Alumni.

Honorary Vice Chairman: Tang Wee Lip is the cohort representative for Class of 1960s. He is the founding president of The Stanford Club of Singapore, and was with the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Honorary Vice Chairman: Daniel Lo is the cohort representative for Class of 1980s. He has extensive experience in the finance industry and private banking.

Honorary Secretary and i/c for mentoring programme: Tan Tai Kiat from Class of 2000s works for SBS Transit and is a volunteer probation officer since 1998 with the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS). He obtained his Masters in Public Policy and Administration at the London School of Economics in 2006. Prior to SBS Transit, Tai Kiat was with the Land Transport Authority of Singapore (LTA).

Honorary Assistant Secretary: Koh Weining is from the class of 2009. He is currently training to be a teacher in NIE and will be teaching in Victoria Junior College from July 2010. Weining was the Valedictorian for his cohort in 2009 and was the former president of the NUS Economics Society.

Honorary Treasurer: Dr. Connie Chung from Class of 1980s used to work in an American MNC holding sales, marketing and management positions. She spent many years in its overseas offices working with customers in PRC, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Hong Kong, Sydney, Wellington and Rochester, Minnesota, USA. She is currently teaching in NUS and serves as Treasurer in the Economics Alumni.

Assistant Honorary Treasurer and i/c of publicity/website: Seow Shih Yuan, from class of 2008 worked in the medical services line as part of a management executive programme after graduation. Her portfolio mainly was on risk management. She believes strongly in mentoring and takes part in the economics alumni mentorship programme.

Charan Kaur from Class of 1970s, is currently lecturing in Economics, Business Management & Organisational Behaviour in the School of Business & Accountancy (BA) in Ngee Ann Polytechnic.

Bao Bin Bin from Class of 2000s is a Shanghainese and came to Singapore 4 years ago. She obtained her Bachelor Degree in Accountancy from Fudan University and worked in a state owned private equity as accountant. After obtaining her Master Degree in Economics in NUS, she joined Citi Private Bank as Management Associate. She was attached to Finance Department for 2 years and recently transferred to Sales Team as Associate Banker.

Chang Rui Hua from Class of 2000 is currently with the Equities Capital Markets team in DBS Bank Ltd ("DBS"). She was involved in the Tiger Airways Holdings Limited and Tiong Seng Holdings Limited Initial Public Offering in 2010 and major rights issues by DBS, Neptune Orient Lines and Genting Singapore PLC in 2009. She was previously with the Corporate and Investment Banking team in DBS, serving clients such as Government of Singapore Investment Corporation Pte Ltd. Before joining DBS, she was a sovereign analyst with Standard & Poor's. Rui Hua obtained her Masters in International Public Policy (Politics) from University College London.

Economics Alumni Committee Members

Economics Alumni Committee, clockwise from top left: Koh Weining, Charan Kaur, Chiang Huimin, Bao Bin Bin, Dr

Connie Chung, Tan Tai Kiat, Dr. Lee Soo Ann, Tang Wee Lip, Daniel Lo. [Not in photo: Seow Shih Yuan, Chang Rui Hua]

Chiang Chiang Huimin from Class of 2000s has been teaching since 2006. She is currently the Assistant Department Head (Economics) and the teacher teacher-in-charge of Entrepreneurs‟ Network at Raffles Institution (Junior College).

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