Brief history about the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science, Stellenbosch University
The Department of Statistics was founded in 1946, with the appointment of professor SJ Pretorius. He was the first professor in Statistical Mathematics. Since the majority of subjects at Stellenbosch University were initially offered to mainly commerce students, the department formed part of the Commerce Faculty. In recent years the number of subjects offered by the Department increased dramatically. Currently, students from most Faculties follow a course in Statistics. The subjects Mathematical Statistics, Actuarial Science and Financial Risk Management are for example some of the main programs that can be followed in both the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences. Service courses are offered to the Health Sciences, Engineering, Food Science and Economic and Management Sciences students. In 1985, the Department of Statistics started to present courses in Actuarial Science and it was decided to change the name to the Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science. Professor CJB Greeff was appointed as the first professor in Actuarial Science in 1988. The Department not only offers a variety of undergraduate and service courses to students, but students from the Faculties of Science and Economic and Management Sciences can also enrol for Honours, Masters and Doctorate degrees in Statistics, Mathematical Statistics, Financial Risk Management and Actuarial Science. The Department is one of the oldest Statistics departments in South Africa and has made a rich contribution to education and research in the fields mentioned above both locally and globally. The Department of Statistics and Actuarial Science is committed to quality teaching and research in all areas of Statistics, Mathematical Statistics, Actuarial Science, Financial Risk Management and Data Science.
