Milestones Milestones

Our Milestones Our Milestones

1900-1950
  • Straits Settlements and Federal Malay States Government Medical School opened.
1905
  • The first seven students graduated with the Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery.
1910
  • The institution’s name changed to King Edward VII Medical School.
1912
  • The Medical School expanded and became King Edward VII College of Medicine.
1921
  • Raffles College opened.
1928
  • Raffles College’s official opening.
1929
  • The first 28 Raffles College students graduated with Arts or Science diplomas. Eleven of them got together in Singapore and decided to meet regularly.
1931
  • Raffles College graduated in Singapore appoint convenors.
1935
  • Inaugural meeting of the Stamford Club, Singapore, held at Victoria School. Membership: 30. Stamford Clubs formed in Malaya at this time.
1936
  • Raffles College and King Edward VII College of Medicine closed during the Japanese Occupation. 
1942 - 45
  • Raffles College and King Edward VII College of Medicine re-opened.
1946
  • The Carr-Saunders Commission on tertiary education came to Singapore and Malaya. Stamford Clubs debated for full university status.
1947
  • Raffles College Ordinance amended to allow two representatives of graduates on the College Council. The Carr-Saunders Commission recommended the amalgamation of Raffles College and the College of Medicine to establish the University of Malaya. 
1948
  • University of Malaya opened and continued the practice of having representatives of graduates on the Council. The representatives were elected by the Guild Graduates. 
1949

  • University of Malaya awarded its first degrees.

1950
1951-2000
  • Inaugural meeting of the University of Malaya Society (UMS) held at Oei Tiong Ham Hall, Bukit Timah Campus on 1 July. Present: 44 members.
1954
  • Nanyang University opened.
1956
  • UMS operated from a room in the Cultural Centre at Canning Rise. University of Malaya operated campuses in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.
1958
  • Provided by the University, UMS operated from the premises of ground floor in 7 Cluny Road.
1960
  • UMS staged its first play, John Arden’s Serjeant Musgrave’s Dance.
1961
  • University of Malaya split.
  • University of Singapore opened. Singapore declared independence and joined Malaya, Sabah and Sarawak to form Malaysia.
  • UMS became the University of Singapore Society (USS) and published The Graduate.
1962
  • USS moved into 5 Dalvey Estate which marked the first Guild House.
1964
  • USS launched the Student Loan Fund.
1967
  • USS launched Commentary to ‘serve as a forum for interesting views on contemporary issues’ and to make up for a ‘lack of suitable media’.
1968
  • University of Singapore secured site at Kent Ridge for its new campus.
1969
  • USS moved to its second Guild House at 15 Evans Road.
1971
  • Joint Campus set up at Bukit Timah to promote closer ties between the two Universities.
1978
  • Evans Road Guild House burned down.
  • University of Singapore and Nanyang University merged to form the National University of Singapore (NUS).
  • No longer a Guild of Graduates, representatives were no longer elected to be on the University Council.
1980
  • USS became the National University of Singapore Society (NUSS).
1981
  • Kent Ridge Guild House opened, built on land provided by NUS.
1984
  • Adam Park Guild House opened in March, followed by City Guild House in October.
1987
  • NUSS pledged $1.6million to the University of Singapore Student Loan Fund, donating $200,000 a year.
1989
  • NUSS completed a Strategic Planning exercise.
  • BG (Res) George Yeo, Acting Minister for Information and the Arts and Senior Minister of State for Foreign Affairs delivered the inaugural annual NUSS Lecture on 21 June.
  • Promoted establishment of Singapore’s first Western opera company, Lyric Theatre (Singapore) Limited.
1991
  • Mr Ali Alatas, Indonesia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs delivered the NUSS Lecture on 28 October.
1992
  • Expansion and upgrading of Kent Ridge Guild House.
1994
  • NUSS pledged $1.5million to the Universities Endowment Fund to establish the NUSS Professorship to NUS.
1995
  • Opening of Orchard Guild House at Level 8, Cineleisure Orchard in December.
  • Closure of City Guild House at Amara Hotel.
1997
  • Official opening of Orchard Guild House in November.
1998
  • Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong delivered the Millennium Lecture on 4 November.
  • Upgrading of Kent Ridge Guild House basement level from October to December.
2000
2001-2024
  • NUSS Professorship Inaugural Lecture by Professor Artur Ekert on 16 April.
  • NUSS completed Strategic Planning Exercise.
2001
  • Closure of Orchard Guild House on 10 December.
  • Soft launch of Suntec City Guild House on 15 December.
2003
  • NUSS celebrated its 50th Anniversary and raised $75,000 for the President’s Challenge.
  • Pledged $20 million to the Alumni Complex.
  • Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong officiates the opening of Suntec City Guild House on 6 March.
  • NUSS Professorship Lecture by Emeritus Professor John Habraken – ‘Architecture without Buildings’.
2004
  • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong delivered the NUSS Lecture on 19 March.
  • NUSS donated $100,000 to establish a $200,000 NUSS Bursary fund for NUS High School.
2005
  • President S R Nathan launched NUSS’ 50th Anniversary Commemorative book, True Passion: 50 Years and On on 16 January.
  • NUS-NUSS Centennial Golf Challenge established a Guinness World Record for the most number of golfers teeing off simultaneously at a one-day event on 19 February.
  • Dr Tony Tan officiated the Groundbreaking Ceremony for the Alumni Complex on 8 May.
  • NUSS Pool Closing Ceremony in June.
  • NUSS completed Strategic Planning Exercise.
2006
  • NUSS embarked on a strategic branding exercise with the launch of a new logo.
  • Established the NUSS Kent Ridge Fund, in collaboration with NUS, for its fundraising campaign.
  • Signed a lease with National Parks Board for Bukit Timah Guild House.
2007
  • NUSS opened its fourth Guild House at Bukit Timah on 1 December.
  • Completion of Kent Ridge Guild House Phase 1 and soft opening of the new Kent Ridge Guild House on 6 December.
  • NUSS Professorship Lecture by Professor Dr Chandran Kukathas on 11 September.
2008
  • Official opening of Alumni Complex and NUSS Dialogue with Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew on 20 March.
  • President S R Nathan became NUSS Patron at the Official Opening of Bukit Timah Guild House on 24 July.
  • NUSS Professorship Lecture by Professor Sidney Nelson.
2009
  • Opening of Sports & Recreational facilities at KRGH on 26 June.
  • Dr Tony Tan Keng Yam conferred NUSS Honorary Membership.
2010
  • Renamed Kent Ridge Guild Hall to Della & Seng Gee Guild Hall on 13 July.
  • Mr Lee Kuan Yew conferred NUSS Honorary Membership.
2011
  • President Tony Tan became the Patron of NUSS.
  • Mr S R Nathan conferred NUSS Honorary Membership.
  • Closure of Suntec City Guild House on 18 November.
2012
  • Opened the new Suntec City Guild House on 5 December.
2013
  • NUSS officially opened the new Suntec City Guild House at Suntec City Tower 5 on 7 March.
  • Closure of Adam Park Guild House in August.
  • Mr Wong Ngit Liong and Professor Wang Gungwu conferred NUSS Honorary Memberships.
  • NUSS celebrated its 60th Anniversary.
  • Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong delivered the NUSS 60th Anniversary Lecture.
2014
  • Raised a total sum of $2,873,500 to mark the SG50 year, of which $2,773,500 came in support of the NUS Alumni Bursary Campaign and $100,000 for local children charities.
  • Collaborated with media partner, Inconvenient Questions to host the 2015 pre-General Election Political Dialogue, which was webcasted for the first time and widely covered by both online and mainstream media.
  • “Groceries on Wheels” project distributed 2,000 grocery bags to the underprivileged and elderly households island wide in partnership with district Community Development Councils.
2015
  • Renamed the Kent Ridge Guild House Swimming Complex as Mabel & Soon Siew Kwa Swimming Complex in recognition of a $2 million gift to the NUS Alumni Bursary Fund Campaign from NUSS member, Professor Kwa Chong Guan and his sister, in honour of their late parents.
2016
  • Bukit Timah Guild House was closed and returned to National Parks Board for research and educational outreach purposes in March.
  • The Rights Issue Campaign was launched, which brought in over 1,200 new members.
  • Professor Lim Chwee Teck – an award-winning NUS professor, became the first full-time professor at NUS to be conferred the NUSS Professorship.
  • President Halimah Yacob accepted the Society’s invitation to be the Patron of NUSS on October.
2017
  • Official Opening of Mandalay Guild House By NUSS Patron, President Halimah Yacob.
  • NUSS-NUS Mentorship Programme was made available to all NUS undergraduates.
  • ‘Road to Mandalay’ marketing drive concluded with a total of 713 new members.
2019
  • Hosted the NUSS Pre-General Election Forum 2020.
  • Launched The Graduate microsite to replace The Graduate magazine, which ceased print in April 2020.
2020
  • Organised the Beyond the Score: NUSS -Yong Siew Toh Fundraising Concert online and raised over $40,000 (with a matching grant from the Tote Board).
  • The renovations to Della & Seng Gee Guild Hall at Kent Ridge Guild House was completed.
2021
  • “Time for NUSS” membership campaign concluded with 900 new members.
  • NUSS Charity Golf 2022 raised an initial funding of $716,000 for the new NUSS Bursary with a matching of $100,000 from Tote Board.
2022
  • Organised NUSS Professorship Lecture for Professor Tan Tian Yuan titled ‘Literacy Encounters: Reading Across Cultures’.
  • Partnered with Plaza Premium Group and Ambassador Transit Lounge to provide NUSS members with exclusive complimentary access to premium airport lounges.
  • Organised the “Meet our Presidential Candidates Series 2023”: Exclusive access to Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s Townhall session at Pasir Panjang Power Station and dialogues with Mr Ng Kok Song and Mr Tan Kin Lian at Kent Ridge Guild House.
  • President Tharman Shanmugaratnam accepted the Society’s invitation to be the Patron of NUSS.
  • Hosted the Celebratory Dinner to honour our new Distinguished Members, Professor Kishore Mahbubani and Justice Andrew Phang, along with three Outstanding Members: Mr Lai Kim Seng, Mr Joseph Ng, and Mr Yeo Keng Joon. Congratulations were also extended to members recognised with National Day Awards 2023.
2023
  • Officially launched the NUSS 70th Anniversary, themed “Enduring Ties and Building Legacies,” along with the Plant-It-Forward Initiative, raising $70,000 for the NUSS 70th Anniversary Bursary Fund.
  • Held the 2nd Edition of GreenFest, promoting sustainability.
  • Hosted an In Conversation session with Mr George Yeo.
  • Launched The Commentary on Singapore, a three-volume collection of essays featuring perspectives from prominent thought leaders.
  • Presented the NUSS Professorship Lecture with Visiting Professor Uri Gneezy, who delivered a talk titled “Mixed Signals: How Incentives Really Work.”
  • Successfully raised $777,000 during the NUSS 70th Anniversary Charity Golf for the NUSS 70th Anniversary Bursary Fund.
  • Held the NUSS 70th Anniversary Lecture at Kent Ridge Guild House, with YAB Dato’ Onn Hafiz Ghazi, Menteri Besar of Johor, delivering the keynote address as Guest-of-Honour to an audience of approximately 300 members and guests.
  • Conferred the NUSS Honorary Membership on Mr Hsieh Fu Hua in recognition of his distinguished contributions.
  • Hosted the NUSS Commentary Dialogue, featuring Madam Halimah Yacob, former President of Singapore, with Dr Gillian Koh as the moderator.
  • Celebrated NUSS Day with Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Heng Swee Keat as Guest-of-Honour.
2024