Statistics sensation secures a place at Oxford University
His intellectual prowess will now take him to the UK for a 12-month masters that includes a research dissertation.
A gifted young academic is set to jet off to the United Kingdom and attend one of the most prestigious universities on the globe, in pursuit of knowledge after securing a place at Oxford University.
Aaron Naidu, who completed his honours in statistics at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) in 2023, has secured a place at Oxford University for a master of science in statistical science beginning in October 2024.
A talented mathematics student, Naidu has won several awards at a national and international level. He is also the only student to win the Tertiary Mathematics Olympiad outright while still in high school.
After placing first in KwaZulu-Natal and second in South Africa in his matric examinations in 2019, he enrolled for a BSc in data science at UKZN. He completed his degree summa cum laude in 2022 and placed in the top three percent of every module, even after adding six modules to his study programme.
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During his honours studies, Naidu was invited to present at the 2023 South African Statistics Association Conference and received the Zac Yacoob Scholarship for the best honours student at UKZN across all Colleges and Disciplines.
His intellectual prowess will now take him to the UK for a 12-month masters that includes a research dissertation.
While awaiting the start of his master’s course, Naidu will be completing actuarial science board exams and, in July, will participate in a 10-week long quantitative trading internship with Jane Street Capital in the UK before proceeding to university.
Looking beyond his plans for overseas master’s study, Naidu is considering continuing with PhD studies or entering the workforce as a statistician, data scientist, or quantitative trader.
Naidu thanked his lecturers at UKZN for their instruction, particularly Emeritus professor, Poobhalan Pillay for nurturing his love of mathematics during high school and professor, Delia North for developing his interest in data science.
“We are so proud of this amazing young man. Not only is he a top achiever, but he has participated in statistics outreach projects such as Women in Analytics and Dudes in Data every year and has been a wonderful role model to the next group of undergraduate students,” said North.
