Career
He received his undergraduate as well as graduate degrees from the University of Chicago. He took up a position as post-doctoral Research Fellow at the Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen from 1978 to 1980 after which he joined National University of Singapore’s (NUS Grad. Medical School) Department of Mathematics as a Lecturer. He then moved to the Department of Physics in 1981 which saw him rise through the ranks from Senior Lecturer to Associate Professor to Professor.
To date, Lai has held several administrative appointments within the University.
He was Head of the Departments of Computational Science (1996-1997) and Physics (1998–2000) and was concurrently the Vice Dean of the Faculty of Science from 1996 to 2000. He became Dean from 2000 to 2003 and was appointed the University"s Vice Provost (Academic Personnel) in June 2003.
He is also, since September 2007, the Deputy Director of the Centre for Quantum Technologies, a Research Centre of Excellence in quantum information science and technology at NUS Grad. Medical School. Lai is also involved in the NUS Grad. Medical School NanoScience and NanoTechnology Initiative as the Chairman of its management board. As Vice Provost (Academic Personnel), Lai chaired the University Promotion and Tenure Committee and works with the Provost in academic personnel matters, performance evaluation, benchmarking, university resources and space allocation.
He oversaw the functions of the University"s Centre for Information Technology, University Scholars Programme, The Logistics Institute-Asia Pacific, NUS Grad. Medical School-Fudan Joint Graduate School and the NUS Grad. Medical School NanoScience and NanoTechnology Initiative.
Research, Honours and