Siobhán Vernon

Siobhán Vernon (née O'Shea) was the first Irish-born woman to obtain a PhD in pure mathematics in Ireland, in 1964.

Early life and education Siobhán O'Shea was born in Macroom, County Cork in 1932 and was the daughter of Joseph J. O'Shea and his wife M. O'Shea.

Her post-primary education was at the Convent of Mercy in Macroom, but she also attended the De La Salle, a secondary school for boys, for the higher level mathematics classes required for the Irish Leaving Certificate examination. She entered University College, Cork in 1949 and was awarded a college scholarship in 1950, based on the results of her first year examinations. She graduated in 1952 with a first class honours B.Sc. in Mathematics and Mathematical Physics. She went on to complete her M.Sc. in Mathematics and Mathematics Statistics, awarded in 1954.

Career Siobhán Vernon worked as a demonstrator in the Department of Mathematics at University College, Cork while she completed her M.Sc. and was then appointed Senior Demonstrator. She died on 18 September 2002.