Mung Chiang

Mung Chiang
Born	蒋濛 02 02, 1977
Birthplace	Tianjin, China
Nationality	American
Occupation	Academic administrator, electrical engineer
Title	President of Purdue University
Known for	13th President of Purdue University
Education	Stanford University (BS, MS, PhD)
Awards	Alan T. Waterman Award (2013), Guggenheim Fellowship (2014), Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors
Website	[https://www.purdue.edu/president/ Official site]

Mung Chiang (Template:Lang; born February 2, 1977) is a Chinese-American electrical engineer and academic administrator serving as the 13th president of Purdue University, a position he has held since January 1, 2023. Upon taking office at the age of 45, Chiang became the youngest president of a top-50 American university in recent history. Before assuming the presidency, he served as Purdue's executive vice president from 2021 to 2023 and as the 10th dean of the Purdue University College of Engineering from 2017 to 2022. Prior to joining Purdue, Chiang spent over a decade on the faculty of Princeton University, where he held the rank of full professor of electrical engineering beginning in 2011. His scholarly contributions span electrical engineering and computer science, with particular focus on communications and networking systems. He is credited with 25 U.S. patents, many of which have been adopted by the communications and networking industry. Chiang also served as the 6th Science and Technology Adviser to the United States Secretary of State from December 2019 to December 2020. He holds the title of Roscoe H. George Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue.

Early Life

Mung Chiang was born on February 2, 1977, in Tianjin, China. Details about his early childhood and family background in Tianjin have not been extensively documented in public sources. Chiang subsequently relocated to the United States, where he pursued his higher education at Stanford University in California. His academic trajectory at Stanford would set the stage for a career that bridged fundamental research in electrical engineering with leadership roles in academia and public service.

Education

Chiang completed all three of his academic degrees at Stanford University. He earned his Bachelor of Science, Master of Science, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from the institution. His doctoral dissertation, titled "Solving nonlinear problems in communication systems using geometric programming and dualities," was completed in 2003 under the supervision of Stephen P. Boyd and Thomas M. Cover, two prominent figures in the fields of optimization and information theory, respectively. The dissertation explored mathematical optimization techniques applied to communication systems, a research area that would define much of Chiang's subsequent scholarly work.

Career

Princeton University (2003–2017)

Following the completion of his doctorate in 2003, Chiang joined the faculty of Princeton University as a member of the Department of Electrical Engineering. Over the course of his tenure at Princeton, he advanced through the academic ranks, attaining the position of full professor of electrical engineering in 2011. During his years at Princeton, Chiang established himself as a researcher in the fields of communications and networking, contributing to the theoretical foundations and practical applications of network optimization.

Chiang's research group at Princeton was involved in work on smart data pricing, an approach to managing network congestion and improving the economics of data services. In 2014, the Princeton smart data pricing team won the INFORMS Design Science Award, recognizing contributions at the intersection of operations research and engineering design. Chiang also received the IEEE SECON Best Paper Award during his time at Princeton, further establishing his record of peer-recognized research contributions.

Throughout his career, Chiang has been credited with 25 U.S. patents, many of which have been adopted and utilized by the communications and networking industry. His scholarly publications are extensively documented in the DBLP computer science bibliography.

Dean of Purdue College of Engineering (2017–2022)

In 2017, Chiang was appointed the 10th dean of the Purdue University College of Engineering, succeeding Leah Jamieson in the role. The announcement described him as a research leader whose appointment would strengthen the college's position in engineering education and research. He officially began his tenure as dean on July 1, 2017, and served in the position until June 30, 2022.

During his time as dean, the Purdue College of Engineering continued to be recognized among the leading engineering programs in the United States. Chiang's leadership of the college encompassed oversight of its academic programs, research initiatives, and faculty development. The college's activities and accomplishments during this period were documented through its official communications channels.

Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State (2019–2020)

On December 16, 2019, Chiang was appointed the 6th Science and Technology Adviser to the United States Secretary of State, succeeding Vaughan Turekian in the role. He served in this position for one year, with his term concluding on December 15, 2020. In this capacity, Chiang was responsible for advising the Secretary of State on matters related to science and technology policy as they pertained to U.S. foreign affairs. He was succeeded in the role by Patricia Gruber. Chiang held this advisory position concurrently with his deanship at Purdue.

Executive Vice President of Purdue University (2021–2023)

In 2021, Chiang's responsibilities at Purdue expanded beyond the College of Engineering when he was named executive vice president of the university. In this role, he served as a senior administrator with broad institutional responsibilities, working under then-President Mitch Daniels. This position provided Chiang with university-wide administrative experience that extended beyond engineering education and research into the full scope of university governance and operations.

Upon Chiang's appointment as executive vice president, Mark Lundstrom served as acting dean of the College of Engineering.

President of Purdue University (2023–present)

On January 1, 2023, Chiang assumed office as the 13th president of Purdue University, succeeding Mitch Daniels, who had served as president since 2013. At 45 years of age at the time of his inauguration, Chiang became the youngest president of a top-50 American university in recent history. He also holds the title of Roscoe H. George Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

As president, Chiang has led various institutional initiatives. He has been active in public-facing engagement, including the establishment of a Presidential Lecture Series that brings prominent figures to Purdue's campus. In the spring of 2026, the series featured multiple headline speakers, including AMD CEO Lisa Su, who was announced as a participant in a lecture focused on the future of artificial intelligence.

In October 2025, the Purdue University Board of Trustees voted to extend Chiang's contract and approved at-risk metrics and at-risk pay as part of his compensation structure. The board also approved a raise to Chiang's salary during the same meeting.

Chiang has delivered commencement addresses and welcome messages in his capacity as president, including remarks at Purdue's Spring 2025 Commencement ceremonies held May 16–18. He also issued a welcome message to students and faculty for the Fall 2024 semester.

Chiang's presidency has not been without scrutiny. In February 2026, the Purdue Exponent, the university's student newspaper, published an opinion piece questioning aspects of university leadership under Chiang, noting that faculty had called for the resignation of the university's provost and raising broader questions about administrative direction.

Recognition

Chiang has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career in engineering and academia.

In 2013, Chiang was awarded the Alan T. Waterman Award by the National Science Foundation, one of the highest honors bestowed upon early-career scientists and engineers in the United States. The award recognizes outstanding researchers under the age of 40 in any field of science or engineering supported by the NSF.

In 2014, Chiang was one of seven Princeton University faculty members to receive a Guggenheim Fellowship, awarded by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to scholars who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship.

Chiang has received the IEEE Kiyo Tomiyasu Award, which recognizes outstanding contributions to technologies in the IEEE purview.

In 2020, Chiang was elected a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, an honor that recognizes academic inventors who have demonstrated a spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have had a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development, or the welfare of society.

Also in 2020, Chiang was named an International Fellow of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA), recognizing his contributions to engineering on an international level.

Chiang was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the oldest and most prestigious honorary societies in the United States.

He has also received the ASEE Electrical and Computer Engineering Division Award, as documented in the proceedings of the division's business meeting.

Legacy

Mung Chiang's career trajectory from doctoral student to university president over the span of two decades represents a notable path through American higher education. His transition from a research-focused faculty position at Princeton University to increasingly senior administrative roles at Purdue University culminated in his appointment as the institution's 13th president at age 45, making him among the youngest leaders of a major American research university in recent history.

In his research career, Chiang's 25 U.S. patents and their adoption by the communications and networking industry reflect a body of work that bridged theoretical research and practical application. His doctoral work on geometric programming and duality in communication systems, completed under the supervision of Stephen P. Boyd and Thomas M. Cover at Stanford, established a foundation in mathematical optimization that informed both his subsequent research and the broader field of network optimization.

Chiang's service as the Science and Technology Adviser to the Secretary of State from 2019 to 2020 placed him at the intersection of science, technology, and foreign policy, adding a dimension of public service to a career primarily rooted in academia and engineering research.

At Purdue, Chiang's tenure as dean of the College of Engineering and subsequently as executive vice president positioned him as a figure in the ongoing development of one of the largest engineering programs in the United States. His presidency, beginning in 2023, has continued to shape the direction of the university, including public engagement initiatives such as the Presidential Lecture Series.

The recognition Chiang has received from organizations including the National Science Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Academy of Inventors, the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, the IEEE, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences reflects the breadth of his contributions across research, invention, and academic leadership.