Mung Chiang will be Northwestern’s next president, the Board of Trustees announced Monday.
Chiang’s presidency begins July 1, according to a University news release. He will succeed former President Michael Schill, who resigned from the position in September 2025.
Interim President Henry Bienen, who first served as University president from 1995 to 2009 and returned after Schill stepped down, will remain in the role until the end of June, the release stated.
Chiang has been the president of Purdue University, a fellow Big Ten research institution, since January 2023. A first-generation immigrant, Chiang is set to be NU’s first Asian American president, according to the release.
“I have long admired Northwestern for its dedication to interdisciplinary scholarship, artistic creation and impactful research, its tremendous healthcare system, and its palpable school spirit,” Chiang said in the news release.
Chiang graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and mathematics, as well as a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering.
From 2017 to 2023, he served as dean of Purdue’s College of Engineering. He was also Purdue’s executive vice president for strategic initiatives from 2021 to 2023.
Before his tenure at Purdue, Chiang spent 14 years at Princeton University, becoming one of the school’s youngest chair professors. He chaired the Princeton Entrepreneurship Council and served as director of the Keller Center for Innovation in Engineering Education.
Both Bienen and Schill also have Princeton ties. Bienen previously served as dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Schill graduated from Princeton with an AB in Public Policy.
“Mung has his sights set on advancing and enhancing Northwestern among the world’s great research institutions,” Board of Trustees Chair Peter Barris said in the news release. “Through his stellar academic and administrative leadership at multiple institutions, Mung has demonstrated his ability to harness opportunity and momentum while embracing the breadth and depth of a university.”
At Purdue, Chiang’s initiatives included securing $3.9 billion in investments to construct an artificial intelligence memory chip packaging facility. He also helped design and implement the 2022 federal CHIPS and Science Act.
Chiang was the first engineer to serve as science and technology adviser to the U.S. Secretary of State, a nonpartisan position to which he was appointed in 2020, according to the release.
NU announced the launch of its search for the University’s 18th president in December. Board of Trustees Vice Chair Steve Cahillane chaired the Presidential Search Committee.
“In my many conversations with Mung through the search process, he consistently has emphasized how he views Northwestern as one of the world’s most eminent comprehensive universities, at which the interdisciplinary culture drives innovation and new ideas,” Cahillane said in the news release.
Chiang’s appointment comes after a year in which NU faced intense federal scrutiny, culminating in a November deal with the Trump administration to restore research funding after the government froze $790 million in April 2025.
NU’s interdisciplinary nature is what attracted Chiang to the University, he said in the release. His first priority as president will be engaging with stakeholders in the community, from students to trustees, he added.
“I will listen to every one of the 12 colleges and schools, cheer every one of the 21 sports teams, visit Northwestern Medicine hospitals, and participate in every cherished campus tradition,” Chiang said in the news release.
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