Julie Chen Has Been Named Chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell

Julie Chen was appointed chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell. She will take office this summer.

“A UMass Lowell degree is a demonstration of the academic excellence and hands-on learning our graduates carry with them as they advance their careers and communities and apply their knowledge to the challenges our society faces,” Dr. Chen said. “I am honored to be selected as the university’s next chancellor, and I’m excited to work with our great faculty, staff, supporters, and partners to provide growing numbers of students with this UMass Lowell advantage in the years ahead.”

The University of Massachusetts Lowell enrolls nearly 14,000 undergraduate students and more than 4,300 graduate students, according to there latest statistics available from the U.S. Department of Education. Women make up 41 percent of the undergraduate student body.

Dr. Chen has been serving as vice chancellor for research and innovation and has been a member of the faculty since 1997, after spending six years as an assistant professor at Boston University. She was appointed vice provost for research in 2009 and was promoted to vice chancellor in 2016.

Dr. Chen holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees and a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering all from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she was a student athlete and academic all-American.