Born in 1956 in India, Dr. Subra Suresh graduated from high school at 15 and earned his undergraduate degree, master's degree and Ph.D. by the age of 25. He completed his MIT doctorate in just two years.  

He spent two decades as a faculty member at MIT and then served as Dean of the School of Engineering from 2007 to 2010. Following this, he served as Director, US National Science Foundation (NSF), from 2010 to 2013. He was also the President of Carnegie Mellon University from 2013 to 2017.

In 2007, Dr. Suresh became a member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, an esteemed recognition of his contributions to the scientific community.

In 2010, former President Barack Obama nominated Dr. Suresh to lead the US National Science Foundation, and the US Senate unanimously confirmed his appointment.

Dr. Suresh now holds the position of Professor at Large at Brown University's School of Engineering.