Pro Vice Chancellor for Research, University of Cambridge

Harding Professor of Statistics in Public Life, Statistical Laboratory, University of Cambridge

Professor Aston takes over the role from Professor Anne Ferguson-Smith, and will begin as a Pro-Vice-Chancellor on 1 September, 2024.

An applied statistician, Professor Aston leads research into the use of quantitative evidence in public policy making, works with those in public life to ensure the best methods are used, and aims to improve the use of statistics and other quantitative evidence in public policy debates.

He is a non-Executive Board Member of the UK Statistics Authority, and from 2017-2020 was Chief Scientific Adviser to the Home Office and Director-General for Science, Technology, Analysis, Research and Strategy. He was a founding director of the Alan Turing Institute. He is a member of the London Policing Board and president-elect of the Royal Statistical Society, where he will serve as President between 2025-26. Earlier this year he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of sciences and the oldest science academy in continuous existence.

Before joining Cambridge, Professor Aston – a Fellow of Churchill College – held academic positions at the University of Warwick and at Academia Sinica in Taiwan. He was knighted in the 2021 Birthday Honours for services to statistics and public policymaking. He was elected as Fellow of the Royal Society in May 2024.

As Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research, Professor Aston will provide senior academic leadership on the University’s research activities, and be responsible for sustaining and enhancing a supportive research culture which allows Cambridge to continue to flourish as an outstanding research‑intensive institution with worldwide influence. He will also develop large-scale, cross-School initiatives to tackle global challenges and increase the positive impact of Cambridge’s research on society.