Professor Jan Thomas has been Vice-Chancellor of Te Kunenga ki Pūrehuroa Massey University in Aotearoa New Zealand since 2017. Prior to this Professor Thomas served as Vice-Chancellor and President at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia. She has held various senior executive positions at Murdoch University and the University of Notre Dame Australia. She has a PhD in Veterinary Science from Murdoch University and has taught, researched and published in Veterinary Pathology.

Globally, Professor Thomas holds various senior positions, including: External Reviewer and Quality Auditor for the Oman Authority for Academic Accreditation and Quality Assurance for Education; Chair of the Quality Assurance Council Hong Kong; Member of the University Grants Committee Hong Kong; and Convenor of the Bachelor Veterinary Medicine Task Force for University Grants Committee Hong Kong.

She recently completed a term as Chair of Universities New Zealand, and in late 2022 became the Association for Tertiary Education Management Aotearoa New Zealand Patron.

She has been learning te reo Māori since arriving in Aotearoa New Zealand, completing te reo Māori to level 5 at Te Wānanga o Aotearoa. She’s currently studying towards a Bachelor of Arts in Māori Knowledge.