Political Science Faculty

Robert S. Ross

Professor

Biography

Robert S. Ross is Professor of Political Science at Boston College and Associate, John King Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, Harvard University. He received his Ph.D. in Political Science from Columbia University in 1984. He has taught at Columbia University and at the University of Washington and in 1989 was a Guest Scholar at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. In 1994-1995 he was Fulbright Professor at the Chinese Foreign Affairs College, in 2003 he was a Visiting Senior Fellow at the Institute of International Strategic Studies, Tsinghua University (Beijing), and in 2014 was Visiting Scholar, School of International Relations, Peking University. In 2009 he was Visiting Scholar, Institute for Strategy, Royal Danish Defence College. From 2009-2014 he has been Adjunct Professor, Institute for Defence Studies, Norwegian Defence University College.听 In 2023, he was Visiting Professor at Fudan University听(Shanghai) and Peking University.

Professor Ross's research focuses on Chinese security policy and defense policy, East Asian security, and U.S.-China relations. His recent publications include听Chinese Security Policy: Structure, Power, and Politics,听China鈥檚 Ascent: Power, Security, and the Future of International Politics, 补苍诲听New Directions in the Study of Chinese Foreign Policy. His other major works include听Normalization of U.S.-China Relations: An International History;听Great Wall and Empty Fortress: China鈥檚 Search for Security,听Negotiating Cooperation: U.S.-China Relations, 1969-1989, 补苍诲听The Indochina Tangle: China's Vietnam Policy, 1975-1979. Professor Ross is the author of numerous articles in听World Politics,听The China Quarterly,听International Security,听Security Studies,听European Journal of International Affairs,听Orbis,听Naval War College Review,听Foreign Affairs,听Foreign Policy,听The National Interest, 补苍诲听Asian Survey. His books and articles have been translated in China, Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, and various European countries.

Professor Ross has been the recipient of research fellowships from the University of Washington and Columbia University. He has received research and collaborative project grants from the Social Science Research Council, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Ford Foundation, the Smith-Richardson Foundation, the International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX), The Asia Foundation, and The United States Institute of Peace.

Professor Ross has testified before various Senate and House committees and the Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee, he advises U.S. government agencies, and he serves on the Academic Advisory Group, U.S.-China Working Group, United States Congress. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the National Committee for U.S.-China Relations. Professor Ross is also a member of the executive committee of the John King Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, Harvard University, Senior Advisor of the Security Studies Program, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Senior Advisor to the Institute for American Studies, Shanghai. He is a founding member and former board member of the United States Committee of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific (USCSCAP) and former co-chair of the Committee's task force on Confidence Strategic Building Measures. He has served on the editorial board of听Security Studies,听Journal of Contemporary China,听Journal of Cold War Studies,听Issues and Studies,听Asia Policy,听Journal of Chinese Political Science, the听Security Studies听book series of Shanghai People鈥檚 Press, and the听Grand Strategy听book series of Peking University Press.