Panagiotis Vagenas

Panos Vagenas serves as Director of Research Development at UC San Diego, bringing more than 20 years of experience in research, research administration, and research development across the University of California system, Ivy League institutions, and international organizations.  

Prior to joining UC San Diego, Panos served as Deputy Director of Research Development at UC Berkeley, where he led strategic funding initiatives, including National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF) proposals. He also spearheaded the university's successful effort to secure its Minority Serving Institution designation.

Previously, Panos helped establish the first Research Development Office at San José State University, where he led the development of an NSF Industry–University Cooperative Research Center focused on wildfire science. Earlier in his career, he held research faculty appointments at Yale School of Medicine.

Panos holds a PhD in Immunology, an MSc in Biochemical Research, and a BSc in Biochemistry from Imperial College London, as well as a Master of Public Health from Yale University.

At UC San Diego, Panos leads efforts to strengthen research development services, foster interdisciplinary collaborations, and support faculty in pursuing complex, high-impact funding opportunities across the university's diverse research portfolio.