Professor Datuk Dr Rohana Yusof is currently the Pro Vice-Chancellor of UCSI University Bangladesh Branch campus, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and Internationalisation) at UCSI University (Kuala Lumpur campus), Malaysia and also an Honorary Professor at the Centre for Natural Products Research and Drug Discovery (CENAR) University of Malaya. She previously held the position as the Director of Akademi Kepimpinan Pengajian Tinggi (AKEPT) or The Higher Education Leadership Academy at the Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia. Her main task at AKEPT is to vision the direction of AKEPT and lead in positioning AKEPT as a referral academy for higher education leadership. With a strong profile in helming key positions at the university, her network and circle of engagements was leveraged in strengthening AKEPT.

Prior to this, she held the position as the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Student affairs & Alumni) at the University of Malaya. In her early days as a lecturer, her passion for academic endeavour is equally balanced by a passion for student development which saw her being appointed as a Fellow of the students’ residential colleges for 4 years following which, in 2003, Professor Rohana was appointed the Master of the Ibnu Sina residential college where she was responsible for the management & development of the students and the college staff, as well as the physical development of the college.  During this time, she was also on a number of advisory boards of the students’ activities in the Student Affairs Department. Her vast experience and passion for student development has been acknowledged with her being appointed as the Deputy Vice Chancellor for student affairs and alumni in 2010 and she served in this position for seven and a half years.  As a deputy Vice Chancellor, she was also responsible for nurturing the holistic development of the students in their preparation for the responsibilities of a career, citizenship and adulthood. She also served as a board member of Loke Yew Board, Education Malaysia Global Services, UM Corporate services , UM Pharmauji and on various committees during her term as Deputy Vice Chancellor at University Malaya.  

The first team of top management of AKEPT (2008) saw Professor Rohana Yusof as the Deputy Director of the Higher Education Leadership Academy (AKEPT) heading the Centre for Leadership in Research and Innovation where she was responsible for the organization & management of programs & initiatives related to HE leadership in research & innovation. As part of her responsibilities, she familiarised herself with issues and challenges related to HE in Malaysia which gave her a broadened perspective in planning for relevant training programs in the centre that she headed.

Professor Rohana Yusof received her early education at Convent Bukit Nanas Secondary School. She holds a BSc (Hons) in Biochemistry (Lancaster University, UK) and a Postgraduate teaching certification. She then obtained an MSc (University Malaya) and PhD in Biochemistry (University of Leeds, UK) specializing in Molecular Biology.  

She received the merit award for The High Commissioner’s Award for Academic Excellence in London for her work on Adenovirus for her PhD. Upon her return to Malaysia in 1993, she was appointed as a lecturer in the University of Malaya. Among the many accolades Prof Rohana has received include a number of international awards such as the one awarded by the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science (1996) by the Kinki University in Japan. She also obtained a fellowship from the ASEAN Molecular Biology Organization (1997) to do research at the National Institute of Genetics, in Mishima, Japan. In 1998, she received the Fulbright Scholar award following which, she spend 8 months at the Kansas University Medical Centre. As an academician Prof Rohana have also published close to eighty publications both in ISI /scopus indexed journals. In the 2017 University Malaya Excellent Award Ceremony (ACUM) Prof Rohana and her collaborators received the award for having the top research grant from outside the university from the Chancellor.

Professor Rohana is a Certified Coach and has provided her services for the community and Industry. She is also a Fellow at the Academy of Science, Malaysia, since May 2014 and was appointed as the chairperson of the Medical and Health Sciences Discipline for the term July 2021- April 2023. She is also actively involved with the Malaysian Open Science Platform as the member of Malaysian Open Science Alliance and the chairperson of the landscape study and guideline of Open Science and the deputy chair for The National Biotechnology 2.0 policy taskforce.

With more than 30 years of experience  in University Malaya ,the top public University in Malaysia, and now in one of the top private University in Malaysia, UCSI University and also the stint in AKEPT, Ministry of Higher Education, it has definitely given her the wealth of knowledge and broaden her view and perspective of HE landscape.