Professor John J. Joughin was appointed as Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive of the University of East London in July 2013 with responsibility for all administrative and academic matters on behalf of the Board of Governors. Professor Joughin has over twenty years of senior management experience in Higher Education and his previous appointments include senior posts at Dean and Pro Vice Chancellor level at the University of Central Lancashire and as Deputy Vice Chancellor at the University of East London (2010-13). He serves on a number of external committees and governing bodies, including UCL Partners (2014 onwards) and as a Board member on the recently constituted National Refugees Welcome Board (Citizens UK). He is also a founding executive member of the British Council of Undergraduate Research (2011 onwards).

Professor Joughin is a well-known Shakespearean scholar and a member of the International Shakespeare Conference (2000-2015). He has published extensively in the areas of Shakespeare, philosophy and literature, and literary and cultural theory, and was the founding Chair of the British Shakespeare Association (BSA) from 2002 to 2008. He is an Honorary Fellow of the BSA as well as being one of the founding editors of the internationally respected journal Shakespeare.