Rate My Professor Q J Wang

Professor Q J Wang is an Honorary Professorial Fellow in the Department of Infrastructure Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, at the University of Melbourne. He earned a Bachelor of Engineering from Tsinghua University, receiving the Outstanding Graduate Medal. He then obtained a Master of Science with first class honours and a PhD from the National University of Ireland, Galway. His career includes eight years as Principal Scientist in a Victorian government department, ten years as Senior Principal Research Scientist and Office of Chief Executives' Science Leader at CSIRO, and fifteen years in academic roles from postdoctoral researcher to professor at various universities. Additionally, he holds positions as Distinguished Visiting Professor at Tsinghua University and Pao Yu-Kong Visiting Chair Professor at Zhejiang University.

Professor Wang specializes in hydrological forecasting, with research interests in forecasting rainfall, river flows, floods, flood inundation, water supply, and demand, spanning small catchments to continental scales and short-term to seasonal horizons. Other areas include statistical hydrology, hydrological modelling, optimization, irrigation, and regional planning. He led the development of Australia's national seasonal and 7-day streamflow forecasting services for the Bureau of Meteorology, which is extending to the national flood forecasting system. Key publications feature "The genetic algorithm and its application to calibrating conceptual rainfall-runoff models" (1991), "A review of advances in flash flood forecasting" (2011), and "A review of quantitative precipitation forecasts and their use in short- to medium-range streamflow forecasting" (2011). Awards include the 2016 CSIRO Medal for Impact from Science, 2014 GN Alexander Medal from Engineers Australia, 2011 Bureau of Meteorology High Performing Team Award, and 2008 CSIRO Chairman's Medal. He co-chaired HEPEX from 2016 to 2021, served as Lead Expert for the Bureau of Meteorology's 2019 water forecasting review, and for the Murray-Darling Basin Authority's 2018 Basin Plan review. Professor Wang is acclaimed for his teaching, earning Best Lecturer awards from students and top survey scores.