Diane Gu currently serves as the director for organizational development for UCLA External Affairs and is responsible for assessing and identifying organizational development needs, designing and implementing programs to enhance organizational effectiveness. Having lived and worked in Europe, Asia, and North America, Gu’s research focuses on university advancement and philanthropy, international comparative education, and gender issues in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). She serves as a senior adviser and consultant to university leadership on engaging major donors from the Asia Pacific region. 

She has published and taught courses on the topics of philanthropy and civic engagement, science and engineering education, and gender studies of sciences, and is frequently invited to speak at national and international conferences, colloquia and workshops. 

Gu received her doctorate in higher education and organization change from the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies. She is a board member for the Society for Social Studies of Science (4S).