Wang Fan-sen Chinese: 王汎森; born 25 October 1958) is a Taiwanese historian.
Wang earned his bachelor's and master's degree from National Taiwan University in 1980 and 1983, respectively.[1] He began working for the Institute of History and Philology (IHP) at Academia Sinica as an assistant research fellow in 1985,[2] then completed a doctorate within Princeton University's Department of East Asian Studies in 1992.[1][3][4] Upon his return to the IHP in 1993, he was promoted to associate researcher until 1998, when he became full researcher. In 2005, Wang was appointed a distinguished research fellow.[5] Wang served as IHP director from 2003 to 2009.[6] Academia Sinica president Chi-Huey Wong named Wang a vice president of the Academia Sinica on 1 January 2010. On 1 June of the same year, Wang succeeded Liu Ts'ui-jung as head of the Taiwan e-learning and Digital Archives Program.[5]
In April 2016, several weeks before President of the Republic of China Ma Ying-jeou was to complete his second consecutive term, Wang announced that the Academia Sinica had settled on three candidates for its next leader.[7] After the resignation of Chi-Huey Wong as head of Academia Sinica in May 2016,[8] Ma appointed Wang Fan-sen the acting leader.[9][10] Eventually, it was decided that Ma's successor Tsai Ing-wen would select the Academia Sinica leader after she had taken office.[11][12] After Tsai named James C. Liao to the Academia Sinica's highest-ranking position, Wang's acting tenure came to an end.[13][14]
In November 2017, Wang was one of eight candidates considered for the position of National Taiwan University president.[15] While the Ministry of Education considered the presidential selection process flawed and originally refused Kuan Chung-ming's selection, Wang stated that he would not be running in another election.[16][17] Kuan was eventually permitted to take up the NTU presidency in January 2019.
Wang was elected to membership of the Academia Sinica in 2004,[1] and became a fellow of the Royal Historical Society the following year.[18][19] In 2023, Wang won a Humboldt Research Award.[20]