Since 1996 David Shambaugh has been Professor of Political Science and International Affairs and founding Director of the China Policy Program in the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University. He was also a Nonresident Senior Fellow in the Foreign Policy Studies Program at The Brookings Institution (1998—2015), and previously served as Director of the Sigur Center for Asian Studies in the Elliott School (1996-1998).

Before joining the faculty at George Washington, he was successively Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, and Reader in Chinese Politics at the University of London’s School of Oriental and African Studies (1987-1996), where he also served as Editor of The China Quarterly (1991-96). He also directed the Asia Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (1987-1988), and served as an analyst in the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Intelligence and Research (1976-77) and the U.S. National Security Council staff (1977-78).

Professor Shambaugh is recognized internationally as an authority on contemporary Chinese affairs, with particular expertise in Chinese domestic politics, China’s military, Chinese foreign relations (esp. U.S.-China Relations, China-Europe relations, China-Asia relations), and the international politics and security of the Asia-Pacific region. He has authored or edited more than books, including: China's Future (2016); The China Reader: Rising Power (2016); China Goes Global: The Partial Power (2013); Tangled Titans: The United States & China (2012); Charting China’s Future (2011); International Relations of Asia (2008); China’s Communist Party: Atrophy & Adaptation (2008), China-Europe Relations: Perceptions, Policies & Prospects (2007), China Watching: Perspectives from Europe, Japan, and the United States (2007); Power Shift: China & Asia’s New Dynamics (2005); The Odyssey of China’s Imperial Art Treasures (2005); Modernizing China’s Military (2003). He has also published more than 200 articles, chapters, and editorials in edited books, scholarly and policy journals, and newspapers. He is also a frequent commentator in international media.

Professor Shambaugh received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Michigan, and M.A. in International Affairs from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), and B.A. cum laude in East Asian Studies from The Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University. He has been a visiting scholar at numerous institutions in China, Germany, Japan, Hong Kong, Russia, Singapore, and Taiwan. He was a Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (2002-2003), and has been a recipient of research grants from numerous institutions. He was appointed Honorary Research Professor of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences (SASS) in 2008, and was a Senior Fulbright Research Scholar in China 2009-2010.

Professor Shambaugh has also held a number of consultancies and has serves on a number of editorial boards. He has been a member of the International Institute of Strategic Studies, National Committee on U.S. China Relations (Board of Directors), World Economic Forum, Council on Foreign Relations, and other professional bodies.