Francis Collins

Collins was born on April 14, 1950, in Staunton, Virginia.⁠[1]

He was raised on a small farm in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley and was home-schooled until the sixth grade.⁠[2]

He received a B.S. from the University of Virginia in 1970, an M.S. and Ph.D. from Yale UniversityYale UniversityYale University is a research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Its predecessor, the Collegiate School, received a charter in 1701. Trustees chose New Haven in 1716; the institution became Yale College in 1718 and Yale University in 1887. Yale provides undergraduate, graduate and professional education and has 14 undergraduate residential colleges. As of October 2026, its president was Maurie McInnis, who took office in July 2024. In 2026, Yale expanded aid for incoming undergraduates and celebrated its 325th anniversary.Open the full entry in 1974, and an M.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1977.⁠[1]

In 1984 he joined the University of MichiganUniversity of MichiganThe University of Michigan is a university founded in Detroit in 1817 that moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1837; it is governed by a statewide-elected Board of Regents and also has campuses in Dearborn and Flint.Open the full entry as an assistant professor.⁠[1]

His Michigan team, working with Lap-Chee Tsui’s team at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, used “positional cloning” to search for the cystic fibrosis gene; they announced the discovery at press conferences in August 1989, and the findings were then published in Science.⁠[3]

His research also helped identify genes linked to neurofibromatosis, Huntington’s disease and adult-onset diabetes.⁠[4]

In 1993 he became director of the National Human Genome Research Institute at the NIH, leading the international Human Genome Project, and served until 2008.⁠[5]

On June 26, 2000, President Bill Clinton announced the completion of a working draft of the human genome sequence at a White House ceremony; Collins, the key leader of the Human Genome Project consortium, appeared onstage with Celera Genomics founder J. Craig Venter, signifying the shared success of the public and private efforts.⁠[6]

In April 2003 the international Human Genome Project he led culminated in the completion of a finished sequence of human DNA.⁠[5]

In 2006 Free Press published his The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief, which combines an account of his Christian faith and research career with a discussion of science and spirituality centred on evolution, following C.S. Lewis’s lead.⁠[7]

In the book he argues that “belief in God can be an entirely rational choice”; he has described being an atheist as a medical student before gradually developing strong religious beliefs.⁠[8]

On October 29, 2007, President George W. Bush announced that Collins would receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom, saying he “has revolutionized genetic research”; the ceremony was set for November 5 at the White House.⁠[9]

On August 1, 2008, he stepped down as director of the National Human Genome Research Institute to explore writing projects and other professional opportunities.⁠[2]

He received the 2008 National Medal of Science in biology for his visionary contributions to genetics and genomics and his leadership of international genomics initiatives including the Human Genome Project.⁠[10]

On July 8, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated him to lead the National Institutes of Health; the Senate confirmed him unanimously on August 7. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius called him “one of our generation’s great scientific leaders.”⁠[4]

On May 20, 2020, he was awarded the Templeton Prize, worth 1.1 million British pounds (about $1.3 million), for his commitment to challenging the idea that science and religion are at odds.⁠[8]

On October 5, 2021, he announced that he would step down as NIH director, saying no single person should serve in the position too long, and that he would continue leading his laboratory at the National Human Genome Research Institute; he was the longest-serving presidentially appointed NIH director, serving under three presidents for more than 12 years.⁠[11]

On November 5, 2021, he appeared as the guest of episode 238 of the Lex FridmanLex FridmanLex Fridman is a Soviet-born, US-raised computer scientist and podcast host who works as an MIT research scientist on human-AI interaction and autonomous driving. His Lex Fridman Podcast is known for hours-long conversations with guests including heads of state and technology leaders.Open the full entry Podcast, discussing the lab-leak theory, gain-of-function research on viruses, COVID vaccines, variants, rapid at-home testing, stepping down as NIH director, the Accelerating Medicines Partnership and faith.⁠[12]

On February 16, 2022, the White House announced him as acting science adviser to President Joe Biden, tasked with finding the next NIH director, getting ARPA-H established, shaping the next phase of the Cancer Moonshot and co-chairing the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) with Frances Arnold and Maria Zuber.⁠[13]

In September 2024 he published The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust, which discusses truth, science, faith and trust as sources of wisdom in a time of polarization and recounts his own path from atheism to belief.⁠[14]

On March 1, 2025, he announced that he had retired from the NIH, effective February 28, without giving a reason; in his statement he described NIH staff as “individuals of extraordinary intellect and integrity.” The agency was then affected by the new Trump administration’s funding policies and the dismissal of more than 1,000 workers.⁠[15]

National Institutes of Health: Official website: https://www.nih.gov/ (opens in a new window)⁠[12]

National Human Genome Research Institute: Official website: https://www.genome.gov/ (opens in a new window)⁠[6]