Dr. Vinod V. Thomas, an alumnus of Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal obtained his B.E. degree in Electrical Engineering from University of Mysore in 1983, M.Tech. and PhD degrees from Department of Electrical Engineering,  Indian Institute of Technology, Madras in 1989 and 2003 respectively. He joined as faculty in the Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal, in 1983. Since then he has served the institute in various capacities. Prior to his tenure as Director, MIT, Manipal, he was the Joint Director, MIT from April to June 2012, Associate Director (Development) from January to April 2012, Associate Director (Academics) from October 2008 to December 2011 and Head of the Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering from October 2005 to October 2008.

He served as the Director, Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal from June 2012 to September 2015. As the Director he has contributed immensely to the overall development of the Institute and streamlining the academic processes. His research interests are in the area of Electrical Machines, Power Electronics and Drives. He received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from MIT, Manipal in 2008 and was recognized for distinguished service for 25 years by Manipal Academy of Higher Education in 2009. He has served as the Member of Board of Management of Manipal Academy of Higher Education during 2012-2015. He is a senior member of IEEE and Fellow of Institution of Engineers.