After graduating in 1982 from the K.U.Leuven (Belgium) as a "Civil Engineer in Computer Science," Eric Van de Velde went to the Courant Institute at New York University. There, he obtained his Ph.D. in Mathematics with research in the then-emerging field of concurrent computing. His postdoctoral work took him to the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), where he became a Senior Research Associate and Lecturer in Applied Mathematics. His research culminated in the widely used graduate textbook "Concurrent Scientific Computing", published in 1994 by Springer-Verlag.

In 1996, Eric Van de Velde became the Director of Library Information Technology and was again working in another exciting emerging field: digital libraries. Having put in place the basic technology infrastructure, his attention is now focused on identifying, developing, and deploying software and information services that enhance the library-user experience. He is also helping to redefine the role of the academic library. By setting up and maintaining repositories that are compliant with the Open Archives Initiative, the Caltech Library System wants to ensure access to and preservation of Caltech technical reports and theses. To help Caltech researchers in the transition to digital archiving and dissemination, the Caltech Library System is cooperating with various initiatives to develop appropriate courseware and seminars.