When was Melinda French Gates born?

Melinda French Gates was born on 15 August 1964 in Dallas.

What positions has Melinda French Gates held?

Positions held by Melinda French Gates include: project manager.

Where did Melinda French Gates study?

Melinda French Gates was educated at Duke University, Ursuline Academy of Dallas, Fuqua School of Business.

Ministry of Women and Child Development · GODL-India

Suggest a better photo · Report

Melinda French Gates

मेलिण्डा गेट्स

American philanthropist

नेपालीमा पढ्नुहोस् · हिंदी में पढ़ें

नेपाली · English · हिंदीRead in your language
CitedEvery fact sourced
Ad-freeNo ads, no tracking

Melinda Ann French Gates (née French; born August 15, 1964) is an American philanthropist. Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, she attended Duke University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in computer science and economics and an MBA. She joined Microsoft in 1987 as a multimedia product developer. In the same year, she began dating the company's co-founder and then-chief executive Bill Gates, whom she married in 1994 and divorced in 2021. They have three children together.

Quick facts

Born: 15 August 1964 wd
Place of birth: Dallas wd
Citizenship: United States wd
Occupation: businessperson, patron of the arts, philanthropist, founder, entrepreneur wd
Education: Duke University, Ursuline Academy of Dallas, Fuqua School of Business wd
Spouse: Bill Gates wd
Social media: X (Twitter) · Facebook · Instagram · YouTube wd

Positions held wd

project manager

Awards wd

Jefferson Awards for Public Service (2002)
Time Person of the Year (2005)
honorary doctorate from the University of Cambridge (2009)
honorary doctor of the Duke University (2013)
Forbes list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women (2013)
Padma Bhushan
Chatham House Prize (2014)
Cross of Recognition (2009)
Presidential Medal of Freedom (2016)
J. William Fulbright Prize (2010)
Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award (2013)
Otto Hahn Peace Medal (2016)
United Nations Population Award (2010)
NAS Public Welfare Medal (2013)

About

From 2000 to 2024, she and Gates co-chaired the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the world's largest private charitable organization. For their philanthropic endeavors, which focused on global health, development, and education, they received numerous awards and honors, including the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom and the French Legion of Honour. After French Gates resigned as co-chair in 2024, Gates became sole chair of the renamed Gates Foundation.

As part of her divorce settlement, French Gates received $12.5 billion for independent philanthropy, which she has stated will focus on women and families. She has become a prominent megadonor to the Democratic Party, with a focus on abortion rights, and endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 US presidential election. In 2025, she published a memoir, The Next Day: Transition, Change and Moving Forward.

Consistently ranked by Forbes magazine as one of the world's most powerful women, French Gates was recognized as one of the BBC's 100 women of 2021. As of February 2026, her net worth is estimated at US$30.4 billion, making her the world's 72nd wealthiest person, according to Forbes.

Questions

When was Melinda French Gates born?: Melinda French Gates was born on 15 August 1964 in Dallas.
What positions has Melinda French Gates held?: Positions held by Melinda French Gates include: project manager.
Where did Melinda French Gates study?: Melinda French Gates was educated at Duke University, Ursuline Academy of Dallas, Fuqua School of Business.

Sources

Last updated 31 October 2026 · facts checked 5 November 2026

Cite this page

"Melinda French Gates". DigiNepal. Last updated 31 October 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/melinda-french-gates. Retrieved 5 November 2026.

Machine-readable versions: JSON · Markdown

Text from the Wikipedia article Melinda French Gates, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Melinda Gates 2014.jpg — Ministry of Women and Child Development, GODL-India.

Is this you, or do you work in this person's office? Claim this profile