About UMass Amherst

UMass Amherst, the Commonwealth's flagship campus, is a nationally ranked public research university offering a full range of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University sits on nearly 1,450-acres in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, and offers a rich cultural environment in a bucolic setting close to major urban centers. In addition, the University is part of the Five Colleges (including Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College), which adds to the intellectual energy of the region.

Job Description

The Departments of Chemical Engineering (ChE) and Biomedical Engineering (BME) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst invite applications for a tenure-track faculty position at the Associate or Full Professor rank. The position will be a 50:50 joint appointment between ChE and BME. Individuals with research interests broadly across the entire intersection of ChE and BME will be considered. These areas include, but are not limited to biomaterials, pharmaceutical development, drug delivery, oncology, biosensors, and biotechnology. Applicants working in areas with a strong clinical and translational focus are strongly encouraged to apply.

The candidate is expected to teach existing graduate and undergraduate courses in Chemical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering and will be encouraged to develop creative new curricula in areas of their interest or across disciplines. The projected start date for these roles is September 1, 2025.

The Department of Chemical Engineering has 16 full-time, tenure-track faculty members, 3 lecturers, and approximately 70 graduate students and 210 undergraduates. The Department’s FY 24 research expenditures exceeded $7.1 million. Additional information about the Department can be obtained at https://che.umass.edu.

The Department of Biomedical Engineering currently has 14 full-time faculty members, approximately 60 graduate students, and 370 undergraduates. The department expects to significantly expand its BME faculty and student count over the next few years. Additional information about the Department can be obtained at https://bme.umass.edu.

Requirements

Applicants must have a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, or a closely related field. Applicants must have demonstrated scholarly excellence and developed an externally funded research program, and the successful candidate will be expected to maintain an internationally recognized scholarly presence. Faculty members are expected to teach both undergraduate and graduate courses, supervise undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral scholars, contribute significantly to the advancement of basic science and engineering as evidenced by scholarly publications, develop a nationally and internationally recognized program of sponsored research and support diversity and inclusivity in their scholarly activities. The successful candidate will be responsible for establishing and maintaining a program of externally funded research. We expect the successful candidate to be committed to working within a diverse community of students and faculty and to pursue interdisciplinary research collaborations within the two departments and throughout the campus. Salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Application Instructions

Candidates must provide the following in their application package addressed to “ChE/BME Faculty Search Committee.” Applications will be reviewed starting on November 15, 2024 and until the search is completed. Applicants should submit a single PDF file that includes:

• A cover letter, addressed to “ChE/BME Faculty Search Committee.” The cover letter should a) introduce yourself, b) briefly describe your research interests, and c) describe your vision for this position. Page limit: 2 pages
• A research statement. Candidates should situate their past research in a broader scholarly context and give their forward-looking research plans for this position. Candidates are specifically asked to describe the types of scholarship they will perform, how that scholarship will be disseminated, and the expectations for how that scholarship will be funded. Statements will be evaluated based on assessment of demonstrated excellence and demonstrated vision of future excellence and impact. Page limit: 3-5 pages
• A teaching statement. Candidates should describe their past teaching experience and articulate their teaching vision for this position. Candidates are specifically asked to highlight existing courses in ChE or BME they are qualified to offer and indicate classes they are interested in developing. Candidates should address both undergraduate and graduate classes. Statements will be evaluated based on assessment of demonstrated excellence and demonstrated promise of future excellence. Page limit: 1-2 pages
• A statement of vision for the candidate’s role in advancing equity, justice, inclusion, and broadening participation in engineering. Please discuss prior experiences and planned future actions integrated across research, teaching, service, and outreach that will result in more equitable engineering solutions, help broaden participation in engineering, build an inclusive engineering community, and contribute to the mission of the College of Engineering and UMass. (https://www.umass.edu/strategicplan/strategic-plan). Page limit: 1-2 pages
• A current curriculum vitae. The CV should include the following: 1) education, 2) employment, 3) awards and honors, 4) sponsored research, 5) peer-reviewed publications, 6) teaching, 7) service, and 8) other sections as considered appropriate by the candidate.
• Contact information (name, title, email address, institution) for 5 professional references. References will not be contacted until the second phase of the search.

Process

The steps of the process are as follows:

• A minimally qualified pool is identified from the applicants.
• All remaining candidates are evaluated, and a “long list” is identified, which will be interviewed via video conference. Candidates invited to these interviews will be emailed at least one week before the scheduled date.
  • For candidates advancing to the long list: references will be contacted, and candidates will have an opportunity to submit 1 or 2 representative scholarly works.
• A “short list” is developed from the long list, and these candidates will be invited to interview on campus. We anticipate interviews on campus to take place in February 2025.

The University is committed to active recruitment of a diverse faculty and student body. The University of Massachusetts Amherst is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer of women, minorities, protected veterans, and individuals with disabilities and encourages applications from these and other protected group members. Because broad diversity is essential to an inclusive climate and critical to the University’s goals of achieving excellence in all areas, we will holistically assess the many qualifications of each applicant and favorably consider an individual’s record working with students and colleagues with broadly diverse perspectives, experiences, and backgrounds in educational, research or other work activities. We will also favorably consider experience overcoming or helping others overcome barriers to an academic career and degree.