Assistant Professor of Political Science (Public Law)

University of Arkansas System • Fayetteville, NC

1d • Onsite

About The Position

The Department of Political Science in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas invites applications for a tenure-track assistant professor position in Political Science to start in August 2027. We are particularly interested in candidates whose research and teaching interests lie in the field of public law, with preferred specializations in jurisprudence, immigration law, family law, environmental law, or political theory. The expected teaching load for the position will be two courses per semester. Duties will include teaching undergraduate and graduate courses, performing research in their area of expertise, and contributing to the service needs of the department. Faculty hired in this position will have an opportunity to be a part of Fulbright College’s multidisciplinary Democracy as a Public Good cluster hire at the University of Arkansas. Through its Democracy as a Public Good Initiative, the College will advance the University’s land-grant mission by expanding capacity to generate knowledge that informs public understanding, contributes to policy and practice, and connects Arkansas to national and international conversations about societal good. Building on existing campus expertise in issues ranging from norms of democratic communication, free speech, media ethics and literacy, humanitarian governance and civil society, risks that AI poses to democratic governance, immigration, and public law, new faculty members participating in the cluster will advance their research agendas through mentoring and opportunities for collaboration—both with other scholars and with communities in the state—that may result in peer-reviewed publications, external funding, and new approaches to the pressing challenges that democracy faces. The successful candidate for this position will have an opportunity to join a community of scholars committed to confronting major issues, generating new knowledge, and providing research-based solutions that investigate and strengthen democratic culture for people living in Arkansas and beyond. This is an in-person position. Most university classes are offered face-to-face, and extensive in-person engagement in such activities as office hours, student advising, and departmental, college, and university committee meetings is essential to advancing student success and departmental effectiveness. Regular, reliable, and non-disruptive attendance is an essential job duty, as is the ability to create and maintain collegial, harmonious working relationships with others.

Requirements

• A Ph.D. degree in Political Science or a closely related field from an accredited institution of higher education conferred by August 2027 from an accredited institution of higher education
• A record of publication or submission of research in reputable scholarly outlets
• Demonstrated evidence of effective teaching in teaching evaluations, sample syllabi, or a teaching portfolio
• Demonstrated ability to teach an undergraduate Introduction to American Government course
• Demonstrated ability to teach undergraduate coursework in at least two areas of public law
• A well-defined and coherent research agenda

Nice To Haves

• A strong and active research agenda that is well-grounded in political or legal theory, backed by advanced analytical, methodological, and empirical skills and focuses on some aspects of public law
• Demonstrated potential for publishing in top-tier outlets
• Demonstrated commitment to undergraduate and graduate education and a willingness to contribute to the department’s existing strengths in teaching and research
• Demonstrated ability to teach undergraduate coursework in political theory
• Demonstrated potential to secure external grant funding
• Demonstrated potential for national and international scholarly reputation

Responsibilities

• Teaching undergraduate and graduate courses
• Performing research in their area of expertise
• Contributing to the service needs of the department

Benefits

• University contributions to health insurance
• University contributions to dental insurance
• University contributions to life insurance
• University contributions to disability insurance
• Tuition waivers for employees and their families
• 12 official holidays
• Immediate leave accrual
• Choice of retirement programs with university contributions ranging from 5 to 10% of employee salary

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree