Associate Professor/Professor of Data Science

University of North Texas System • Denton, TX

2d • Onsite

About The Position

The Anuradha and Vikas Sinha Department of Data Science at the University of North Texas invites applications for a tenured/tenure-track Associate Professor / Professor position in Data Science. The selected candidate will also receive the multi-year, renewable title of Reinburg Endowed Professor, subject to university policies. This position is intended for candidates who seek to develop a high-impact, externally funded research program in a research-intensive (R1) environment and strong industry partnerships while contributing to excellence in teaching and service. The standard teaching load for this position is two courses per semester during the regular academic year (2–2 load). Teaching responsibilities include undergraduate and graduate courses in data science and closely related areas, aligned with the candidate’s research expertise and departmental needs. Faculty are expected to demonstrate teaching innovation and effectiveness, mentor students, and contribute to curriculum innovation that integrates research and education. The successful candidate is expected to establish and sustain a strong, independent research agenda, including the pursuit of external research funding from federal agencies, non-profit organizations and Foundations, and other sponsors, and the publication of research in high-quality, peer-reviewed venues. The candidate will also be expected to develop strong industry partnerships, engaging students in industry-relevant projects. Faculty members are expected to actively mentor graduate students, including supervising master’s theses and doctoral dissertations, and to engage in interdisciplinary research collaborations within the department, across the university, and with external partners. In addition to research and teaching, the candidate will be expected to contribute to departmental, college, and university service, as well as leadership roles in the profession appropriate to the rank. The department values collaborative scholarship, interdisciplinary engagement, and research that addresses impactful, real-world data-driven challenges. This position offers an opportunity to join a growing, research- and industry-oriented department and to contribute to its long-term vision of becoming a nationally recognized leader in data science research and graduate education. As an endowed professor, the candidate is expected to have: established national or international scholarly reputation in Data Science, AI, or a related field. demonstrated record of external funding. research leadership, such as leading a lab, center, interdisciplinary initiative, major collaborative project, or large grant. professional leadership/service, such as editorial boards, conference leadership, professional societies, review panels, or similar activities. evidence of institutional impact, such as helping build programs, recruit students/faculty, expand partnerships, or raise research visibility.

Requirements

• An earned PhD in Data Science, Computer Science, Statistics, or a closely related field from an accredited institution by the time of appointment.
• Demonstrated potential for high-quality scholarly research, as evidenced by peer-reviewed publications and strong research in progress in data science, machine learning, agentic AI, quantum computing, AI and/or related areas.
• Demonstrated potential to establish an externally funded research program appropriate for a research-intensive (R1) institution.
• Demonstrated ability or strong potential to teach effectively at the undergraduate and graduate levels in artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, data governance, advanced research methods and closely related areas.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and collaborate with industry partners on industry-relevant projects involving students.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to collaborate effectively with faculty, students, and interdisciplinary research teams.
• Commitment to mentoring students, including undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral students, consistent with the expectations of a research-focused department.

Nice To Haves

• Research expertise in Generative AI, including large language models, foundation models, prompt engineering, representation learning, post quantum cryptography and related areas.
• Potential to secure external research funding in areas related to generative AI, or AI-driven data science from federal agencies, non-profit organizations and Foundations, industry, or other sponsors.
• Experience or interest in interdisciplinary research, particularly applications of generative AI and quantum computing in domains such as health, cybersecurity, education, social sciences, or public policy.
• Experience mentoring students or collaborating on research and industry projects, including supervision of graduate research or participation in multi-investigator teams.
• Experience with HSI/MSIs and/or who speak Spanish, Vietnamese, American Sign Language, Chinese (Cantonese, Mandarin and other variations), Arabic, Tagalog, Farsi, French, or/and Yoruba.

Responsibilities

• Establish and sustain a strong, independent research agenda.
• Pursue external research funding from federal agencies, non-profit organizations and Foundations, and other sponsors.
• Publish research in high-quality, peer-reviewed venues.
• Develop strong industry partnerships, engaging students in industry-relevant projects.
• Actively mentor graduate students, including supervising master’s theses and doctoral dissertations.
• Engage in interdisciplinary research collaborations within the department, across the university, and with external partners.
• Contribute to departmental, college, and university service.
• Assume leadership roles in the profession appropriate to the rank.
• Teach undergraduate and graduate courses in data science and closely related areas.
• Demonstrate teaching innovation and effectiveness.
• Mentor students.
• Contribute to curriculum innovation that integrates research and education.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation commensurate with qualifications, experience, and discipline.
• University guidelines and available funding for compensation.
• ORP Eligible retirement plan.

What This Job Offers

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