Chair and Full Professor, Materials Science & Engineering

University of Florida • Gainesville, FL

12d

About The Position

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering in the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering at the University of Florida (UF) invites applications for the position of Professor and Chair. The Department offers B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. programs in both Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) and Nuclear Engineering (NE) with a Fall 2025 enrollment of ~278 undergraduate students and ~200 graduate students. Both MSE and NE Graduate programs are well ranked. The department has recently undergone revitalization and boasts a young and dynamic faculty, comprising 23 tenured and tenure-track faculty members, 4 research faculty, 6 instructional faculty, and 15 affiliated faculty as of Fall 2025. The University of Florida is a major, public, land-grant, comprehensive research institution that traces its roots back to 1853. It is the flagship of Florida's higher education system. With 16 colleges, more than 150 research centers and institutes, and over 60,000 undergraduate and graduate students, UF is one of the largest universities in the nation. UF was recently ranked as #1 in the nation’s public and private universities by the Wall Steet Journal. UF is currently ranked 5th best public university in the 2025 Forbes rankings and 7th best public university in the 2025 U.S. News & World Report of Best Colleges. The Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering has over 387 faculty members and is the home to research-intensive academic departments encompassing all major engineering disciplines. UF is home to HiPerGator, the fastest AI supercomputer in higher education. The Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering is undergoing an expansion in faculty, research, and facilities, with a strong focus on artificial intelligence. The Department currently has active research awards of $41.3M, and last year’s ASEE research expenditures were approximately $10.4M. Research within the Department is at the forefront of the field and at the nexus of materials science, nuclear energy, and societal needs. In the area of materials, research strengths include materials for transportation and infrastructure, materials for energy, materials for microelectronics, biomaterials, polymeric materials, and computational and AI materials. In the area of nuclear engineering, strengths include reactor physics, thermal hydraulics, nuclear fuels and materials, radiation detection and imaging, radiochemistry, fusion and plasma physics, nuclear security, safeguards, and non-proliferation. These efforts are complemented and synergize with unique infrastructure and strengths at UF, including the University of Florida Training Reactor, HiPerGator, the Florida Semiconductor Institute, the Nanoscience Institute for Medical and Engineering Technology, the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, the Evelyn L. and William F. McKnight Brain Institute, the UF Health Cancer Institute, the Advanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Spectroscopy (AMRIS) facility, the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory (NHMFL), the Quantum Theory Project, the Institute for Computational Engineering, and the Florida Institute for National Security.

Requirements

• Applicants must possess an earned doctorate in MSE, NE, or a closely related discipline and have a record of distinguished scholarship and external funding in their field of research, as well as excellence in teaching with demonstrated academic credentials sufficient for appointment at the Full Professor level.

Nice To Haves

• Candidates must be committed to high academic standards
• skilled in the development and expansion of sponsored research programs
• experienced in enhancing the representation and success of all populations
• strong in leadership, management, and interpersonal skills as well as written and oral communication skills
• collaborative in their approaches to academic unit problem-solving.

Responsibilities

• developing, with faculty, a compelling vision for advancement of the department in education and research programs
• facilitating/mentoring scholarly and professional growth of faculty, particularly early-career members
• ensuring cutting-edge education is provided to all trainees (undergraduate, graduate, postdoctoral and researchers)
• recruiting and retaining outstanding faculty, staff, and students
• increasing sponsored research through external and private funding opportunities
• enhancing working partnerships with other UF colleges, departments and administrations as well as industry and government agencies
• facilitating knowledge and technology transfer through the university
• cultivating corporate, governmental, alumni and other private donations
• oversees the operational management of the department

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees