Visiting Assistant Professor in Communication Design

University of Florida•Gainesville, FL

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The School of Art + Art History in the College of the Arts at the University of Florida invites applications for a three-semester (Spring 2027, Fall 2027, Spring 2028) appointment as Visiting Assistant Professor of Communication Design. This position will contribute to a vibrant program with a forward-looking curriculum at a top public research university focused on cultivating research and the student experience. This position will teach undergraduate courses in the BFA and minor in Graphic Design, as well as our signature campus-wide UF Quest course on how design works as a tool for shaping, understanding, and communicating who we are in everyday life. Design studio courses focus on contemporary design practice and typically include design research, applying design principles to co-create solutions that meet users' needs, and interaction design. The Quest course is taught as a hybrid course, with students attending in-person sessions with a graduate student once per week to supplement asynchronous online content. As the lead instructor, this position’s role will be to manage the course, organize and deliver the asynchronous content, supervise and mentor graduate assistants, and design lesson plans for the in-person sessions. The University of Florida College of the Arts intends to be a transformative community, responding to and generating paradigmatic shifts in the arts and beyond. As artists, designers, and scholars, we embrace the complexity of our evolving human experience and seek to empower our students and faculty to shape that experience fearlessly through critical study, creative practice, and provocation. We seek a colleague who identifies as a changemaker. We seek a colleague who will position students as catalysts for justice on local and global levels. This position is covered by the United Faculty of Florida Contract.

Requirements

Terminal degree (e.g., MFA, MDes, PhD) in Communication Design or closely related field.
Experience as instructor of record in higher education beyond graduate student assistantship.
Knowledge of contemporary design issues, conceptual approaches to design, design thinking, and design research.
Evidence of skill in designing and facilitating academic work that advances curiosity, respect, open intellectual discourse, and the welcome incorporation and well-being of all in an environment of complex differences.

Nice To Haves

Evidence of success as an undergraduate instructor, preferably in a BFA or other bachelor’s program that prepares students for professional practice
Experience teaching and/or professionally creating interaction design
Experience with community-based projects that connect academic research with public interest, for example, co-design and/or participatory design projects.
Evidence of a commitment to innovative and cross-disciplinary curricula.
An active engagement with design research, creative work, or professional practice

Responsibilities

Teach a 3-2 or 2-3 load in the Fall and Spring semesters
We anticipate that 1–2 courses each year will be sections of UF Quest 1: Design + Identity in Everyday Life.
We anticipate that the other courses will be upper-level courses in the BFA in the Graphic Design major or minor.
Actively participate in our learning community, including finding innovative ways to connect design to critical discourse in other disciplines.
Participate in shared governance through service to the design program, School, College, and University.