Solid Mechanics and Material Science Associate or Assistant Professor

Overview

The Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (http://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below).) at Utah State University (USU) invites applications for a tenure-track faculty position in Solid Mechanics and Material Science, especially with regard to strategic structural or functional materials, enabled by critical minerals. Applicants must have a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering or a closely related field. Candidates will be considered at either the assistant or associate professor level.

This is an academic-year position (funded for 9-months) with an anticipated start date of August 2026.

• Develop a significant externally funded research program that includes a strong record of peer-reviewed publications and graduate mentorship.
• Effectively teach undergraduate and graduate courses.
• Actively participate in assigned department and university duties, and demonstrate leadership in relevant technical societies.

Assistant Professor:

• Ph.D. degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering or closely related fields.
• A strong background in engineering fundamentals.
• Evidence of emerging research streams with potential for extramural support and publication.

Associate Professor:

• Ph.D. degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering or closely related fields.
• A strong background in engineering fundamentals.
• Evidence of established research streams with potential for extramural support and publication.

Along with the online application, please attach:

• Resume/CV to be uploaded at the beginning of your application in the Candidate Profile under “Resume/CV”
• Names and contact information for three professional references to be added to your Candidate Profile
• Cover Letter to be uploaded at the beginning of your application in the Candidate Profile under “Documents 1-10”
• Teaching Philosophy to be uploaded at the beginning of your application in the Candidate Profile under “Documents 1-10”
• Research Statement to be uploaded at the beginning of your application in the Candidate Profile under “Documents 1-10”

Document size may not exceed 10 MB.

Commensurate with experience, plus excellent benefits. ADA

Employees typically work indoors and are protected from weather and/or contaminants, but not necessarily occasional temperature changes.

The MAE department has experienced significant growth over the past decade, with enrollments of approximately 900 undergraduate and 100 graduate students, and is the largest department in the College of Engineering. The department offers MS and PhD degrees in both Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering. The department currently has 17 tenured/tenure-track faculty members and 5 professors of practice, with additional part-time instructors from local industry and research institutions.

Faculty research areas include fluid dynamics, combustion and propulsion, flight mechanics, space dynamics, advanced materials, controls, and systems engineering with research expenditures in recent years about $3M. Successful applicants may have opportunities to work closely with scientists and engineers from the USU Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL), one of 14 Department of Defense University Affiliated Research Centers (UARC). Further, USU faculty also have access to the University of Utah Center for High Performance Computing (CHPC) facilities and the Utah Water Lab.

USU is the nearest PhD-granting institution in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering to the Idaho National Laboratory, and is also in close proximity to Hill Air Force Base and other defense related organizations. USU recently joined the Critical Materials Innovation (CMI) Hub sponsored by the US Department of Energy and the University Consortium for Applied Hypersonics (UCAH) by the US Department of Defense.

Founded in 1888, Utah State University is Utah’s premier land-grant, public service university. As an R1 research institution, Utah State is dedicated to advancing knowledge and serving the public good through innovative research and scholarly activities that are grounded in reciprocal…