The Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of California, Los Angeles is searching for a full-time tenure track Assistant Professor with outstanding potential as a research scientist, science educator, and mentor to students from groups that are under-represented in the physical sciences. This search is part of a cluster hire with faculty positions in the departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mathematics, and Physics and Astronomy who will support UCLA’s goals to achieve federal designation as a Hispanic Serving Institution as early as 2025. In preparation for this designation, the Office of the Chancellor and the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost have sponsored this search in order to recruit exceptional scholars whose teaching, scholarship and/or mentoring has strong ties to Latinx experiences in the United States. This search is conducted as a partnership between the Chicano Studies Research Center and the Division of Physical Sciences. Faculty hired through this search are expected to have a demonstrated commitment to and future plan for mentoring and encouraging the success of Latinx and first-generation scholars and to maintain an active affiliation with the Chicano Studies Research Center. Since the Latina population is particularly under-represented in physical sciences nationwide, the Department of Physics and Astronomy and the Division of Physical Sciences are especially interested in candidates with potential to serve as outstanding mentors to Latina students.

Candidates in any area of Physics and Astronomy, broadly defined, will be considered. A necessary qualification is a Ph.D. or equivalent degree in Physics, Astronomy, or a related discipline in hand at time of appointment. Post-doctoral research experience is strongly encouraged. The successful candidate will be expected to develop an externally funded research program, and teach and mentor at both the undergraduate and graduate levels employing inclusive pedagogical approaches. UCLA and the Department of Physics and Astronomy are committed to the highest standards of scholarship and professional activities, and to the development of a campus climate that supports diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Candidates should provide a cover letter, a curriculum vitae including a list of publications, a research statement including future research directions, a teaching statement that includes teaching interests as well as experience employing pedagogies that promote active learning and inclusive teaching practices, a statement of contributions to equity, diversity, and inclusion that includes previous and planned efforts that advance EDI through formal and/or informal mentoring especially of Latina students, arrange for at least three and up to five letters of reference to be uploaded to UCLA Academic Recruit, and complete a reference check authorization release form.

The Department of Physics and Astronomy Search Committee will begin initial review of materials and applications on February 28, 2025 and continue until the position is filled.

Salary is commensurate with qualifications and based on University of California pay scales. The posted UC salary scales [https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/compensation/index.html] set the minimum pay determined by rank and/or step at appointment. See Table 1 [https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/compensation/2024-25-academic-salary-scales.html]. The salary range for this position is $78,200-$101,400. “Off-scale salaries” and other components of pay, i.e., a salary that is higher than the published system-wide salary at the designated rank and step, are offered when necessary to meet competitive conditions. See campus compensation page for additional information.

Located in an urban setting, UCLA is California's largest university with a diverse student body of 38,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Of those students, >27% come from underrepresented minority groups, and 31% are first-generation college students. UCLA is home to a number of NIH, NSF, and HHMI funded training programs focused on increasing success for students underrepresented in science. The Department of Physics and Astronomy at UCLA has over 60 faculty and is a vibrant department with a strong commitment to advancing diversity in STEM. The Department of Physics and Astronomy also features large and diverse graduate and undergraduate programs. The department has strong connections to the Bhaumik Institute for Theoretical Physics, the STROBE Science & Technology Center, the Basic Plasma Science Facility (BaPSF), and the California Nanosystems Institute (CNSI), as well as many other research centers on campus.

We strongly encourage applications from individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, and other individuals who are underrepresented in the field, across color, creed, race, ethnic and national origin, physical ability, gender and sexual identity, or any other legally protected basis. UCLA offers a diverse campus community and is a leader in advancing strategies to diversify its faculty. This includes recent initiatives such as Rising to the Challenge, Hispanic-Serving Institution initiative, and Native American/Pacific Islander Bruins Rising. UCLA has programs to assist in partner employment, childcare, schooling, and other family concerns. For additional information, visit the UCLA Academic Personnel Office website [https://apo.ucla.edu/faculty-career-development/work-life-balance] or the UC Office of the President’s website [https://diversity.universityofcalifornia.edu/actions/faculty-academic-staff-diversity.html] and [https://www.ucop.edu/faculty-affairs-academic-programs/resources/family-friendly-practices-and-policies/index.html]. The Department is committed to addressing the family needs of employees, including dual career couples and single parents. We also welcome applications from candidates who have followed non-traditional career paths.

The University of California is committed to creating and maintaining a community dedicated to the advancement, application, and transmission of knowledge and creative endeavors through academic excellence, where all individuals who participate in University programs and activities can work and learn together in a safe and secure environment, free of violence, harassment, bullying and other demeaning behavior, discrimination, exploitation, or intimidation. With this commitment as well as a commitment to addressing all forms of academic misconduct, UCLA conducts targeted employment reference checks for finalists to whom departments or other hiring units would like to extend formal offers of appointment into Academic Senate faculty positions. The targeted employment reference checks involve contacting the finalists’ current and prior places of employment to ask whether there have been substantiated findings of misconduct that would violate the University’s Faculty Code of Conduct. To implement this process, UCLA requires all applicants for Academic Senate faculty positions to complete, sign, and upload the form entitled “Authorization to Release Information” into RECRUIT as part of their application. If the applicant does not include the signed authorization to release information with the application materials, the application will be considered incomplete. As with any incomplete application, the application will not receive further consideration. Although all applicants for faculty recruitments must complete the entire application, only finalists (i.e., those to whom the department or other hiring unit would like to extend a formal offer) considered for Academic Senate faculty positions will be subject to targeted employment reference checks.