Assistant Professor

The Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill invites applications for a tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor.

Economies work well when everyone can participate, prosper, and reach their full potential. For this to happen, planners need to understand how communities, businesses, workers, institutional actors, technologies and regulatory structures interact within in local economies and wider spheres to create shared prosperity and economic benefits for all. A well-resourced economy is also well positioned to drive new innovations in support of healthier, resilient and more environmentally sustainable communities.

The Department of City & Regional Planning has long been a national leader in economic development and has strong connections with public administration and business administration programs within the university. Strong historical connections exist with applied economic centers on campus and economic organizations across the state and beyond, such as NC Growth, the Development Finance Initiative, The World Bank, IADB, WRI, Oxfam, the Ford Foundation, International Economic Development Council, NC Department of Commerce, Self-Help Credit Union, the NC Justice Center, NC Economic Development Association and several local economic development organizations.

The department seeks scholars who can nurture and expand these connections. We seek an emerging scholar with strong conceptual and quantitative grounding in economic and workforce development planning. The candidate should have an active research program, ideally but not exclusively, at the intersection of jobs, technological change, organization of work, and innovative institutional structures that shape these processes and are shaped by them.

The research should contribute to supporting vibrant, just, and resilient local and regional economies. In addition to research, the candidates are expected to teach core courses in the specialization such as Economic Development Techniques (quantitative methods) and Planning for Jobs among others. They are also expected to contribute to the curriculum by teaching First Year Seminars for undergraduates and developing courses in workforce development that are attractive to students in the department and allied fields.

The tenure-track Assistant Professor will allocate effort approximately as follows: 40% teaching, 40% research, and 20% service. The position carries a two-course teaching load each semester during the fall and spring terms. Teaching assignments will be based on the candidate’s expertise and departmental needs. The position will conduct rigorous research using appropriate methodologies, including a variety of quantitative and/or qualitative methods.

The Assistant Professor will conduct service that includes, but is not limited to search committees, review committees and administrative roles within the department and/or College.

We will begin considering candidates on October 1.

Ph.D. in Planning or related fields. (Ph.D. should be received by the start date of the appointment (July 1, 2027).

Demonstrated commitment to teaching, mentoring, and training students at all levels and to work with a diverse student body; strong research and teaching records; ability to develop or extend or record of scholarly contributions.