Assistant Professor

Organization's Summary Statement:

Human beings share a capacity for language, unique to the species. This capacity guides the learning of language in children and constrains the character of the languages we come to have. To study it we pursue various sources of evidence. Among them are the grammars of individual languages; patterns of grammatical variation across languages; the development, normal and abnormal, of language in children;

the mental processing of language in use; and the embodiment of language in the brain. But all these perspectives converge on a single natural object: the human language faculty, whose study unifies the work at Maryland Linguistics.

The Department of Linguistics at the University of Maryland combines current theoretical research in phonology, syntax, and semantics with state-of-the-art experimental research in language acquisition, computational linguistics, psycholinguistics and neurolinguistics, in order to understand the human capacity for language. Connections between our core competencies are strong, with theoretical, experimental and computational work typically pursued in tandem. A network of collaboration at all levels sustains a research climate that is both vigorous and friendly.

Here new ideas develop in conversation, stimulated by the steady activity of our labs and research groups, frequent student meetings with faculty, regular talks by local and invited scholars and collaborations with a campus community of over 200 language scientists.

The Linguistics Department at the University of Maryland, College Park invites applications for an Assistant Professor of Syntax with an anticipated starting date of August 8, 2027. Applicants should be prepared to teach courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. We seek to hire someone with an active research program, who is prepared to work closely with graduate students, and whose research connects with existing strengths in linguistic theory, psycholinguistics and computational linguistics.

The expected teaching load is four courses per year (2-2). Applicants must have a PhD (Linguistics, Cognitive Science, or allied fields) or expect to have one before the start date.

As an Assistant Professor you will:

• Teach courses at both the undergraduate and graduate level.
• Work closely with graduate students.
• Conduct research in syntactic theory.
• Participate in shared governance of the department, college, and university.

We seek candidates whose research, teaching and service have prepared them to contribute to diversity and inclusion.

Education and Experience:

• A Ph.D, in Linguistics or a related field.

Criteria for evaluating candidates will include the following:

• Evidence of an active research program in syntax.
• Evidence of success in teaching and mentoring undergraduate students.

• Ability to deliver lectures in a large classroom setting, which may require walking between campus buildings.
• Ability to operate standard office equipment and keyboards.

N/A

Preferences:

• Candidates with a demonstrated ability to incorporate diverse perspectives in their teaching.
• Candidates whose research engages with a diversity of data types, possibly including field work, corpus data, experimental syntax, psycholinguistics, language acquisition.

• An application letter.
• A current CV.
• A research statement.
• A teaching statement.
• A statement of Contributions to Diversity.
• Three writing samples.
• The names and contact information for three references.

In their application letter, candidates should briefly describe their research program, their teaching experience and their…