Assistant; Tenure-Track) Professor

Salary range:
The salary range for this position is $111,400 - $139,200. The posted UC salary scales set the minimum pay determined by rank and step  Table Salary scale  Off-scale salaries , 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.

Open date:
October 19, 2026

Next review date:
Tuesday, Dec 15, 2026 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)

Final date:
Wednesday, Jun 30, 2027 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)

Assistant (Tenure-Track) Professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE)

Aero/Space Structures

The Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) is inviting applications for a tenure-track faculty position at the assistant professor rank, with an anticipated start date of July 1, 2027.

The rapidly evolving landscape of aerospace engineering, driven by advances in next-generation aircraft, urban air mobility, hypersonic and high-speed vehicles, and ambitious space initiatives such as NASA’s Artemis program, the United States Space Force, and the growing commercial space sector, calls for pioneering innovations in aerospace and space structures. Future air and space platforms will demand structures that are lighter, stronger, more adaptable, and more efficient than conventional approaches allow, spanning applications from high-performance airframes to deployable, in-orbit, and lunar/planetary structures.

To address these challenges, UCI’s Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering seeks exceptional applicants with demonstrated potential to become a leader in aero/space structures.

Advanced structural concepts for air and space platforms, including deployable, reconfigurable, and morphing structures (origami- and kirigami-inspired, thin-shell composite, and tensegrity concepts), in-space manufacturing, and in-space/in-field robotic, modular, and autonomous assembly and repair of large-scale structures.

Aerospace structures leveraging advanced composites and additive manufacturing, including AI-driven strategies for manufacturing, computational design and optimization, and adaptive or multifunctional structures with integrated actuation and sensing.

Structural mechanics and life-cycle assessment of aircraft and spacecraft structures with emphasis on materials behavior and characterization, including fatigue, fracture, and damage tolerance, aeroelasticity, and structural health monitoring across airframe and space-structure applications with extreme thermal, mechanical, and/or dynamic loading.

Emerging structural challenges in hypersonic, reusable, and autonomous platforms, including thermal-structural and aerothermoelastic response, and resilient, rapidly manufacturable structures for next-generation defense and space missions.

Structural dynamics of large, flexible, and ultralight space structures, including pointing-error mitigation under attitude-control maneuvers.

Basic qualifications (required at time of application) Applicants must hold a Ph.D. in engineering or a closely related field by the start date of the position. Preference will be given to candidates with degrees in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, or interdisciplinary fields that align with the research areas described above.

The ideal candidate will build a vigorous, externally funded research program in aero/space structures and make scholarly contributions to the field through high-quality publications. They should also show a strong commitment to…