Sessional Instructor: Mental Health: Sci Cult Soc, Faculty of Arts & Science, Fall​/Winter

Sessional Instructor:
Mental Health:
Sci Cult Soc, Faculty of Arts & Science, Fall/Winter 2026-27 (Job Code 3817)

Employment Type:

Temporary/Contract

This course provides a theoretical approach to understanding the role of psychiatric science in society and culture. Students will read from historical and critical literatures on scientific and cultural practices of mental health and illness in western societies and beyond, with attention to late capitalist practices. The class will explore mental health in a model suggesting that scientific knowledges change with paradigms of thought.

Mental health will be positioned as a range of personal, social and scientific “technologies” which often produce particular behaviors. Topics of discussion include: the interstices of art and madness; changing notions of the human subject and the self; health’s relationship to citizenship and consumer society; and the historical pathologisation of distinct populations of people based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexuality and more.

Teaching and teaching‑related responsibilities may include but are not limited to: course outline development, studio preparation and delivery inclusive of lectures, critiques, grading, mid‑term evaluations and final evaluations/reviews; responsibility for health & safety and meeting academic and curricular requirements and deadlines.

• The successful applicant should have a terminal degree in art, design or relevant discipline and/or equivalent professional/practical experience.
• Experience teaching at the post‑secondary level is considered an asset; equivalent relevant experience will be considered.
• Outstanding interpersonal and communication skills.
• Demonstrated leadership and experience promoting a respectful and inclusive work and learning environment for students, staff and faculty.

Sessional appointments are fixed‑term annual contracts. Compensation includes a per‑course pay scale with salary level of $7,508.00 (per 0.5 credit course) plus 7% in lieu of benefits and vacation pay, per the provisions of the Employment Standards Act. Positions are subject to budgetary approval and satisfactory enrolment levels.

OCAD University encourages applications from members of equity‑deserving communities, including women, racialised and Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, and persons of all sexual orientations and gender identities/expressions. We encourage members of designated equity‑deserving groups to self‑identify within the voluntary Applicant Questionnaire. In order to alleviate the under‑representation of racialised and Indigenous faculty, priority in hiring will be given to qualified racialised and Indigenous persons who self‑identify as such in the application process.

This initiative is a special program under the Ontario Human Rights Code. All qualified persons are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority. Only those shortlisted will be contacted.