Assistant Professor in Middle East/North Africa Studies and/or their Diasporas

The Department of Anthropology and the Middle East and Muslim Societies Cluster at the University of Illinois at Chicago invites applicants for an assistant professor in Critical Middle East/North Africa Studies and/or Middle East/North African Diaspora Studies beginning August 16, 2021.

Research Areas: We seek to hire an exceptional emerging scholar with broad and innovative theoretical and ethnographic interests in the contemporary Middle East/North Africa and/or Middle East/North African Diasporas. Our priority hiring areas are in political or medical anthropology, or critical geography and/or the intersections of these subfields. We are especially interested in candidates with a critical approach whose work addresses one or more of these themes: transnationalism, critical race and/or empire, militarism/war, social movements, gender/sexuality, energy and climate justice, critical health/medicine, and media/popular culture.  

Teach at the undergraduate and graduate level, advise students, do research in area of expertise, participate in the intellectual life of the university,  provide service to the university.

The successful candidate must have completed their PhD in sociocultural Anthropology or a closely related interdisciplinary field, by August 15, 2021.

To Apply:

For additional information about the Anthropology department, go to: http://anth.uic.edu. This search is part of the Provost's Cluster Initiative, within the Middle East and Muslim Societies Cluster. For more information, see: https://provost.uic.edu/provost-initiatives/cluster-initiative-to-increase-diversity-and-the-interdisciplinary-culture-at-uic/middle-east-and-muslim-societies/

Inquiries can be sent to search committee co-chairs, Dr. Nadine Naber (naber@uic.edu) or Dr. Tarini Bedi (tbedi@uic.edu).

For full consideration, applications should be received by April 1, 2021.

Applicants should submit materials to https://jobs.uic.edu.  

Applications must include:

1. A cover letter which succinctly addresses the applicant’s interest in the position, their scholarship, their teaching and service experience, and their commitment to diversity in research and pedagogy.

2. A full curriculum vitae

3. A writing sample not to exceed 40 double spaced pages.

4. Names and email addresses of three academic references who could be contacted for letters of references. Please note, for applicants who are currently ABD, and for whom we solicit letters we would expect the dissertation advisor to clearly certify that the doctoral degree will be conferred no later August 15, 2021.

Context: Located in the heart of one of the most vibrant cities in the United States, UIC is a comprehensive urban public research (R1) university with a diverse student body and a strong tradition of support for difference and equality. Part of the University of Illinois land grant higher education system, UIC is among the nation’s top five most diverse campuses; it is designated as a Minority Serving Institution (MSI), an Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI), and a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). UIC’s undergraduate population is currently 26.4% Hispanic, 23.1% Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander, 7.9% Black, 35.8% White, 9.3% International, and 4.3% other/unknown. 53% of UIC’s students are low income, and 36% are Pell eligible. While the University of Illinois includes students from the Middle East and North Africa in the White category, they represent a significant population of the student body. UIC is also home to the first cultural center serving students from the Arab region, the Arab American Cultural Center.

The University of Illinois at Chicago is an affirmative action/equal opportunity employer, dedicated to the goal of building a culturally diverse pluralistic faculty and staff committed to teaching in a multicultural environment.  We strongly encourage applications from women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and covered veterans. The University may conduct background checks on all job candidates upon acceptance of a contingent offer. Background checks will be conducted in compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

The University of Illinois System requires candidates selected for hire to disclose any documented finding of sexual misconduct or sexual harassment and to authorize inquiries to current and former employers regarding findings of sexual misconduct or sexual harassment. For more information, visit https://www.hr.uillinois.edu/cms/One.aspx?portalId=4292&pageId=1411899