Assistant Professor Department of English College of Liberal Arts CLA - 3816
Position: The English department of Towson University invites applications for a tenure-track, 9-month Assistant Professor position in Technical Communication beginning August 2025.
Qualifications: PhD required. ABD applicants considered, but appointment will be at the Instructor rank and all degree requirements must be completed by February 1, 2026. The candidate should have a PhD in Technical and Professional Communication, Scientific Communication, New Media, or related degree. We particularly welcome applications from candidates whose research and teaching are anchored to social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion and community-engaged practices as they relate to the following areas of studies: AI and LLMs, Project management, Technical communication of health and medicine, Global or intercultural communication, Grant writing, Corporate communications consulting and Information and user experience design.
Responsibilities: Faculty are assigned an instructional workload of six (6) course units per academic year plus advising 10-15 students in the undergraduate English degree. The candidate will teach and design courses in technical communication to undergraduate non-majors and in the Technical Writing & Information Design track within the M.S. Professional Writing program. Applicants will need to demonstrate the potential for strong research, excellent teaching, and service aligned with the college’s expected outcomes of impact, innovation, and engagement towards R2 status and the university’s new strategic plan.
The Department: The M.S. in Professional Writing program serves over 50 master’s students, and the English department has 300+ majors and is home to over 40 full time faculty members. Towson’s proximity to Baltimore and Washington, DC provides ample service-learning and internship opportunities in the government, tech industry, and nonprofit sectors.
Our professional writing students work in government contracting, the nonprofit industry, education, publishing, and other sectors pertinent to the Baltimore-Washington region, so a candidate with technical writing industry experience is preferred. Candidates must be sensitive to the needs of and possess an interest in working with an ethnically and racially diverse student body.
Towson University:
Towson University (www.towson.edu) was founded in 1866, is recognized by U.S. News and World Reports as one of the top public universities in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, is the Baltimore area’s largest university, and is the largest public, comprehensive institution in the University of Maryland System. TU enrolls over 19,000 undergraduates and more than 3,000 graduate students across six academic colleges (business, education, fine arts, health professions, liberal arts, science & mathematics), has of 900 full-time faculty, and offers 65 bachelor’s, 42 master’s, and 4 doctoral programs. Our centrally located campus sits on 330 rolling green acres and is 10 miles north of Baltimore, 45 miles north of Washington D.C., and 95 miles south of Philadelphia.
Application Process: Review of applications begins immediately and continues until the position is filled. Priority given to applicants received by November 1st. To apply, send a cover letter and curriculum vitae through our Taleo system (link provided below). The vitae should include contact information for three references who can speak to the candidate’s teaching experience and qualifications.
Letters should be addressed to: Harvey Lillywhite, Ph.D. Professor of English 8000 York Road Towson, MD 21252
Click here to apply. Please note that the search number for which you are applying is CLA-3816.
A Criminal Background Investigation is required for the hired candidate and the results may impact employment.
The safety of our students, faculty, staff, and neighbors has been our top priority and the focus of every one of our decisions since the earliest days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, the University System of Maryland (USM) has strongly encouraged full COVID vaccination and up-to-date booster shots (when eligible) for all faculty, staff, and students at all schools in the USM as both a reasonable and necessary means of protecting our health and safety.
Please be sure to visit the Applicant Data Form to complete a voluntary on-line applicant data form. The information you provide will inform the university's affirmative action plan and is for statistical-related purposes only. The information will not be used for any other purpose.
Towson University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer and has a strong institutional commitment to diversity, as detailed in A More Inclusive TU: Advancing Equity and Diversity (2020 – 25). TU is a national leader in inclusive excellence, the only institution in Maryland with zero achievement gap, and 68% growth in minority enrollment over the past 5 years. We encourage application from a variety of (dis)abilities, cultural, ethnic, race, sex, gender identity/expression, national origin, age, veteran status, color, religious, socio-economic, sexual orientation and belief backgrounds.
The largest comprehensive university in the Baltimore area, Towson University is nationally recognized for its excellent programs in the arts and sciences, communications, business, health professions, education, fine arts and computer information systems. Located in suburban Towson, eight miles north of Baltimore, our beautifully landscaped, 328-acre setting offers a pleasant environment for study and a diverse campus life, as well as easy access to a wealth of university and community resources. Towson University's educational experience branches out to off-campus locations throughout Maryland, including a number of online options. Our many interdisciplinary partnerships with public and private organizations throughout Maryland provide opportunities for research, internships and jobs. Towson University is a founding member of the Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities (CUMU).