The Department of Physics and Astronomy at Brigham Young University (BYU) seeks to hire new faculty members who (1) support the mission of BYU (https://aims.byu.edu/byu-mission-statement) and its sponsoring organization, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, (2) show high aptitude as teachers with a commitment to developing an excellent student classroom experience, (3) build dynamic and externally-supported research program that involves undergraduate and graduate students, and (4) provide service to the department, university, and profession. With 34 full-time faculty, the department expects to hire, on average, about one new faculty member each year for the foreseeable future.
- Preference is given to hiring faculty who are engaged members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Beyond compatibility with Church standards, faculty should be committed disciples of Jesus Christ who inspire and intentionally strengthen students in their faith.
- Faculty members in the Department of Physics and Astronomy teach, on average, 3.5 courses per year, which typically occupies about half of a faculty member’s worktime. Effective teaching is essential for hiring, retention, and promotion. Faculty should continually cultivate an engaging teaching style and develop/adopt well designed, rigorous, and useful curricula. In addition to classroom teaching, faculty mentor research students, which is an important form of teaching that prepares students for future careers and further academic opportunities. Faculty supervise undergraduate theses or capstone projects, master theses, and doctoral dissertations. With roughly 300 undergraduate majors and 50 graduate students in the department, faculty members typically mentor two-to-six undergraduates (as they near graduation) and one-to-three graduate students.
- Faculty members in the department are expected to lead vibrant and impactful research programs. Faculty should publish in high-quality scientific journals and participate in professional meetings regularly. They are encouraged to include student researchers as co-authors where appropriate. During the interview process, prospective hires are invited to promote their research agenda, in terms of competitiveness for external funding (combined with significant startup funds from the University) and in terms of how it will benefit participating students. Over 80% of funding for our graduate students comes from external research grants (likewise equipment and other resources). Currently, the university funds undergraduate students who work as research assistants. While it is natural for the department to be interested in how a new hire might strengthen or complement existing research areas (https://physics.byu.edu/groups/overview), there is also interest in completely new research directions that could benefit students, such as biophysics, cosmology, quantum information, or emerging fields.
- Faculty members complete many administrative tasks within the department, college, and university as committee members or as leaders. A willingness to serve and competently fulfill these roles is essential for providing a positive experience for students and faculty alike. Faculty are also expected to provide service in their respective research communities, for example, as reviewers, conference organizers, professional society officers, etc. New faculty members are typically given lighter citizenship assignments and reduced teaching loads as they develop teaching skills and launch research programs.
To meet specific department needs, faculty are occasionally hired with professional rather than professorial status, with modified expectations, which might, for example, emphasize specific teaching roles over research or vice versa.