Assistant Professor in Human Development and Family Sciences
The Department of Human Development and Family Sciences in the College of Health and Human Sciences at Texas Tech University invites applications for a full-time, 9-month tenure-track Assistant Professor to begin September 1, 2025. Contributes to the university’s mission through teaching, research and service, some variation by academic unit.
About the University
Established in 1923, Texas Tech University is a Carnegie R1 (very high research activity) Doctoral/Research-Extensive, Hispanic Serving, and state-assisted institution. Located on a beautiful 1,850-acre campus in Lubbock, a city in West Texas with a growing metropolitan-area population of over 300,000, the university enrolls over 40,000 students with 33,000 undergraduate and 7,000 graduate students. As the primary research institution in the western two-thirds of the state, Texas Tech University is home to 10 colleges, the Schools of Law and Veterinary Medicine, and the Graduate School. The flagship of the Texas Tech University System, Texas Tech is dedicated to student success by preparing learners to be ethical leaders for a diverse and globally competitive workforce. It is committed to enhancing the cultural and economic development of the state, nation, and world.
About Lubbock
Referred to as the “Hub City” because it serves as the educational, cultural, economic, and health care hub of the South Plains region, Lubbock boasts a diverse population and a strong connection to community, history, and land. With a mild climate, highly rated public schools, and a low cost of living, Lubbock is a family-friendly community that is ranked as one of the best places to live in Texas. Lubbock is home to a celebrated and ever-evolving music scene, a vibrant arts community, and is within driving distance of Dallas, Austin, Santa Fe, and other major metropolitan cities. Lubbock’s Convention & Visitors Bureau provides a comprehensive overview of the Lubbock community and its resources, programs, events, and histories.
About the College
As one of the four original colleges at Texas Tech University at its founding in 1925, the College of Health and Human Sciences (CHHS) has a rich history of investing in students, preparing them to impact the world around them. The College of Health and Human Sciences provides multidisciplinary education, research, and service focused on individuals, families, and their environments to improve and enhance the human condition. The College offers a wide range of outstanding and nationally recognized undergraduate and graduate programs and encompasses seven academic departments. In further supporting its vision of providing premier research, outreach, and educational programs that enhance human well-being worldwide, the CHHS is also home to six centers and five institutes. When they graduate, our students are making an impact as educators, healthcare professionals, financial planners, hospitality managers, fashion merchandisers, designers, counselors, and nutrition experts. We are a destination for health and human sciences.
About the Department/School/Area
The Department of Human Development and Family Sciences is an interdisciplinary research department with strong graduate and undergraduate programs focused on human development across the life course, close relationships, and family dynamics. The department studies and interrogates systematic inequities which impact individuals, relationships, families, and communities. We offer a wide range of courses in the areas of early childhood education, human development across the lifespan, interpersonal relationships, and family sciences. Graduates of the department become qualified to pursue a variety of careers in healthcare, social services, education, public policy, public health programs, non-profit agencies, counseling parent and family life education, and/or pursue graduate studies.
Major/Essential Functions
In line with TTU’s strategic priorities to engage and empower a diverse student body, enable innovative research and creative activities, and transform lives and communities through outreach and engaged scholarship, applicants should have experience working with diverse student populations at the undergraduate and/or graduate levels within individual or across the areas of teaching, research/creative activity, and service.
Faculty Qualifications
- Applicants are required to have earned a Ph.D. by the start date in human development and family sciences or a related discipline such as psychology, sociology, or education;
- Experience teaching as instructor on record or as a teaching assistant (including teaching experience as a graduate student), or demonstrated potential to be a proficient teacher and mentor to undergraduate and graduate students;
- Established record of publishing in well-respected journals, presenting at national and international conferences, and applying for external funding or demonstrated potential to apply for external funding;
- Experience participating in service at department, college, university, and/or professional levels, and experience and/or potential to engage in outreach and engagement activities in the community;
- Research interests which include infant and early childhood development in family and community contexts; parental mental health and well-being during pregnancy and the transition to parenthood; adverse early childhood experiences and trauma; early childhood interventions; infant and early childhood health disparities.
Preferred Qualifications
In addition to the required qualifications, individuals with the following preferred qualifications are strongly encouraged to apply:
- Research that foregrounds health and well-being, broadly defined, including mental health, physical health, healthy relationships, and healthy communities.
- Potential to teach a wide range of undergraduate and graduate courses in HDFS.
Texas Tech University is one of the state’s major universities consisting of 10 colleges, the Graduate School, the School of Veterinary Medicine, and the School of Law. Located on an adjacent campus, the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center includes the Schools of Medicine, Pharmacy, Nursing, and Allied Health. The Department is a unit of the College of Human Sciences, and is one of the largest units on the Texas Tech campus. It serves approximately 1,100 undergraduate and graduate students, and offers master’s and doctoral degrees. The Department of Human Development and Family Sciences is an interdisciplinary research department with strong graduate and undergraduate programs focused on individual development across the life course, close relationships, and family dynamics. The department values social justice and is concerned with addressing systematic inequities which impact individuals, couples, families, and communities.
Texas Tech is designated as a Carnegie Research 1 Institution, and is also recognized as a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). Texas Tech is located in the West Texas High Plains city of Lubbock (population over 250,000) and has excellent medical facilities, a low cost of living, and a semi-arid, sunny, and mild climate. Lubbock is within driving distance of Dallas, Austin, Santa Fe, and other major metropolitan cities.
Texas Tech University hosts several institutes, centers, and programs that may enhance candidate’s research productivity, including the Christine DeVitt and Helen Devitt Jones Child Development Research Center (https://www.depts.ttu.edu/hs/cdrc/), the Center for Early Head Start (https://www.depts.ttu.edu/hs/hdfs/earlyheadstart/), the Center for Adolescent Resiliency (https://www.depts.ttu.edu/hs/car/index.php) and the Burkhart Center for Autism Education and Research (https://www.depts.ttu.edu/burkhartcenter/). In addition The Center for Biotechnology and Genomics offers instrumentation, support, and training in various aspects of modern biotechnology, including Nextgen sequencing, bioinformatics, and functional genomics (http://www.depts.ttu.edu/biotechnologyandgenomics/) and the Texas Tech Neuroimaging Institute (TTNI, https://www.depts.ttu.edu/research/ttni/) are pivotal university resources.
EEO Statement
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information or status as a protected veteran.
Job Overview
1301 Akron Ave
Suite 507
Lubbock, TX 79409
United States
Please include the following documents in your application:
- Curriculum Vitae
- Cover Letter
- Research Statement
- Teaching Statement
- Names and contact information for three references
Search will close 9/30/2024
Questions about this position should be directed to Dr. Wonjung Oh, Search Committee Chair at [email protected]. If you need assistance with the application process, contact Human Resources, Talent Acquisition at [email protected] or 806-742-3851.
