Professor(s) of Physics

The Bates College Department of Physics and Astronomy invites applications for two tenure-track positions starting in August 2025: one in solar or solar-terrestrial physics (broadly defined within the context of geospace science), and one in any subfield of physics or astronomy. The position in solar physics is supported by a $1.34 million Faculty Development in geoSpace Science grant from the National Science Foundation (for which the new hire would become Co-PI), and it is required to be at the Assistant Professor rank. The second position is anticipated to be filled at the Assistant Professor rank, but applications for a tenured Associate Professor rank will also be considered.

The department is staffed with six full-time faculty members, and shares a seventh position with the Department of Earth and Climate Sciences; in addition, two masters-level Assistants in Instruction provide support to introductory and laboratory-oriented courses. Research specialties in the department include experimental ultracold atomic physics, observational extragalactic astronomy, experimental frequency-comb spectroscopy, and theoretical and computational quantum many-body systems. The department graduates ten to twenty physics majors per year, while also providing support for a physics minor and an Engineering Combined Plan. All majors produce a senior thesis, typically involving a research project in the context of a faculty member’s area of expertise.

The duties of these positions include three main areas of faculty work: teaching, professional achievement, and governance and engagement. The teaching load of each position is five courses per year (taught over two semesters and a four-week Short Term in May), and includes courses in the major and those that are part of Bates’ general education curriculum. The new faculty members will take part in our academic advising program, and will join ongoing initiatives in inclusive pedagogy, equity and inclusion, and curricular innovation. For example, we are developing a course in physics that would satisfy a college-wide requirement on Race, Power, Privilege, and Colonialism. Successful candidates will be expected to develop signature and independent research programs involving undergraduates, advise senior theses, and also to take part in our system of shared governance.

About Bates

Bates College is a residential liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine. Details about the college and its community can be found here. Lewiston is a diverse and growing city in Maine, two and a half hours north of Boston and 45 minutes from a burgeoning Portland technology start-up scene that includes the Roux Institute.

Educational access and justice are central to Bates’ history and mission. That work is supported in a variety of ways, including by an HHMI Inclusive Excellence grant to support transforming how we teach STEM and a Mellon Foundation Curricular Transformation Grant. Teaching is supported by a new Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning. Community-engaged learning and study abroad are encouraged and robustly supported. Read more about our faculty’s commitment to equity and inclusion here.

Bates supports new faculty with a course reduction in the first year of teaching, formal mentoring, and new faculty development programming. Bates provides tenure-track faculty with a paid pre-tenure leave and support for post-tenure sabbaticals. Faculty scholarship is supported by start-up packages, the new Bonney Science Center, internal grants, and a robust external grants office. Faculty research is routinely supported by the NSF, NASA, and other external funding sources. The position in solar physics is initially supported by the NSF grant described above, and it is also supported by the college as a long-term, tenure-track position. As additional compensation for this PI work, the hire in the solar physics position will have access to additional discretionary research funds through the grant.

Significant lab space and start-up funding are available for both positions, as is a wide range of existing equipment and materials, as well as the support of a professional machinist and machine shop. Bates maintains the newly upgraded Leavitt high-performance computing cluster which is available to support the curricular and scholarly needs of both positions.

Qualifications: a PhD in physics or a closely related field. Postdoctoral experience is seen as beneficial but is not required. We strongly encourage applications from individuals with identities that have been historically marginalized in physics, individuals who have followed non-traditional pathways to higher education due to societal, economic, or academic disadvantages, and individuals with a demonstrated capacity to advance the college’s continuing commitments to equitable, inclusive, and anti-racist teaching.

Application Instructions: Review of applications will begin on October 7, 2024 and continue until the position is filled. Applicants should submit the following: a cover letter addressing interest in the position and Bates College, curriculum vitae, statement discussing teaching philosophy and experience, and statement discussing research interests and proposed research program. Three letters of recommendation will be requested from candidates selected for further review. Employment is contingent upon successful completion of a background check and degree verification.

Our vision of success as a department includes the thriving of all students and colleagues. The candidate’s past and potential contributions to equity and inclusion, and their capacity to contribute to and expand upon this vision for a thriving department, may be addressed either in a separate, additional document, or integrated into the teaching and research statements. For example, candidates could highlight their ability to contribute to curricular initiatives in physics connected to Race, Power, Privilege, and Colonialism, as mentioned above.