Who we are

Why Rensselaer? Our dynamic global community of changemakers includes some of the world’s leading researchers, students, alumni, and faculty who ask the important questions and devise the scientific and technological innovations that make the world a better place for all of humanity. Nestled on a beautiful 275-acre campus in upstate NY, Rensselaer is home to five schools, 32 research centers, three makerspaces, an observatory, and one of the world’s fastest supercomputers. 

Rensselaer faculty and alumni include more than 145 National Academy members, six members of the National Inventors Hall of Fame, six National Medal of Technology winners, five National Medal of Science winners, three astronauts, and a Nobel Prize winner in Physics. With nearly 200 years of experience advancing scientific and technological knowledge, Rensselaer remains focused on addressing global challenges with a spirit of ingenuity and collaboration. To learn more, please visit www.rpi.edu.

Are you ready to change the world? Apply now!

Job Summary

The Department of Science & Technology Studies (STS) in the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute seeks an open rank Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor with research interests in Science Policy and Innovation or Responsible Research and Innovation whose research and teaching is grounded in Science and Technology Studies (STS). The successful candidate will extend STS research to include one or more of the areas: equity, responsibility, and innovation; governance of emerging science and technology; knowledge production and diffusion in decision making for innovation; innovation in citizen science in environmental or health research; social and organizational innovation; institutional approaches to research priority setting; design of public interest technology and technology assessment.

The successful candidate will develop and contribute to undergraduate and graduate education in the areas of Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy; Expertise and Citizen Science; Futures of Innovation; Politics of Design and Design Equity; Responsible Innovation; Governing Risky Technologies. Candidates should be able to contribute to graduate STS theory and/or methods courses, including core courses in science studies, technology studies, or science and technology policy.

Applicants must have a Ph.D. or foreign equivalent in Science and Technology Studies or a related field with knowledge of, commitment to, and expertise in Science, Policy and Innovation Studies.
The Department of Science and Technology Studies offers undergraduate programs in STS, Sustainability Studies, and Design, Innovation & Society and graduate programs at the M.S. and Ph.D. level. Questions about the STS Department may be addressed to Department Head Nancy D. Campbell (campbell@rpi.edu).

Minimum Qualifications

Applicants must have a Ph.D. or foreign degree equivalent in Science and Technology Studies or a closely related field 

Evidence of effective teaching, and the ability to demonstrate, through accomplishment, promise of academic, scholarly and/or research achievement is required.

We seek a scholar who will contribute to the STS Department’s broader commitments to socially engaged STS and design of alternative futures. STS features a wide range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary researchers, including historians, sociologists, anthropologists, political scientists, and media studies scholars. We seek a dynamic scholar whose research and teaching incorporates Science Policy and Innovation Studies approaches into broader scholarship on public policy in conversation with STS. Scholarship that takes into account perspectives from marginalized communities and pedagogical practice that values diversity and inclusive pedagogy will be prioritized. The successful applicant will be one can envision connections between their research and policy work at the federal, state, and/or local governments.

Applicants must meet stated minimum education and experience requirements.

Preferred Qualifications

Minimum Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

Knowledge of, commitment to, and expertise in Science, Policy and Innovation Studies.

Application instructions

Follow the on-screen prompts to create an short online profile and contact information for three (3) referees. Please be ready to upload required documents:  Cover Letter, Curriculum Vitae, Statement of Research/Scholarship, Diversity Statement, Evidence of Effective Teaching with Teaching Statement.

If you need assistance with the online application process, please contact careers@rpi.edu 

Job posted on October 14, 2022.  Applications received by December 15, 2022 will receive first consideration.

COVID-19 Pandemic Protocols

Rensselaer welcomes undergraduate and graduate students to campus for an in-person academic experience.  To support this experience, all faculty and staff are expected to work primarily onsite.

Rensselaer requires all faculty and staff to be vaccinated (and boosted when eligible) against COVID-19. Requests for exemptions for medical or religious reasons will be evaluated on a case by case basis.

We welcome candidates who will bring diverse cultural, ethnic, national and international perspectives to Rensselaer’s work and campus communities.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity, Race/Gender/Veterans/Disability Employer.