Faculty Positions
Position Title / Rank: Assistant Professor in Molecular and Cellular Biology
College: College of Biological Science
Department: Molecular and Cellular Biology
Date Posted: July 13, 2023
Deadline: September 14, 2023
Please reference AD #23-41
Position Description:
The Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Guelph invites applications from Black scholars for a tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor. We are seeking outstanding candidates whose research interests will complement existing strengths in the Department. The successful applicant is expected to establish an innovative and sustainable research program that will integrate with and expand the Department's research strengths and offer new avenues for collaboration. We are particularly interested in candidates with research expertise in the following areas, especially those that bridge more than one:
- Biochemistry and biochemical approaches, including enzymology, structural biology, membrane and nucleic acid biochemistry, enzymology, biophysics or other methods.
- Molecular and cellular biology, including signal transduction, membrane-less organelles, or RNA biology using research models that include invertebrates, vertebrates, immortalized cell lines, or patient-derived stem cells focusing on biomedical applications.
- Microbiology, immunology and virology, including host-pathogen interactions, immune response mechanisms, microbiome analysis, antimicrobial resistance and vaccine development for viral, fungal and bacterial pathogens.
- Plant biology, synthetic biology and biotechnology, including engineering of metabolic pathways, genomics and computational biology, genetic circuit design, and plant/microbial interactions to enhance plant productivity.
- Genetics, including epigenetic mechanisms, genomics and bioinformatics, molecular genetics, gene regulation, and genetic diseases in plants, animals, and microbial systems.
- Neuroscience, including neurobiology, neurophysiology, neurodevelopment, synaptic plasticity, neuroimmunology, and the study of brain disorders using cellular and animal models.
Qualifications include a Ph.D., a preferred minimum of three years of relevant postdoctoral experience, a proven record of research excellence evident in high-quality publications and demonstrated potential to establish a competitive independent research program and secure external research funding. The successful candidate will join a dynamic, multidisciplinary, research-intensive department with 40 faculty members who study diverse biological systems at levels from molecules to cells that include Biochemistry, Microbiology, Molecular Biology & Genetics, and Neuroscience and contributes to programs in Biological Science, Biomedical Science, and Plant Science. Faculty within the College of Biological Science are members of the Advanced Analysis Centre, which houses state-of-the-art equipment that include facilities for solution- and solid-state NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, electron and confocal microscopy, and genomics. Graduate student training activities are focused on M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Molecular and Cellular Biology, and faculty members also participate in programs such as Biotechnology, Biophysics, Bioinformatics, Neuroscience, Plant Science, and Toxicology.
Applicants must also demonstrate a commitment to effective and innovative teaching at the undergraduate and graduate levels. The successful candidate will teach courses or parts of courses in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology to a diverse population of undergraduate and graduate students. At the University of Guelph, fostering a culture of inclusion (https://uoguel.ph/ox2p9), critical thinking, solving complex problems, and creating a modern academic community. The willingness to work collaboratively with faculty and mentor students from various disciplines, cultures, and educational backgrounds is essential. The Department is a collegial, inclusive, and welcoming environment that values diversity and wellness among our members as key ingredients in our collective success. Therefore, the University invites and encourages applications from all qualified individuals, including groups traditionally underrepresented in employment, who may contribute to the further diversification of our Institution.
This tenure-track faculty position is part of the University of Guelph’s Black and Indigenous Hiring Initiative. Launched in June 2022, the Black and Indigenous Hiring Initiative (BIHI) calls for hiring fifteen or more Black and Indigenous faculty and four or more Black and Indigenous professional staff across the University of Guelph during the next three years. The faculty and staff positions will be filled in areas that support the advancement of Black and Indigenous academic excellence and the University of Guelph’s commitments to inclusion, anti-racism, indigenization and decolonization.
The University of Guelph and the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology seek qualified individuals who identify as persons of Black African or Caribbean descent. Applicants will be asked to self-identify through the Applicant Tracking Questionnaire (ATQ) facilitated by Diversity and Human Rights. We acknowledge the burden often placed on Black and Indigenous faculty regarding Indigenization, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in workplaces and the challenges inherent to engaging in work that runs counter to entrenched paradigms. We also acknowledge how holding non-traditional research programs, conducting community-engaged research, holding traditional knowledge, community relationships, etc., can adversely impact researchers with respect to conventional measures of academic excellence.
The University of Guelph is the third largest employer in Guelph, a city of approximately 130,000 people, located about an hour drive west of Toronto, Ontario. University of Guelph is a top-ranked comprehensive university in Canada with an enrolment of over 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students across over 40 academic units. The University is known for its commitment to student learning, innovative research, and collaboration with world-class partners. It is a unique place, with transformative research and teaching and a distinctive campus culture. People who learn and work here are shaped and inspired by a shared purpose: To Improve Life. Reflecting that shared purpose in every experience connected to our university positions us to create positive change, here and around the world. Our university community shares a profound sense of social responsibility, a drive for international development, and an obligation to address global issues.
Application Process
Assessment of applications will begin on September 14, 2023 and will continue until the position is filled. Interested candidates should submit the following materials as a single PDF file: (1) a cover letter indicating area(s) of research focus; (2) a curriculum vitae; (3) an overview of the proposed research program (max. 1500 words; see below for additional details); (4) a teaching statement (max. 500 words); (5) a separate statement describing the strategies you will use to promote inclusion and support a diverse community in your research lab and classrooms (max. 500 words); and (6) contact information of three references.
Applications should be sent by email to the attention of:
Dr. Cezar Khursigara Professor and Department Chair Molecular and Cellular Biology College of Biological Science University of Guelph Guelph, ON N1G 2W1
Email:mcbchair@uoguelph.ca
The overview of the proposed research statement should be a maximum length of two pages. This statement should:
- Detail the candidate’s specific area of expertise, describing their contributions to the field.
- Please provide a detailed plan of their future independent research program and how this program might be leveraged to obtain extramural funding.
- Indicate how the candidate’s research program will synergize with the Department’s research environment.
All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.
The University recognizes that applicants may have had obligations outside of work that have negatively impacted their record of achievements (e.g., parental, elder care, and/or medical). You are not required to disclose these obligations in the hiring process. If you choose to do so, the University will ensure that these obligations do not negatively impact the assessment of your qualifications for the position.
The University of Guelph resides on the ancestral lands of the Attawandaron people and the treaty lands and territory of the Mississaugas of the Credit and we offer our respect to our Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee and Métis neighbours as we strive to strengthen our relationships with them.
At the University of Guelph, fostering a culture of inclusion (https://uoguel.ph/ox2p9) is an institutional imperative. The University invites and encourages applications from all qualified individuals, including from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in employment, who may contribute to further diversification of our Institution.
If you require a medical accommodation during the recruitment or selection process, please contact Occupational Health and Wellness at 519-824-4120 x52674.