Position Rank and Title: Tenure-Track Assistant Professor of Photography, emphasis in AI and Digital Imaging
School/Department Name: Department of Art and Art History
Compensation: Commensurate with qualifications, experience, and rank as established by the CSU Salary Schedule . Anticipated hiring academic year annual salary range: $90,000 - $94,000.
Faculty employee benefits are very competitive for the higher education sector. See the CSU Employee Benefits Summary for details about the CSU’s excellent benefits package.
Target Start Date: August 15, 2027
Application Deadline: 15 December, 2026
Position Description: Tenure-Track Assistant Professor of Photography, emphasis in AI and Digital Imaging
The Department of Art and Art History at San José State University invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor in Photography with a focus on emerging technologies, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), digital imaging, computational photography, and related tools shaping contemporary lens-based practice. We seek an artist-scholar whose work critically and creatively engages new and evolving imaging technologies within interdisciplinary contemporary art practice. At a moment when AI and machine learning are often construed as technological threats to the independence of artistic labor, we are particularly interested in candidates who approach these emerging technologies as tools within a broader, conceptually rigorous set of processes, integrating digital technologies, including AI, with material, embodied, and socially engaged forms of production.
We are especially interested in artists whose practices move fluidly between digital and physical forms, and who explore how emerging technologies intersect with material processes, installation, performance, sculpture, print, or other expanded media. Collaborative and cross-disciplinary approaches are highly valued.
Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, SJSU offers a unique context for examining the aesthetic, cultural, political, and ethical dimensions of AI and technological innovation. The College of Humanities and the Arts hosts an Advanced Institute for Ethical Technologies (AI-ET) and a Digital Humanities Center, the latter in collaboration with the SJSU King Library. The ideal candidate will help students develop critical, adaptive, and responsible creative practices that prepare them to navigate and shape a rapidly evolving visual landscape. San José State University is committed to excellence through diversity and to fostering an inclusive academic community. We encourage applications from candidates who will contribute to the cultural and intellectual diversity of our campus.
The Department of Art and Art History and San José State University value institutional excellence and are committed to advancing equity through research, teaching, and service. We enroll more than 40,000 students, many of whom are historically underserved; approximately 45% of our undergraduate students are first-generation college students and 38% are Pell Grant recipients. In addition, we are both a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI). SJSU aspires to create holistic learning environments that facilitate both individual and collective transformation. We seek teacher-scholars who cultivate inclusive, empowering spaces for mutual learning, skill-building, and knowledge exchange for all students. Our commitment to lifelong learning supports meaningful connections among faculty, staff, students, alumni, and the broader communities we serve.
We invite all applicants to include a Statement of Institutional Excellence (or incorporate it into your cover letter) to share how your lived and professional experiences will contribute to the SJSU community—particularly in relation to student success. A guide to writing this statement can be found at SJSU Institutional Excellence Statement Guidelines .
Required Qualifications
- Terminal Degree in Relevant Field: MFA, PhD, or equivalent terminal degree in Photography, Fine Art, Media Art, or a closely related field by the time of appointment.