Assistant/Associate Professor

earn associate or bachelor’s degrees through a combination of in-person, online or blended learning. All of our system institutions place strong emphasis on service — helping to build healthier, more educated communities in South Carolina and beyond.

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The University of South Carolina is committed to equal opportunity and proudly values the skills and experience military veterans bring to our workforce. Across South Carolina, we are making veterans a priority for employment and recognize their vital contributions to our state and our communities.

Advertised Job Summary

Tenure-Track Assistant or Associate Professor in Food is Medicine

The Department of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior (HPEB) at the University of South Carolina (USC) Arnold School of Public Health invites applications for a tenure-track faculty position at the rank of Assistant Professor or Associate Professor. This is a 9-month position.

We seek a scholar whose research focuses on Food is Medicine, broadly defined as the integration of food- and nutrition-based interventions into health care and community settings to prevent, manage, or treat diet-related chronic disease and improve population health. Areas of interest may include, but are not limited to, medically tailored meals or groceries, produce prescription programs, nutrition screening and referral systems, food insecurity interventions, nutrition incentive programs, community-clinical linkages, or policies and payment models that support the integration of nutrition services into health care.

The successful candidate will complement and expand existing departmental expertise in nutrition, healthy eating, behavioral interventions, implementation science, health economics, health communication, community-engaged research, global health, and health equity. We are particularly interested in candidates whose work addresses the implementation, evaluation, dissemination, or scaling of Food is Medicine programs and policies in real-world settings. Research that generates knowledge to help address the needs of rural, underserved, or historically marginalized populations, including communities in South Carolina and the broader Southeastern United States, is especially relevant to this position.

The successful candidate will be expected to develop and maintain a robust, extramurally funded program of Food is Medicine research; publish findings in peer-reviewed outlets; contribute to undergraduate and graduate teaching in both in-person and online formats; and mentor master’s and doctoral students. The candidate will also be expected to collaborate across disciplines and with community, health care, governmental, and other external partners to develop, evaluate, implement, and scale effective Food is Medicine programs and policies.

The Department of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior emphasizes both impactful research and meaningful community engagement. Faculty members examine how policy, environmental, institutional, health care, community, and individual factors influence health and work collaboratively to reduce health disparities and improve health outcomes for all. HPEB faculty members conduct research in areas including nutrition and healthy eating, implementation science, community-based research, health communication, global health, health services use, chronic disease prevention, and the translation of interventions into practice and policy. This position will strengthen the Department’s capacity to advance Food is Medicine research and develop collaborations among health care systems, community organizations, public agencies, food and nutrition assistance programs, and other partners.

USC provides a rich interdisciplinary environment, with faculty across the Arnold School of Public Health and campus contributing to initiatives such as the Global Health Initiative, Nutrition Consortium, Prevention Research Center, Office for the Study of Aging, Consortium for Latino Health Studies, Big Data Health Science Center, and SmartState Centers. Opportunities also exist to collaborate with health care systems, state agencies, community-based organizations, and other partners throughout South Carolina and the Southeast. The University has been designated by the Carnegie Foundation as a “doctoral institution with highest research activity” and a “community-engaged institution.”

The Department offers two undergraduate minors, including one in Nutrition and Food Systems, master’s programs including an MPH and online professional MPH, a doctoral PhD program, and graduate certificates in aging, global health, and health communication. Department faculty also contribute to teaching in the Arnold School’s undergraduate degree programs.

USC is located in Columbia, South Carolina, a vibrant capital city offering abundant cultural, educational, and recreational opportunities. Columbia enjoys more than 300 days of sunshine annually and provides ready access to beaches, lakes, rivers, and mountains. The city hosts historical and cultural attractions, festivals, performing arts and sporting events, parks, and outdoor recreation, including Congaree National Park and 50,000-acre Lake Murray.

Required Education and Experience

• Applicants should have a doctoral degree in public health, nutrition, behavioral or social science, health services research, implementation science, or a closely related field by the start date of employment.
• For the rank of Assistant Professor, applicants must demonstrate strong potential for scholarly productivity, excellence in teaching and mentoring, and success in establishing an externally funded research program.
• Applicants for the rank of Associate Professor must have a strong record of funded research and scholarship, along with at least five years of experience as an effective instructor, mentor, and researcher by the start date of employment.

Desired Start Date: 08/16/2027

Job Open Date: 09/16/2026

Open Until Filled: Yes

Special Instructions to Applicant

Applicants should submit: (1) a letter of application; (2) a teaching philosophy; (3) a research statement; (4) a curriculum vitae; and (5) contact information for three references. Questions may be directed to Brie Turner-McGrievy, PhD, MS, RD, Department Chair, at brie@sc.edu. Review of applications will begin October 16, 2026, and will continue until the position is filled. The anticipated start date is August 16, 2027.

Positions are advertised for a minimum of forty-five (45) days on our job website. After forty-five (45) days, positions can be closed at the discretion of the department at any time. This position is open until filled. This employment site is updated on a regular basis. The length of the recruitment and screening process may vary from position to position, depending upon a variety of factors. Should review of your qualifications result in a decision to pursue your candidacy, you will be contacted by phone or email.

The University of South Carolina offers a valuable benefits package including but not limited to:

• Health and Life Insurance
• Retirement Programs
• Paid Tuition
• Dependent Scholarships
• Annual Leave
• Sick Leave
• 13 Paid Holidays (including an extended December holiday)
• Paid Parental Leave
• Professional Development Opportunities

Click here to learn more about why you should work at USC.

Quicklink for Posting: https://uscjobs.sc.edu/postings/213090

EEO Statement

The University of South Carolina does not discriminate in employment opportunities or decisions for qualified persons on the basis of age, ancestry, citizenship status, color, disability, ethnicity, familial status, gender, gender identity or expression, genetic information, military status, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other protected category under applicable law.

Organization

Working at University of South Carolina

With more than 200 years of history and tradition, the University of South Carolina is redefining itself for decades to come. There's never been a better time to be at South Carolina, the state's flagship university and one of only 62 public universities to receive the Carnegie Foundation's highest designation for research.

The University is located in the heart of South Carolina in the capital city of Columbia, which is the nexus of government, a thriving arts and culture center, a venue for big-time Southeastern Conference intercollegiate athletics, and a community that is reinventing itself with redevelopment projects citywide. Much of the development is tied to land along the scenic, slow-moving Congaree River. Working with government, business, and community leaders, Carolina has developed a unified plan that will allow the University to expand from its origins on the historic Horseshoe to its future-Innovista, a research and innovation district that will stretch to the banks of the Congaree.

Innovista represents a new vision for research by creating a vibrant, urban community where students and researchers, including those from private firms, will live, work, learn, and play. Innovista will represent the University's four core research areas-hydrogen fuel cells, nanoscience and technology, biomedical and public health, and the environment-but will include other initiatives and business partners that serve the knowledge economy. Innovista's first private tenant, for example, is a leader in software applications for the insurance industry and will create several hundred high-paying jobs.

By attracting similar companies and jobs-and by capitalizing on an attractive location for restaurants and residential and retail space-Innovista will help drive the economy and increase per-capita income in the city and state. Recreational space will include a world-class waterfront park along the Congaree River and a new stadium for the Gamecocks' nationally ranked baseball program. Greenway paths for biking, walking, and running already line much of the river area. Innovista's 8 million square feet will blend seamlessly with the Vista, the city's nearby entertainment district of restaurants, bars, shops, and art galleries.

Chartered in 1801, Carolina began classes in 1805 with nine students and a single building, Rutledge College. As the campus grew and buildings were added during the next 50 years, a horseshoe layout was adopted. Today, the Horseshoe is on the National Register of Historic Places, with 10 of its 11 buildings dating to the 19th century. Those renovated buildings house, among other areas, the South Carolina Honors College and Undergraduate Admissions, representing much of the University's current and future lifeblood.

In fact, incoming freshman classes have never been larger or more competitive. The freshmen from fall 2006 set records for their size (more than 3,700) and SAT scores (1171 average). Freshmen enrolling in the Honors College had average SAT scores of 1398. Members of the University's prestigious scholarship programs, Carolina Scholars for in-state students and McNair Scholars for out-of-state students, had average scores of 1449 and 1477, respectively. Total enrollment at Carolina for undergraduates and graduates is more than 27,300, with some 350 degree programs to choose from. Since 1994, Carolina students have earned more than $9.9 million in prestigious national scholarships such as the Goldwater, Truman, Rhodes, and NSF scholarships and the Fulbright Fellowships.

South Carolina's student body is diverse. In fact, Carolina was recently recognized as the state flagship university with the highest percentage of African-American student enrollment in the nation. Research by the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education shows African-American students made up 14.7 percent of enrollment in 2004, the latest year available. The JBHE also ranks Carolina eighth in the nation in percentage of African-American faculty at a state flagship university with 4.3 percent.

The University's faculty garnered a record $173.3 million in federal, state, and private funding for research, outreach, and training programs in 2005-06, and several key hiring plans will introduce more talent and expertise to the faculty ranks. An aggressive campus building master plan and the faculty recruiting initiatives will change the collective face of the University and the faces of many of its key teachers and researchers.

South Carolina is recruiting world-class faculty to be endowed chairs-and change agents-for a series of "research centers of economic excellence" in areas such as nanoelectronics, polymer nanocomposites, brain imaging, regenerative medicine, cancer therapeutics, drug discovery, vision research, hydrogen fuel cells, and travel and tourism technology. These centers, some in collaboration with other state research universities and health and hospital systems, are funded with $30 million annually in state lottery money, as well as private matching money. Carolina is in the midst of a faculty recruitment plan to hire 600 new members. The Faculty Excellence Initiative is recruiting 150 faculty, many in interdisciplinary clusters of emphasis, while the Centenary Plan will recruit 100 elite research faculty to lead the University's core initiatives. Additionally, 350 faculty will be hired across disciplines to replace retirees over the next few years.

The University has forged a number of international collaborations in research, and the University's global connections are also strong in academics, particularly in international business. U.S. News & World Report has consistently ranked the Moore School of Business best in the nation for its undergraduate and graduate programs in international business; the undergraduate program is No. 1 for the 10th consecutive time, while the graduate program is No. 1 among public universities for the 18th consecutive year and No. 2 overall, continuing a streak of 18 years with a top-two overall ranking.