"Instructional Assistant Professor - Humanities/Social Sciences (Director of Medicine and Society)"

Department: Dean, Honors College
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Description: The Honors College at the University of Houston invites applications for the promotion-eligible, non-tenure track, position of Instructional Assistant Professor to begin Fall 2026. While the position is open to candidates with disciplinary or interdisciplinary expertise in humanities, social science, or science fields, successful candidates should demonstrate how their teaching and research interests lie within the health and medical humanities, broadly construed. In addition to teaching, the successful candidate will serve as the Director of Medicine and Society, an interdisciplinary minor (one of seven offered by the college) that explores healthcare through various historical, social, and cultural lenses. Medicine and Society maintains an approximate enrollment of 350 students and is home to several co-curricular programs. Experience working with undergraduate students in the pre-health professions and collaborating in co-curricular activities is preferred. Applicants must hold a PhD in a relevant field.
Responsibilities

• Maintain a 2/2 teaching load (seminar-style, typically around 25 students per section), including the foundation course, “Readings in Medicine and Society,” and an upper-level undergraduate seminar of their own design.
• Serve as the Director of Medicine and Society. This position will require a successful candidate to oversee the curriculum of Medicine and Society in collaboration with Honors faculty teaching in the minor; communicate with interested and declared Medicine and Society students, as well as dedicated advising staff; innovate programming that develops and sustains a sense of cohort/community among undergraduates in Medicine and Society; organize events to provide students with learning, networking, and community-building opportunities; build and maintain connections across campus with affiliated faculty, including UH’s Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine, as well as partners in the broader Houston community. Please note that Honors provides dedicated administrative support staff for advising and event planning, but the candidate should be comfortable arranging and supervising events.
• Serve on Honors College committees as needed.
• Meet the modest research requirements of instructional faculty, thereby demonstrating a continued appreciation of interdisciplinary inquiry.
• Participate in the life of the Honors College by attending key events throughout the academic year.

Requirements

• Applicants must hold a PhD in a relevant field at the time of application.
• Experience working with undergraduate students in the pre-health professions and collaborating in co-curricular activities is preferred.

The Honors College cultivates a community of agile and innovative thinkers, engaged citizens, and life-long learners. Its 2,500 students come from majors across the University to take intellectually challenging courses (generally taught as seminars with 25 students), minors, and programs that emphasize speaking and writing, encourage critical inquiry in disciplined conversation, and promote active learning and principled leadership.
With over 45,000 students on the main campus, the University of Houston (www.uh.edu) is a Carnegie-Designated Tier One Public Research University. Houston is the fourth-largest city in the country. It has multi-national industries, commercial centers, the largest medical center in the world, a robust arts community, professional sports, an entrepreneurial approach to new technologies, and is the world capital for petroleum exploration and energy.
To apply, please submit a CV, names and contact information for three letters of recommendation, a sample of published work or scholarly writing, and a cover letter that addresses your experience and approach to teaching in the health humanities. Letters of recommendation will be requested at the interview stage.
Review of applications will begin January 15, 2026, and continue until the position is filled. Please direct questions about the position to the search committee chair, Dan Price, at dprice3@central.uh.edu.
Official transcripts are required for a faculty appointment and will be requested upon selection of the final candidates. All positions at the University of Houston-System are security sensitive and will require a criminal history check. Individuals conducting research in critical infrastructure areas (i.e., communication infrastructure systems, cybersecurity systems, electric grid, hazardous waste treatment systems, and/or water treatment facilities) are subject to regular review to ensure the security and integrity of the research is maintained. The University of Houston System and its universities are Equal Opportunity Institutions. Everyone is encouraged to apply.