"Open Rank, Assistant/Associate/Full Professor of Physical Therapy - Tenure Track"

Job Description

The Department of Physical Therapy in the College of Health Sciences and Professions at Ohio University invites applications for a full-time, 9-month, open-rank (Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor), research-intensive (70% research) tenure-track faculty position in cognitive-motor neuroscience. Rank and salary are commensurate with experience.

We seek a scholar who advances cognitive-motor neuroscience by operationalizing "cognition in action" by examining how cognitive load, attentional control, executive function, or environmental complexity influences gait, balance, and real-world mobility across the adult lifespan. The ideal candidate will bridge cognitive, neural, and behavioral approaches to characterize motor control under cognitive challenge and translate these insights into rehabilitation strategies that enhance functional independence, community mobility, and healthy aging. Applicants may pursue diverse but complementary programmatic foci, for example, cognitive-motor interaction and dual-task performance, neural control of gait and posture, neuroplasticity and motor learning, sensorimotor integration, fatigue and affective-cognitive influences on mobility, communication-motor interactions, or real-world monitoring of mobility and cognitive-motor behavior using portable neurotechnologies, computational approaches, or multiscale biomechanics. Candidates with interests spanning aging, neurodegenerative disease (e.g., Parkinson's), mild cognitive impairment, stroke, or early mobility and cognitive decline risk are particularly encouraged to apply.

Ohio University is making a significant, university-wide investment in Brain Health and Cognition Across the Lifespan. This initiative brings together faculty expertise across the College of Health Sciences and Professions, the College of Arts and Sciences, and the Patton College of Education to advance discovery in brain health, cognition, communication, movement, and learning. Faculty hired into this cohort will join a collaborative, interdisciplinary network dedicated to understanding and enhancing cognitive and functional health across the lifespan, from early development through older adulthood. The successful candidate will establish and sustain an independent, externally fundable research program, teach graduate coursework aligned with their area of expertise (e.g., motor control, neuroscience, research methods), recruit, mentor, and support PhD students and engage in interdisciplinary doctoral training across the College and University, collaborate across disciplines on brain health, aging, and functional mobility research initiatives, and provide service to the Department, College, and University. Candidates at the Associate or Full Professor rank are expected to demonstrate a strong history of external funding and a clear trajectory for continued support.

Minimum Qualifications

• Earned academic doctoral degree in Neuroscience, Kinesiology, Rehabilitation Science, Biomedical Engineering, Psychology, or a related field by the start date of appointment.
• Expertise in one or more of the following areas: cognitive-motor interaction, dual-task performance, gait and balance control, neuroimaging or neurophysiology, or rehabilitation science.
• Experience teaching at the graduate or undergraduate level courses and mentoring students and/or trainees.

Preferred Qualifications

• Licensed physical therapist (PT) or eligible for licensure in the State of Ohio.
• Evidence of (or, for senior ranks, a record of) sustained external funding and a clear trajectory for continued support (e.g., NIH NIA/NINDS/NICHD, NSF, VA, DoD).
• Demonstrated success in mentoring PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, or professional graduate students in research settings.
• Ability to collaborate in interdisciplinary teams focused on brain health, movement science, and/or aging research.
• Expertise with advanced measurement tools, such as wearable or portable technologies, neuroimaging, motion capture, or computational modeling.
• Evidence of excellence in teaching and mentorship, with the ability to integrate research into graduate-level instruction.

Special Instructions to Applicants

Please submit the following:

1. Full curriculum vita
2. List of three references (with contact information)
3. Cover letter of interest
4. Statement of teaching philosophy
5. Funding and research strategy statement outlining short and long term research goals and concrete plan for securing extramural funding. (attach under document named, "research interest")

Questions should be directed to Brooke Vaughan, DPT, PhD, vaughanb@ohio.edu, 740-593-1210.

Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. For full consideration, please apply by the posting closing date.

This position is eligible for the following benefits
medical, vision, dental, basic and supplemental life, paid holidays, educational benefits for you and eligible dependents, sick leave, and retirement.

Pay Rate

Commensurate with qualifications

Job Open Date

11/12/2025

Posting Close Date

12/14/2025

Job Category

Tenure Track Faculty

Months

9 month

Planning Unit

College of Health Sciences & Professions

Campus

Athens