Part-Time Lecturer, Arts and Cultures Across Antiquity

NYU’s Washington, DC Academic Center is seeking a local, part-time lecturer to teach an undergraduate course, "Arts and Cultures Across Antiquity" to start in Fall 2026. "Arts and Cultures Across Antiquity" is part of the Liberal Studies Core Curriculum for first year students. It is taught in English and meets in two 90-minute sessions each week. There are 14 instructional weeks, plus a 29th session for the final exam. In addition to the time required for course preparation, classroom instruction, and assessment, the instructor is required to hold a minimum of one set 60-minute office hour per instruction day, during which the instructor will be available to meet with students.NYU is committed to providing a campus community that reflects and enacts the values of inclusion, diversity, belonging, and equity that inform academic excellence.

We seek candidates with experience in and commitment to interdisciplinary teaching or scholarship that includes different perspectives from around the world. The instructor will prepare and deliver class sessions, and grade student work. NYU DC is a unique site, and one of our main strengths is our location; instructors will use Washington, DC as a learning tool (e.g., by inviting guest speakers or planning excursions). The course is intellectually challenging in content, and rigorous student assessment is required. We are especially interested in qualified candidates who share Liberal Studies’ commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and candidates who can contribute to the diversity of intellectual life in Liberal Studies and NYU Washington, DC.

Course Details

"Arts and Cultures Across Antiquity" is part of a coherent global curriculum for NYU’s Liberal Studies students. It investigates the literary, musical, visual, and performing arts from around the globe, from antiquity to the early fifth century CE. The course treats cultural works in their own right, as contexts for each other, and as ways of understanding the civilizations in which they were produced, together with their trans-regional connections. Instructors give special attention to encounters between cultures, explore intercultural transmission, consider how cultures define themselves by constructing cultural Others, examine how difference within cultures relates to difference across cultures, and ask what elements of artistic expression, if any, cross outside the boundaries of culture into universally human systems of value.

The course must cover ancient modes of visual artistic expression, and the class should visit at least one local museum. It should also include readings from the Greek epic tradition, at least one foundational text from Asia, texts from the Hebrew and Christian bibles, one work of drama, and examples of lyric poetry. Instructors may include any additional works they like, and may structure their syllabus to reflect their own interests and thoughts. The successful candidate will receive support in syllabus construction, if they request it.

Link to Course Description on Website: Arts and Cultures Sequence

Curriculum Background

Liberal Studies' Core is a dynamic liberal arts curriculum that provides a global and interdisciplinary foundation for nearly 100 NYU majors. The curriculum emphasizes conceptual and spatial frameworks to trace the movement of ideas and the interconnectivity of material culture, through the study of different texts, histories, exchanges, structures and systems, languages, arts, and writing from early antiquity through contemporary times. Small seminar-style classes and close faculty-student interaction ensure the benefits of a liberal arts college.

About NYU and NYU Washington, DC

Founded in 1831, New York University is the largest private university in the United States. The University has degree-granting campuses in New York, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai and operates 12 global academic centers, along with research programs in more than 25 countries. NYU Washington, DC is one of NYU’s global academic centers where students can participate in study away while earning credits towards their degree. To learn more about NYU Washington, DC please visit the website: https://www.nyu.edu/washington-dc.html

A strong candidate will have a Ph.D. or equivalent training in a relevant field, including but not limited to, Art History, Classics, Comparative Literature, Cultural Studies, or Dramatic Literature, as well as some experience teaching courses at the undergraduate level within a degree-granting program.

All applications must be made online through apply.interfolio.com/182628. Applications must include a cover letter and an updated CV. In the cover letter, please highlight any relevant experience you have in teaching.

Consideration for applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.Applications will be reviewed jointly by NYU Washington, DC and NYU New York. The salary will be based on equivalent and appropriate rates for the course. Terms and conditions will be discussed with the successful applicant.

Please direct any questions to Kimberly Cheng, Assistant Director for Academic Affairs, at kac780@nyu.edu.