Yale University seeks to appoint a Postdoctoral Associate for a one-year position with a secondary appointment as a Lecturer in an appropriate department, renewable for a second year contingent upon a successful review, beginning in the academic year 2027–2028 within Archaia: the Yale Program for the Study of Global Antiquity. Archaia is a collaborative forum that brings together scholars and graduate students working on early and pre-modern cultures and civilizations at Yale in the Humanities and Social Sciences in addition to the Divinity and Law Schools and various University collections and libraries, including the Yale University Art Gallery, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, the Peabody Museum of Natural History, and the Institute for the Preservation of Cultural Heritage. Participating departments and disciplines include Classics, East Asian Languages and Literatures, Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, History, Religious Studies, Archaeology and Anthropology, History of Art, and the Divinity School. In addition to hosting conferences and colloquia, the year-long Ancient Societies Workshop (ASW), and study tours, Archaia offers a graduate qualification for students interested in research beyond departmental lines. For additional information, see https://archaia.yale.edu/certification. Information about past post-doctoral fellows can be found here.
Past Archaia seminars and ASW topics have included environmental humanities, ancient music, comparative linguistics in pre-modern languages, ancient comparative law, ancient ritual, antiquity through the digital humanities, and the archaeology of Dura Europos. Anticipated upcoming topics include writing, materiality, and ancient concepts of embodiment; we are also open to other innovative and cross-disciplinary proposals for future workshops and core seminars. We especially welcome applicants working in areas beyond the ancient Mediterranean world.
The postdoctoral associate is expected to take an active role in Archaia programming while pursuing research in their own area of expertise. Additionally, the associate’s duties include: (1) participating in the Archaia Steering Committee, coordinating the graduate certification program, and participating in the graduate forum as a mentor; (2) offering, in the first year, a graduate seminar and/or a study tour (the seminar may be connected with the tour); (3) in the second year of the appointment, co-teaching the Archaia core seminar with a Yale faculty member and/or co-organizing the Archaia Study Tour. The postdoctoral associate will receive guidance from and report to the Archaia co-chairs and will also be provided with at least one mentor from a field/department close to their area of training and expertise.
Compensation will be commensurate with Yale University postdoctoral compensation policies and the candidate’s experience. The position is benefits-eligible.
Qualifications
Requirements:
- A Ph.D. in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Classics, East Asian Studies, South Asian Studies, History, Religious Studies, Archaeology, Anthropology, History of Art, or a related field.
- The intellectual training and trajectory of the postdoctoral associate must show a commitment to cross-disciplinary or cross-cultural research in more than one of the areas, languages, and/or disciplines represented by Archaia.
- The successful applicant will be able to demonstrate a desire and ability to build collaborative relationships across departments and collections and will possess strong organizational skills.
- We especially encourage applications from scholars underrepresented in the study of antiquity.
Application Instructions
Applicants and referees should upload documentation via Interfolio: https://apply.interfolio.com/194314
Applicants must supply:
- a cover letter,
- a curriculum vitae,
- a research statement (1000 words max.) detailing the work that the associate wishes to pursue at Yale,
- three brief descriptions (not syllabi) of up to 500 words each, for
- a co-taught global antiquity seminar to be offered as an Archaia core course;
- a graduate seminar related to your own research specialization, and with some concern for global antiquity;
- a travel study opportunity (5-10 days)
- a teaching portfolio (including teaching evaluations or other evidence of teaching effectiveness and syllabi for courses taught or planned),
- three letters of recommendation addressed to the Chair of the Search Committee, Molly Zahn (molly.zahn@yale.edu)
Review of applications will begin Dec. 1, 2026.
For any questions please contact the chair of the committee, Molly Zahn (molly.zahn@yale.edu) and Keith Mazzadra (keith.mazzadra@yale.edu), Archaia Program administrator.
Application Process
This institution is using Interfolio's Faculty Search to conduct this search. Applicants to this position receive a free Dossier account and can send all application materials, including confidential letters of recommendation, free of charge.