"Professor of Health, Wellbeing and Law"

Department: School of Law & Criminology

Vacancy ID: 040185

Closing Date: 06-Apr-2026

Maynooth University School of Law and Criminology seeks an outstanding academic to join our staff as Professor of Health, Wellbeing and Law. This new Professor post is aligned to the Health & Wellness Beacon Research Beacon, under Maynooth University’s Strategic Plan 2023–2028. The appointee will contribute research-informed, practice-engaged education, scholarship, and societal impact that demonstrates Maynooth University’s impact in supporting research-informed public policy in Ireland and Europe.

We have a particular interest in applicants with expertise in legal research, scholarship, and teaching as they relate to one or more of the following (amongst other areas of health/medical law):

• Health, wellbeing and law as they intersect with new and emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence and reproductive technologies;
• Mental health, capacity and law, and vulnerable populations;
• End-of-life care, dying and the law;
• Health, children and families;
• Regulatory frameworks for healthcare provision.

Maynooth University is committed to a strategy in which the primary university goals of excellent research and scholarship and outstanding education are interlinked and equally valued. The appointee to this role will be expected to provide significant intellectual leadership, through a demonstrated commitment to both education and research, and to contribute towards the effective leadership and management of the School, the Faculty, and the University.

The appointee will therefore provide effective leadership in legal research and education, both through their own work and through mentorship of other faculty and research students. The new Professor of Health, Wellbeing and Law will also work with the Head of School, with other Professors, and with Faculty and Staff of the School of Law and Criminology to support the development and operation of the School’s wider research, education and service agenda.

The ideal appointee will have an excellent track record in high-impact research, scholarship, and publication, in attracting external research funding, in leading research teams, in teaching and educational innovation, in the development and delivery of academic programmes, in service both to academic life and to society, and in academic leadership.

The appointee will be expected to sustain and conduct research of the highest impact and standard, to engage in scholarship of quality and substance, and to generate publications of international standard. The appointee will be expected to continue to build a strong research profile that supports the University’s research strategy, including affiliating to its research institutes, where appropriate, and to one or more of the School’s, Faculty’s or University’s research centres or institutes, and working with colleagues on national and international research.

The new Professor (B) of Health, Wellbeing and Law will be expected to contribute significantly to the research income-raising capacity of the school. This will be through their own funding applications, supporting the external research fund-raising capacity and enablement of the School faculty, and in cooperation with departments and schools across the University.

The appointee will be expected to make a strong contribution to the teaching programme of the School and to undertake teaching duties on the School’s undergraduate and postgraduate programmes as well as the supervision of postgraduate and postdoctoral research students/fellows.

Please note that, as part of the workload allocation process, teaching duties are assigned by the Head of the School, their delegate or the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences. The successful candidate will be required to teach at least four modules on the current undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in law at Maynooth University.

This Professorship forms part of a coordinated Faculty-level investment in Health and Wellbeing across the Faculty of Social Sciences at Maynooth University. Through a cluster of permanent Professor (B) appointments, the University aims to strengthen interdisciplinary leadership, enhance research-informed and practice-engaged education, and deliver meaningful societal and policy impact in Ireland and internationally.

While each role is embedded within its home School or Department, the postholder will be expected to collaborate across the Faculty and University, contributing to collective research, teaching, and engagement activities that maximise impact in the Health and Wellbeing domain.

Salary:

Professor B (2026): €105,554 – €141,089 p.a. (6 points)

Appointments will be made in accordance with public sector pay provisions.

Closing Date:

23:30hrs (local Irish time) on Monday, 6th April 2026.

Applications must be submitted by the closing date and time specified above. Any applications which are still in progress at the closing time on the specified closing date will be cancelled automatically by the system.

Late applications will not be accepted.

Maynooth University is an equal opportunities employer

The position is subject to the Statutes of the University