University Assistant Professor in Buddhist Studies (Mahayana)

The Faculty of Divinity wishes to appoint to an Assistant Professorship in Buddhist Studies (Mahayana) from 1 September 2026. The postholder will be based in the Faculty of Divinity, West Road, Cambridge.

Applicants should have a doctorate in Buddhist Studies and either a proven track record of, or demonstrable potential for, advanced research and publication in that field. The successful candidate will be required to carry out academic research and to lecture, teach and examine in Buddhist Studies at undergraduate and postgraduate level, as well as to undertake administrative duties within the Faculty.

The person appointed will be expected to deliver around 40-48 lecture-room contact hours of teaching across the three terms of the academic year. You will be responsible, with colleagues in the Religious Studies section of the Faculty, for designing and delivering the Faculty's teaching in Buddhist Studies. This will include a full paper in Part IIa of the 'Tripos' (i.e. the second year of the BA Hons programme), and a contribution to the first-year paper 'Studying World Religions'.

The successful applicant will also have the opportunity to participate in College teaching for additional remuneration.

Please ensure that you upload the following documents to your online application:

• your Curriculum Vitae (CV);
• a covering letter;
• an outline (no more than four sides of A4) of a second-year undergraduate course (20-24 hours of lectures and classes in total) giving an introduction to Buddhism;
• a statement (no more than two sides of A4) of your research plans and ambitions for the next five years; and
• a sample of your published research (e.g. an article from a peer-reviewed journal or a chapter from a monograph) of no more than 8,000 words.

Please include the names and contact details of three referees in your application. References will be requested at the shortlisting stage.

Click the 'Apply' button below to register an account with our recruitment system (if you have not already) and apply online.

Informal enquiries about the post may be made to Professor Richard Rex, Chair of the Faculty Board, rawr1@cam.ac.uk.

For questions on the application process, please contact the Schools HR team on sahhr@admin.cam.ac.uk.

The closing date is midnight (BST) on Tuesday 30 September 2025. It is expected that interviews will be held in early December 2025, but this is potentially subject to change.

Please quote reference GF46814 on your application and in any correspondence about this vacancy.

The University actively supports equality, diversity and inclusion and we particularly welcome applications from candidates from a Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic background for this vacancy, as people from these backgrounds are currently underrepresented at this level in our Faculty. Details of some of the family-friendly policies operated by the University are at: https://www.hr.admin.cam.ac.uk/pay-benefits/cambens-employee-benefits/family-friendly.

The University has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.

Apply online