As part of a unique Radical Collaboration hiring initiative, the multicollege Department of Design Tech at Cornell University invites applications for one or more full-time, open-rank tenure-track faculty positions in design & technology beginning July 1, 2025, based at the Cornell Tech campus in New York City, NY. Design Tech at Cornell brings together design + materials, design + environments, and design + interactions, including new forms of intelligence and living materials and interfaces. We seek design candidates who can engage in the full breadth of the design tech curriculum with interests and demonstrable expertise in interaction design with a focus on employing novel technologies such as generative AI, computational fabrication, robotics, distributed networks or material science, and with application to real-world problems and solutions. We are particularly interested in candidates with commercial/industry experience at the intersection of design and emerging technologies.
Responsibilities for hired faculty will include conducting original scholarly or design research, advising and teaching graduate-level specialization projects, design studio, as well as teaching multi-disciplinary seminars and lectures at the graduate level, mentoring and supervising students, advising masters and doctoral students, and contributing to service and shaping the culture and environment of Design Tech, the collaborating departments, the Cornell Tech campus, and the university.
Background
Recognizing design’s integral role in the development of technologies to address complex societal problems and reshaping our environments, the department seeks to bridge and enhance design and technology across disciplines to address pressing societal needs and to complement and build upon strengths in the design focused disciplines in arts, architecture, science, and engineering as well as the design professions. Design Tech believes that synergizing advancements in design and technology is not only imperative to design education, but also critical for preparing the next generation of designers, engineers, scientists, technologists, and creatives to take on some of the most complex challenges of our time. This requires a radical departure from traditional education and research models in design and science, with a move towards hybrid, transdisciplinary concepts, and new models for pedagogy and collaborative research.
As a collaborative, connected, and concentrated unit with a focus on design and emerging technologies, the department is composed of a multi-disciplinary faculty in design, science, and engineering, who co-teach transdisciplinary design courses, studios, and seminars, and engage in collaborative research and workshops by sharing resources and moving beyond existing barriers. Design Tech faculty are designers, scientists, engineers, architects, artists, urbanists, and humanists whose work demonstrates how experimental, nonlinear, design-driven philosophies and practices emanating from 3D spatial biology, materials science, human computer interaction, engineering, and generative design can result in radical advances in both scientific and design research and applied practice. The department’s first degree offering is an interdisciplinary two-year Master’s in Design Technology that launched in the 2024-25 academic year. A new PhD program in Design Technology will launch in 2 years.
The new M.S. degree in Design Technology and the state-of-the-art facilities — including the soon to be completed Design Tech spaces at the College of Architecture, Art, and Planning at Cornell University (Cornell AAP) in Ithaca and Cornell Tech in NYC — reflect both a continuing commitment to excellence and an ongoing investment in design education at Cornell.
Faculty hired for this search will have their teaching and research based at Cornell Tech in New York City. Cornell Tech is a graduate research and education campus of Cornell University located on Roosevelt Island in New York City. In addition to world-class academic research, a distinguishing characteristic of our work is that it engages deeply with external communities, organizations, and industry to address real-world problems and contexts that amplify the direct societal and commercial impact of our research. The Design Tech department is administered by Cornell AAP. Cornell’s College of Architecture, Art, and Planning bridges fields and faculty with five departments, 20 degree programs, 18 faculty-led labs, and the Cornell Mui Ho Center for Cities, to take up some of today’s most urgent challenges and advance research, inquiry, and design to build a more just and sustainable future.
Candidates must hold a terminal degree, an advanced design degree or PhD by the start of the position in a design technology field such as (but not limited to) design, architecture, computer music, computer science, media arts, creative technology, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, game design or innovation. Candidate qualifications must include design research work related to technology, evidence of exceptional strength in design studio teaching, and/or visionary practice. Candidates should also have a strong commitment to engagement outside of academia in ways that foster significant commercial or societal impact, as aligned with the mission of the Cornell Tech campus.
The potential ranks are assistant, associate, and full professor, and the pay range for this position is $79,400 – $329,600, (salary + housing supplement) based on the selected candidate’s qualifications. A generous benefit package includes start-up research funds, educational benefits, access to wellness programs, employee discounts, health care options, generous paid leave provisions and excellent retirement contributions. Cornell has been nationally recognized as an award-winning workplace for health, wellbeing, sustainability, and diversity initiatives.
Required application materials: (to be submitted digitally)
- A brief cover letter including intended rank, a brief statement outlining design, teaching and practice/research objectives, and how the candidate’s skills and experiences align with the required qualifications and search criteria.
- A full CV that highlights notable achievements.
- A research statement with a clearly identified external engagement subsection, which should address prior accomplishments and future plans related to the commercial and/or broader public engagement and societal impact dimensions of their research.
- A teaching statement indicating teaching philosophy, experience, and proposed courses.
- One portfolio of design practice/or research, pedagogical materials, sample publications, and/or student work. (The cover letter, research statement and/or design portfolio should highlight up to three of the applicant’s most significant pieces of work for consideration.)
- List of three references with telephone and mailing/email addresses. (Information about references must be provided at the time of application, but referees will be contacted later.)
- We ask applicants for all faculty positions to share their experiences and/or approaches (past, current, or future) to fostering learning, research service, and/or outreach in a diverse community. Applicants may choose to submit a stand-alone statement or embed the information in other parts of their application materials.
All applicants should submit these materials using the university’s online application tool at: https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/28586. Please note that any hardcopy materials sent in will not be returned.
Diversity and Inclusion are a part of Cornell University’s heritage. We are a recognized employer and educator valuing AA/EEO, and we do not tolerate discrimination based on any protected characteristic, including race, ethnic or national origin, citizenship and immigration status, color, sex/gender, pregnancy or pregnancy-related conditions, age, creed, religion, actual or perceived disability (including persons associated with such a person), arrest and/or conviction record, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, gender expression and/or identity, an individual’s genetic information, domestic violence victim status, familial status, marital status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. We also recognize a lawful preference in employment practices for Native Americans living on or near Indian reservations in accordance with applicable law.
Cornell University embraces diversity and seeks candidates who will contribute to a climate that supports students, faculty, and staff to all identities and backgrounds. We strongly encourage individuals from underrepresented and/or marginalized identities to apply.
For questions and additional information, please contact:
Design Technology Search Committee
Cornell Tech
2 W Loop Rd
New York, NY 10044
designtech_chair@cornell.edu
Review of applications will begin on October 15, 2024, and continue until the positions are filled for a start date of July 1, 2025.
For more information about the department, Cornell Tech, and Cornell University, please visit:
https://designtech.cornell.edu/academics/designtech
http://tech.cornell.edu/
http://www.cornell.edu/
