Assistant/Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering: Future Mobility, Fall 2025

Description

The Mechanical Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering (https://mabe.utk.edu) Department at UTK is seeking exceptional candidates to fill one tenure-track position at the Assistant/Associate Professor level starting August 1, 2025. This search is part of a cluster hire to add faculty across multiple departments with expertise in Mobility.  More information about the Institute of Future Mobility can be obtained here: https://research.utk.edu/mobility/

UT is searching for additional faculty to strengthen the university’s position as a global leader in smart transportation; this position is among them. Recruitment into the Future Mobility Institute cluster creates opportunities to build bold agendas that advance big ideas. The successful candidate will join a team of approximately 40 established and successful faculty with shared and complementary research interests in electrification and electric motors, connectivity, autonomous and shared transportation, as well as policy, supply chain transportation, etc. and a strong desire to grow the scholarly and educational impact of their work. For early career faculty, the cluster also offers a unique framework for professional development and mentorship within a rich transdisciplinary environment.

 The ideal candidate for this position has a collaborative mindset and prioritizes working with colleagues to realize shared research and educational achievements, including large-scale proposals, joint publications, and new transdisciplinary curricular programming. As Tennessee’s flagship land-grant institution, UT is particularly interested in recruiting candidates who are deeply connected to the organizations and communities in which their work will have translational impact, as well as those who will contribute to a climate that values diversity and inclusion.

The Tickle College of Engineering

The Tickle College of Engineering is in the midst of an unprecedented period of growth and success including adding over 30 new faculty as part of ambitious cluster hiring campaigns led by Chancellor Donde Plowman and Dean Matthew Mench. The college has set records in research expenditures, enrollment, incoming student GPA, diversity, intellectual property development, and USNWR rank in the past three years. New facilities include the state-of-the art Zeanah Engineering Complex, the University of Tennessee Manufacturing and Design Enterprise (TN-MADE) facility, and the Innovation South building now under construction that will house UTK’s Fibers and Composites Manufacturing Facility (FCMF). TCE currently has 185 Tenure/Tenure Track and 67 Non-Tenure Track faculty in its seven academic departments and offers 12 undergraduate, 16 MS, and 15 PhD degree programs. Affiliated with TCE and located in Tullahoma, Tennessee, the UT Space Institute is a hub of aerospace and defense research. The college is also home to eight research centers and three interdisciplinary institutes. With approximately 3,800 undergraduate and 1,150 graduate students, the college sits 29th among public universities in the most recent U.S. News and World Report graduate rankings. Faculty in the college have won 21 early career awards (NSF, DoE, DARPA, AFOSR, and ARO) since 2016. In FY22, the college had NSF HERD research expenditure of $109 million.

Department of Mechanical Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering

The MABE Department currently has 45 tenured or tenure-track faculty as well as 7 Lecturers, 9 Research Professors, and 1 Clinical Associate Professor. There are 1,662 undergraduate and 249 graduate students pursuing degrees at all levels in mechanical engineering, aerospace engineering, or biomedical engineering. The department’s research expenditure is $26M this year.

The City of Knoxville

The City of Knoxville is a hidden gem with an elegant and walkable downtown, rich and varied nightlife, intercultural events, vibrant neighborhoods, eclectic restaurants, and amazing access to outdoor activities of all kinds as well as exciting cultural events throughout the year. From Knoxville’s TYS Airport, Knoxville has nonstop flights to 22 major airports in the US, including direct flights to cities such as DC, NYC, Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, and Miami. UTK is in Knoxville TN, within an easy driving distance to Nashville, Atlanta, Asheville, and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

In addition, the City of Knoxville and the surrounding areas boast great K-12 schools and one of the most highly educated populations in the entire US. From 2007 to 2017, Tennessee’s overall economy growth ranked #7 among all 50 US states. In 2019, US News ranked the State of Tennessee in the US as the #1 in fiscal stability, #12 in economy, and #13 in infrastructure.

 

 

 

 

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