Assistant/Associate Professor (Lecturer), Physical Product Design

Position Information

The Division of Multi-Disciplinary Design (MDD) is now accepting applications for a full-time assistant or associate professor in design, specializing in physical product design. This is a full-time, 9-month faculty position with an expected start date of July 2026.

Housed within the College of Architecture + Planning, MDD promotes design education across disciplines through an innovative curriculum and broad research activities. With 3 areas of curriculum focus across digital, physical, and exploratory design areas, we are a community of academics, professionals, and students engaging in design to meet the needs of a rapidly changing world.

A consistent thread of innovative design education runs throughout MDD. The program includes a breadth of ‘products’ in its purview, encompassing physical and digital artifacts at various scales, as well as service and systems design. The MDD curriculum is strategically designed around Studio Practice, Technical Competency, Historical and Theoretical Foundations, and Applied Practice. The program integrates artistic, technical, and theoretical frameworks to foster a comprehensive design education. This integrative approach promotes critical analysis, inventive thinking, and cross-disciplinary collaboration, leveraging a curriculum that incorporates additional expertise from architecture, fine arts, communication, business, engineering, and computer science. Key educational imperatives include promoting inquiry-driven learning, advancing visual literacy, fostering methodological experimentation, and cultivating collaborative capabilities. This multi-disciplinary approach, along with collaborations with community stakeholders and industry partners, enable students to engage with authentic design challenges, enhancing both their professional preparedness and societal impact.

Scholarship and creative activity within the Division of Multi-Disciplinary Design reflect the program’s broad and practice-driven approach, integrating design research, technology, material studies, and community engagement. MDD faculty produce a wide range of scholarly outputs, including peer-reviewed journal articles, patents, design exhibitions, book chapters, funded research projects, interactive media, and public installations. This diverse body of work accommodates multiple forms of design practice, ensuring that research remains both theoretically rigorous and practically applied.

Position Description

This position will have a specific focus on physical product design. We are looking for a candidate with a strong background in the design and development of tangible products, from initial concept to production. The ideal candidate will possess a deep understanding of human-centered design principles, materials, and manufacturing processes, as well as the ability to guide students in creating innovative and meaningful physical products. In this career line position, the candidate’s primary responsibility will be teaching with opportunities for service depending on the candidate’s strengths and departmental needs.