Visiting Assistant Professor, Cultural Anthropology

Position Title Visiting Assistant Professor, Cultural Anthropology About the University

Western Washington University, with over 15,000 students in seven colleges and the graduate school, is nationally recognized for its educational programs, students and faculty. The campus is located in Bellingham, Washington, a coastal community of 90,000 overlooking Bellingham Bay, the San Juan Islands and the North Cascades Mountain range. The city lies 90 miles north of Seattle and 60 miles south of Vancouver, British Columbia. Western has additional sites in Anacortes, Bremerton, Everett, Port Angeles, and Poulsbo. Western is recognized nationally for its successes, such as being named one of the top public master's-granting institutions in the Pacific Northwest for 25 years in a row by U.S. News & World Report.

Western Washington University is committed to achieving excellence through advancing inclusive success, increasing our Washington impact, and focusing on transformational education grounded in the liberal arts and sciences and based on innovative scholarship, research, and creative activity. Western's greatest strength is the outstanding students, faculty, staff, and alumni/ae who make up its community. Western supports an inclusive governance structure for all and provides a learning and working environment in which everyone can thrive. In pursuit of this excellence, individual employees are expected to establish and maintain productive and effective inclusive working relationships amongst diverse populations including staff, faculty, administration, student, and external constituents. Further, individual employees are expected to have the ability to operationalize sustainability concepts (economic, societal, environmental) into all aspects of performing their job duties.

About the Department The College of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Anthropology Department support Western's mission, which states that together with our students, staff, and faculty, we are committed to making a positive impact in the state and the world with a shared focus on academic excellence and inclusive achievement. We encourage applications from women, people of color, people with disabilities, veterans, and other candidates from underrepresented backgrounds and with diverse experiences interested in this opportunity. About the Position

The Department of Anthropology welcomes qualified applicants for two Visiting Assistant Professor positions for the 2026-2027 academic year, focused on Cultural Anthropology. The successful candidates will be responsible for a range of core and topical courses, appropriate to their qualifications and complementing the Department’s four-field approach. The expected teaching load includes teaching 2 or 3 courses per quarter, on a 10-week quarter system (up to 7 courses total). Additional face-to-face and/or online courses are possible during the Summer 2027 term.

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. or ABD status in Anthropology or related field
• Record of undergraduate teaching experience as instructor of record in relevant courses.
• Experience, ability, and demonstrated commitment to cultivating learning environments that are equitable and inclusive of students from diverse backgrounds and social identities. 
• Specialty or subspecialty in Cultural Anthropology

Preferred Qualifications

• Research and/or teaching that engages critical scholarship and addresses critiques of anthropological practice, including considerations of colonialism and empire, systemic racism, and other systems of power.
• Demonstrated ability to teach one or more classes such as: Intro to Cultural Anthropology , Anthropological Theory, Medical Anthropology, Qualitative Research Methods, Latin American Perspectives, Borderlands, War and Human Rights, and other Cultural Anthropology courses to meet curricular needs 

Conditions of Employment All employees must comply with our Immunization policies, including Proof of Rubeola Measles Immunity within 60-days of hire. Please reach out to HR@wwu.edu if you need information regarding medical or religious exemption and applicable accommodations.

Salary

$1,178-1,400 per credit, commensurate with experience and qualifications. The expected teaching load includes teaching 2 or 3 courses per quarter, on a 10-week quarter system (up to 7 courses total). Additional face-to-face and/or online courses are possible during the Summer 2027 term. Benefits Information Benefits Overview for Faculty Positions

Bargaining Unit

 United Faculty of Western Washington

Application Instructions

A cover letter and curriculum vitae are