The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Utah (https://www.mech.utah.edu/) invites applications for a career-line faculty position at the Assistant, Associate, or Professor (Lecturer) rank focused on engineering design education, with a primary assignment of teaching and directing the Senior Design Capstone Program (https://www.mech.utah.edu/capstone/). We are looking for candidates with exceptional teaching ability in engineering design at the senior undergraduate level.
The Senior Design Capstone Program is the culmination of the undergraduate mechanical engineering curriculum. The program matches teams of motivated senior undergraduate students with a multi-disciplinary project defined and funded by either an industry or academic sponsor. During the two-semester course sequence (ME EN 4000, ME EN 4010), students dedicate approximately 9 hours/week to scope, identify customer needs, research, analyze, design, prototype/manufacture, and test a solution to meet the project’s objectives. Teams have access to all undergraduate mechanical engineering labs and facilities, including a dedicated 3700 sq.ft. capstone maker space. The Senior Design Capstone Program is supported by department staff including a capstone maker space lab manager, an industrial outreach coordinator, and department administrative staff.
The career-line faculty member will serve as the primary instructor of the Senior Capstone Design Program. As primary instructor, the faculty member will develop and oversee curriculum for Senior Capstone Design Program courses, such as ME EN 4000 and ME EN 4010. The faculty member will teach both courses every fall and spring semester. These classes will be taught in person. The career-line faculty will be supported by a team of co-instructors (Department of Mechanical Engineering faculty members) who will provide mentorship and instructional support to individual teams. As primary instructor, the career-line faculty will be responsible for coordinating the teaching efforts of all co-instructors and interfacing with capstone department staff. The career-line faculty member must also serve as an effective liaison with industry and external stakeholders to establish partnerships and promote the Senior Design Capstone Program. Additionally, the career-line faculty member will be expected to be active in department, university, and professional service activities. The position does not carry a research expectation, but all faculty are encouraged to collaboratively contribute to the department’s research goals.
Successful candidates should have a Ph.D. in a related field, preferably with engineering design pedagogy and/or product design/development experience. Candidates with a track record of high-quality teaching are especially encouraged to apply. Industry experience is welcome.
Review of applications will begin on January 1, 2025. Applications must be submitted electronically at https://utah.peopleadmin.com/postings/173724 and should include: (1) a cover letter highlighting the applicant’s qualifications, including related experiences in product design and development and/or teaching engineering design-related courses, (2) current curriculum vitae, (3) a statement of teaching interests (2 pages), and (4) contact information of three to five references.
The University of Utah, a member of the Association of American Universities, is a research-focused institution home to more than 35,000 students, world-class faculty and researchers, a medical campus, and many start-up companies. The University of Utah maintains more than 50 on-campus recharge centers with state-of-the-science infrastructure to robustly support aerospace materials research. The Department of Mechanical Engineering has experienced tremendous growth over the past decade, fueled by the State of Utah’s “Engineering Initiative”, and currently houses 40 tenure-line faculty members, over 1,000 undergraduate and 250 graduate students (140 PhD students).
The University of Utah campus is situated in Salt Lake City, a growing, increasingly diverse, metropolitan city with a population of 1M nestled against the backdrop of the beautiful Wasatch Mountains. The greater SLC valley is an important economic hub of the Mountain West and is home to several large technology and Fortune 500 companies. SLC residents enjoy a highly accessible and walkable downtown with vibrant restaurants, sports, nightlife, and cultural events. Salt Lake City residents enjoy easy access to national parks (8 within a few hours’ drive), world-class skiing/snowboarding (7 resorts within 1 hour), hiking, fishing, biking, and rafting/kayaking. In addition, faculty members enjoy free access to public transportation and the convenience of an international airport located only 15 minutes from campus.
