Postdoctoral Associate - Humanities Research Center

The Humanities Research Center (HRC) at Rice University seeks to appoint one Postdoctoral Associate in Humanities Leadership.

The Humanities Research Center (HRC) is an internationally recognized hub that fosters innovative humanities and arts research at Rice University and builds collaborations with local, national, and global partners. The HRC aims to shape and support interdisciplinary and collaborative research and engagement practices that are locally rooted and globally linked.

We seek emergent interdisciplinary scholars with a demonstrated interest in humanities leadership who aspire to careers in administration, management, and public service by choice rather than circumstance. Competitive applicants will have been successful in both academic and extra-academic experiences, such as service at higher education and/or affiliated institutions, prior experience in program building, and publicly engaged humanities work. We encourage applicants with an interest in questions at the intersection of interdisciplinary humanities graduate education; critical university studies and the future of higher education; and alternative careers, professional development, and capacity building for the next generation of humanities PhDs.

The HRC Postdoctoral Associate in Humanities Leadership will be responsible for managing and helping to grow several initiatives at the Humanities Research Center, the School of Humanities, and Rice University at large. With the support of an HRC Public Humanities Graduate Associate and mentoring from colleagues, the HRC Postdoctoral Associate will manage the HRC’s Public Humanities Internship initiative and contribute to developing a new multi-year interdisciplinary, collaborative, and professionalizing program for graduate students. They will liaise with units and stakeholders on- and off-campus. (60%)

While the primary duties of this position are around humanities leadership and administration, the Postdoctoral Associate will be expected to contribute to the intellectual life of the HRC through participation in and support for public events, works-in-progress meetings, and other interdisciplinary initiatives. (20%)

The successful applicant will teach or co-teach advanced workshops and professionalization seminars throughout their tenure. Depending on interest, and contingent on performance and approval by the HRC executive leadership, they may also teach a First-Year Writing Intensive Seminar (FWIS) course in their second year. Examples of FWIS courses can be found at https://pwc.rice.edu/current-course-descriptions. (20%)

The Postdoctoral Associate will have an office within the HRC. They will report to the HRC’s associate director. They will have a number of mentors across disciplines and expertise domains at Rice University and are expected to mentor graduate students across disciplines.

This position is for the period from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, with the possibility of renewal for a second year (subject to performance review and funding). It is a full-time, in-person position and is benefits-eligible. The Postdoctoral Associate will receive an annual salary of $70,000 and a $3,000 one-time stipend for research and/or relocation to Houston. The HRC Postdoctoral Associate in Humanities Leadership is expected to be in residence in Houston no later than July 21, 2025.

Work-related duties may include:

• Managing the Public Humanities Internship initiative at the HRC
• Teaching and facilitating workshops for PhDs in the School of Humanities
• Contributing to and/or developing new programs and initiatives to advance the arts and humanities at Rice
• Contributing to and actively participating in HRC programming
• Participating and presenting own research in the HRC’s interdisciplinary working group (“HRC Fellows Fridays”)
• Other duties as assigned

Eligibility and Minimum Requirements:

Applicants from any humanistic discipline or the interpretive social sciences are eligible to apply and must have the Ph.D. in hand by June 30, 2025. Applicants must have received their PhD no earlier than January 1, 2020. Applicants must have a demonstrated interest in humanities leadership and must have first-hand knowledge of the American higher education landscape. Applicants must have excellent communication and time-management skills.

Required application materials:

• Cover letter (up to 3 pages), including:
  • 1 paragraph on your research
  • 1–2 paragraphs on your interest in exploring careers beyond the professoriate and the academy and some of the professional skills and experiences you bring and would hope to gain in the fellowship
• 3-page CV
• Brief proposal for 2 Public or Applied Humanities workshops (max 2 pages)
• Brief proposal for 2 graduate student career development workshops (max 2 pages)
• Contact information for 3 references (we will solicit letters of recommendation for shortlisted candidates only)

Application instructions:

Combine all the required application materials into a single PDF.

All applications must be submitted via the Rice Jobs portal. Fill out the required identification information on the portal, and then submit the single PDF with all the application materials as one attachment.

You do not need to fill out the application portal with information about education and previous work experience. Applications will be reviewed on the basis of the single PDF with all the required application materials as outlined above.

If you have difficulty attaching the PDF, please email them to jobs@rice.edu and they will be attached to your application.

Deadline: April 7, 2025

Rice University HR | Benefits: https://knowledgecafe.rice.edu/benefits-overview 

Rice Mission and Values: Mission and Values | Rice University 

Rice University is committed to ensuring Equal Employment Opportunity and welcoming the fullness of diversity into our candidate pools. Rice considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability, or protected veteran status. Rice also provides reasonable accommodations to qualified persons with disabilities. If an applicant requires a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, please contact Rice University’s Disability Resource Center at 713-348-5841 or adarice@rice.edu for support.

If you have any questions, please email us at jobs@rice.edu. Thank you for your interest in employment with Rice University.

Salary : $70,000