Assistant Professor - Interdisciplinary Arts, Music Specialization

43548BR

Dept of Interdisciplinary Arts

Position Description

The Department of Interdisciplinary Arts, within the J.T. & Margaret Talkington College of Visual & Performing Arts at Texas Tech University invites applications for a full-time, 9-month, tenure-track Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Arts to begin September 1, 2026. This position is for an innovative instructor and scholar who will be affiliated with the TTU School of Music, complementing current Interdisciplinary Arts faculty members' affiliations with the School of Art and the School of Theatre & Dance. The successful candidate will begin full service in the Fall of 2026.

All prospective employees are encouraged to visit Work at Texas Tech to learn more about becoming a part of our campus community.

About the University

Established in 1923, Texas Tech University is a Carnegie R1 (very high research activity) Doctoral/Research-Extensive, Hispanic Serving, and state-assisted institution. Located on a beautiful 1,850-acre campus in Lubbock, a city in West Texas with a growing metropolitan-area population of over 300,000, the university enrolls over 40,000 students with 33,000 undergraduate and 7,000 graduate students. As the primary research institution in the western two-thirds of the state, Texas Tech University is home to 10 colleges, the Schools of Law and Veterinary Medicine, and the Graduate School. The flagship of the Texas Tech University System, Texas Tech is dedicated to student success by preparing learners to be ethical leaders for a diverse and globally competitive workforce. It is committed to enhancing the cultural and economic development of the state, nation, and world.
About Lubbock:Referred to as the "Hub City" because it serves as the educational, cultural, economic, and health care hub of the South Plains region, Lubbock boasts a diverse population and a strong connection to community, history, and land. With a mild climate, highly rated public schools, and a low cost of living, Lubbock is a family-friendly community that is ranked as one of the best places to live in Texas. Lubbock is home to a celebrated and ever-evolving music scene, a vibrant arts community, and is within driving distance of Dallas, Austin, Santa Fe, and other major metropolitan cities. Lubbock's Convention & Visitors Bureau provides a comprehensive overview of the Lubbock community and its resources, programs, events, and histories.

About the College

The J.T. & Margaret Talkington College of Visual & Performing Arts (TCVPA) is the beating heart of Texas Tech University. We are a Values Based Organization, and a creative community with the resources of a world-class public university. Our students from all over the world shine with Texas-sized ambition, curiosity, and compassion. Across the School of Art, School of Music, School of Theatre & Dance and the Department of Interdisciplinary Arts, our schools provide a supportive visual and performing arts education. New students join a community of 1,150 arts dedicated undergraduate and graduate students-including D.M.A. and Ph.D. candidates, and over 135 faculty members. The arts are relevant, critical, and essential to contemporary life. An education in the arts inspires students to communicate through artistic tradition while embracing and creating innovative technologies as vehicles for individual expression and social change. For more information visit: https://www.depts.ttu.edu/visual-performing-arts/.

About the Department/School/Area

The Department of Interdisciplinary Arts offers a B.A. in Arts Media and Technology, and a Ph.D. in Fine Arts, with five tracks: Art, Arts Administration, Music, Theatre, and Transdisciplinary. Founded in 2024, the Department of Interdisciplinary Arts is the newest unit in the J.T. & Margaret Talkington College of Visual and Performing Arts, created to better support the unique and longstanding Fine Art Ph.D. (created in 1973) and the new Arts Media and Technology B.A. (created in 2023). With an Interdisciplinary Arts faculty of four full-time professors, it serves a growing student population of 44 undergraduate and 60 graduate majors, as well as over 400 non-majors. It is also amply supported by technical and administrative support staff. The Department of Interdisciplinary Arts houses the Performing Arts Research Lab (PeARL), and fosters a wide range of innovative cross- and interdisciplinary creative and scholarly projects. For more information, visit www.depts.ttu.edu/interdisciplinary-arts/.

Major/Essential Functions

In line with TTU's strategic priorities to engage and empower a dynamic student body, enable innovative research and creative activities, and transform lives and communities through outreach and engaged scholarship, applicants should have experience working with a breadth of student populations at the undergraduate and/or graduate levels within individual or across the areas of teaching, research/creative activity, and service.

As a faculty member in the Department of Interdisciplinary Arts, the qualified candidate will teach and develop graduate courses in support of the Ph.D.-Fine Arts, the B.A.-Arts Media Technology, and School of Music programs. The successful candidate will also be expected to contribute and collaborate on matters pertaining to curriculum, policy, and practice, as well as remain active in their field through adjacent scholarly/creative and service activities. The successful candidate will effectively mentor students across areas of research, process, and pedagogy, and participate in the department's formal advising process for graduate students and undergraduate students. The position also entails development and refinement of programs, curricula, and degree plans. Expectations also include significant service on dissertation and thesis committees across arts disciplines, service activities at the department, college, and university levels, and in embracing collegiality within and outside the department.

Organization

Texas Tech University

Faculty Qualifications

1. A Ph.D. in a scholarly music discipline such as music theory, musicology, music cognition/psychology, or other closely related field, completed by August 31, 2026.

1. A minimum of one year of experience teaching undergraduate courses in music or related discipline.
2. Experience working across the boundaries between Fine Arts disciplines, in terms of teaching, methodologies, and artworks of focus.

Preferred Qualifications

In addition to the required qualifications, individuals with the following preferred qualifications are strongly encouraged to apply:

1. Record of scholarly publications in peer-reviewed journals, books or book chapters, or other demonstrable body of published work.
2. Experience in a collaborative lab environment, including equipment and personnel management, Human Subjects approval procedures, and behavioral experimental methods.
3. Experience with group and interdisciplinary research projects and publications that cross faculty/student boundaries.
4. Experience teaching topics relevant across the arts to majors and non-majors populations.
5. Clear plans for impactful future research and/or creative activity goals towards professional development, with proposal ideas for scholarship supported by extramural funding, as appropriate to research specialization.
6. Effective communicator in written and spoken forms.

Duty Point

TTU Lubbock, main campus and affiliated facilities

Safety Information

Adherence to robust safety practices and compliance with all applicable health and safety regulations are responsibilities of all TTU employees.

Does this position work in a research laboratory?

No

Special Instructions to Applicants

Please include the following documents in your application:

1. Curriculum Vitae, including links to published work or other related materials
2. Letter of Interest
3. List of five references with contact information

Job Type

Full Time

Pay Basis

Monthly

Pay Statement

Compensation is commensurate upon the qualifications of the individual selected and budgetary guidelines of the hiring department, as well as the institutional pay plan. For additional information, please reference the institutional pay plan by visiting www.depts.ttu.edu/hr/payplan.

Travel Required

Up to 25%

Grant Funded?

No

Job Group

Assistant Professor

EEO Statement

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information or status as a protected veteran.

Salary Grade

800

Applications must be received by

02/25/2026