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Visiting Assistant Professor in Russian

Amherst College - Amherst, MA

The Amherst College Department of Russian invites applications for a full-time two-year visiting appointment at the rank of visiting assistant professor, which will begin on July 1, 2024. We are looking for a broadly trained, theoretically engaged scholar of Russian literature and culture committed to undergraduate and interdisciplinary teaching in a liberal-arts context. Teaching responsibilities include two courses per semester, including all levels of Russian language and various aspects of Russia’s cultural legacy, as well as advising senior theses, as necessary.

Given Amherst’s distinction as one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country, successful candidates will demonstrate the ways in which they bring value to and will work toward supporting a broadly diverse community. Nearly half of our students identify as domestic students of color, and another 11 percent are international, with non-U.S. citizenship; 16 percent are the first members of their families to attend college. Amherst is committed to providing financial aid that meets 100 percent of every student’s demonstrated need, and nearly 60 percent of our students receive financial aid. Our expectation is that the successful candidate will excel at teaching and mentoring students who are broadly diverse with regard to race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, nationality, sexual identity, and religion.

Amherst College is home to an internationally renowned research institution, the Amherst Center for Russian Culture, and the Russian department’s faculty regularly draws on its collections for teaching and research. The center’s unique strengths lie in the visual and performing arts, the culture of modernism and the long twentieth century. More information about the department is available at https://www.amherst.edu/mm/13477, and about the Center for Russian Culture at https://www.amherst.edu/mm/41771.

Candidates must have a Ph.D. in Slavic languages and literatures or a related field in hand by the start of the appointment. Native or near-native fluency in Russian and English is required, and prior teaching experience is expected. Interested candidates are asked to submit electronically to http://apply.interfolio.com/138523 a letter of application, containing research and teaching statements, addressed to Professor Michael Kunichika; a curriculum vitae; two course syllabi; a writing sample, not to exceed twenty-five pages in length; and three confidential letters of recommendation. Review of applications will begin on March 1, 2022, and continue until the position is filled. Applications received by that date will receive full consideration. We expect the first round of interviews to be conducted virtually. Questions about the search should be addressed to mkunichika@amherst.edu.

Amherst College is a private undergraduate liberal arts college with 1,800 students and more than two hundred faculty members. Located in the Connecticut River Valley of western Massachusetts, Amherst participates with Hampshire, Mount Holyoke, and Smith Colleges and the University of Massachusetts in the Five-College Consortium.

Amherst College is an equal opportunity employer and encourages persons of all genders, persons of color, and persons with disabilities to apply. The college is committed to enriching its educational experience and its culture through the diversity of its faculty, administration, and staff. More information about Amherst College for prospective candidates is available here: https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/provost_dean_faculty/faculty_hiring/for-candidates

Posted on February 01, 2024.