The Simpson College Department of Chemistry and Physics invites applications for a Three-Year Term Physics position at the rank of Assistant Professor of Physics to begin in August 2025.  A Ph.D. in physics or a closely related area is required.  If program goals are met, the three-year term position will be converted to tenure-track with years counted toward tenure and promotion.

Simpson College is a small liberal arts college with a dedicated group of faculty, staff and students. Simpson’s main campus is in Indianola, Iowa, a part of the greater Des Moines metropolitan area. The Des Moines area has a population of over 600,000, and economic growth has outpaced the U.S. in recent years. In addition, the cost of living is well below the national average. To learn more about Simpson College, please visit: www.simpson.edu

The standard teaching load for this position is six courses per year in a 3-3 format; three courses per semester. The candidate will be assigned to teach a year-long introductory physics course with 1-2 lab sections each semester (2 labs = 1 course), along with an intermediate or advanced course in physics each semester (to be determined).   The department must also serve the general educations program and will be responsible for helping develop courses which serve nonmajors at Simpson College (ex. astronomy). The department owns several telescopes including a Celestron 11” Schmitt-Cassegrain and a Coronado solar telescope. Assignments may include a course in our three-week May Term. 

The candidate would mentor students in appropriate course projects and a modest student accessible research program.  We operate in an environment of limited resources, but we work hard to offer research experiences for our students. Many of our students leverage their research experiences at Simpson and obtain summer research experiences both here at Simpson College and at other institutions (through REUs and SULIs).

The successful candidate will be the second physicist in a Chemistry and Physics department of five members. Our program offers majors in Physics and Physics-Engineering (3-2) and has seen steady growth in majors over the last 3 years.  We have an active SPS club chapter and a Sigma Pi Sigma honor society chapter. Many of our students are interested in practical applications of physics and engineering (e.g., materials science, alternative/renewable energy issues, photonics, etc.) and experimental fields that align with their interests.

Qualifications

We seek an enthusiastic and energetic candidate with innovative ideas to grow and strengthen a growing physics program. Candidates must be able to teach physics at all levels of the undergraduate physics curriculum, including laboratories. Moreover, the candidate must be enthusiastic about utilizing innovative technologies, particularly AI, to enhance student learning outcomes. A Ph.D. in physics or a closely related area is required. 

Our ideal candidate would be one who is primarily dedicated to innovation and excellence in undergraduate teaching. We are looking for an experimental physicist who can develop the upper-level laboratory curriculum and engage students in hands-on, undergraduate-accessible research projects. The department currently owns and maintains equipment in optics, laser spectroscopy and quantum optics which could be of great use to the right candidate. The Division of Natural and Health Sciences is strongly committed to fostering a collaborative and interdisciplinary environment. The ideal candidate will expand on existing strengths in computational modeling and data science by creating hands-on experimental research opportunities for students that complement and enhance existing research initiatives within the faculty. Industry experience is a plus.