Teaching, Research, and Mentoring Postdoctoral Research Associate In-Residence, Davidson Honors College

Application instructions are located at the bottom of the page.  Please apply directly through the University of Montana's career portal UM Jobs at https://umjobs.silkroad.com/ for positions at the University of Montana – Missoula, University of Montana Western (Dillon), and Helena College.  Do not apply through Indeed.com or use easy apply through Indeed.com* 

The Davidson Honors College (DHC) at the University of Montana invites applicants for our Teaching, Research, and Mentoring (TRM) In-Residence Fellowship Program. The TRM Fellowship Program embodies our effort to promote a community of learning that is based on high-impact teaching practices, cross-disciplinary inquiry, exceptional student mentoring, and a commitment to the teacher-scholar model.

Working collaboratively with faculty, staff, and students from the Davidson Honors College, as well as other audiences across the University of Montana campus, the TRM postdoctoral fellow will:

• Teach two honors courses per semester, to include:
• Art of Inquiry, an interdisciplinary research methods course
• Ways of Knowing, a first-year course
• In alternating semesters, interdisciplinary honors courses and/or honors courses in their discipline
• Actively pursue research and/or creative scholarship in their area(s) of expertise, and/or the scholarship of teaching and learning in honors.
• Engage undergraduate honors students in research or creative scholarship projects that align with their own research interests.
• Mentor Davidson Honors College students with the goal of promoting students' academic, professional, and personal development.

For the in-residence portion of the position, the postdoctoral fellow will be required to live in-residence on campus in a faculty apartment connected to the newly refurbished Knowles Hall where the Honors Living Learning Community (LLC) is located. They will be required to collaborate and communicate with UM Housing staff to support a vibrant academic and residential experience for honors students. These in-residence responsibilities will include:

• Teaching one class per term in the Knowles Hall classroom
• Holding a minimum of four office hours in the Knowles faculty office per week
• Attending appropriate meetings with DHC and housing staff
• Hosting two enrichment events per semester with the Living Learning Community.

In turn, the postdoctoral fellow will receive employer-paid housing, utilities included, in a furnished two-bedroom apartment in the Knowles building. This apartment includes a private entrance, all major appliances, a designated parking spot, and is partner/dependent and pet-friendly.  The TRM fellow will have a dedicated office in Knowles Hall, and will be provided with a laptop computer. 

The Postdoctoral Fellow’s service responsibilities will include attendance at college meetings, service on scholarship and selection committees, participation in selected DHC events and committees and contributing broadly to UM’s honors community. The postdoctoral fellow will have the opportunity to engage the broader UM campus through research presentations, workshops, membership in campus organizations, and collaboration with faculty across a range of disciplines.

The TRM postdoctoral fellow will demonstrate initiative and leadership, engaging students from diverse backgrounds with varied academic and professional interests. They will bring their own background, expertise, strengths and interests to the position and are encouraged to be innovative. They will also need to work collaboratively with DHC and UM colleagues, and have a deep appreciation for the spirit of honors education, which embraces academic excellence and the diversity of thought that comes from exposure to a wide range of disciplines

The University of Montana is an Equal Opportunity employer and has a strong institutional commitment to the principle of diversity in all areas. In that spirit, we are particularly interested in receiving applications from a broad spectrum of qualified people who would assist the University in demonstrating its five priorities for action : Place student success at the center of all we do; drive excellence and innovation in teaching, learning, and research; embody the principle of “mission first, people always"; partner with place; and proudly tell the UM story.

Position Details:

• Position is full-time, 1.0 FTE, 12-month Letter of Appointment renewable for a second year, contingent upon funding and performance. This appointment is non-renewable after the second year. The position comes with a competitive package including salary, benefits, on-campus housing, professional development opportunities, and funding to support several undergraduate research assistantships per year.

• Salary for this position is $45,000- $48,000 per year commensurate with qualifications.

Required Qualifications:

• Terminal degree (Ph.D. preferred) within five years of the hiring date.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Record of excellence in undergraduate teaching, including and integration of high impact practices
• Demonstrated ability to mentor diverse students from a variety of majors.
• Evidence of impactful research and/or creative scholarship.
• Experience with or appreciation of honors education.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Background in humanities or social sciences and/or demonstrated experience teaching in these areas.
• Published, peer-reviewed research/creative scholarship.
• Experience teaching undergraduate students in an experiential, online, hybrid, cross-disciplinary, or team setting.
• Successful mentoring and advising students toward academic, professional, and personal development.
• Interdisciplinary research and teaching experience
• Background and experience that aligns with the University of Montana’s academic portfolio.
• Experience with or aptitude and interest for work with living and learning community

The University of Montana is a flagship, research-intensive R1 institution, with approximately 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students. It is located in Missoula, a culturally vibrant community of about 75,000, surrounded by mountains. Abundant recreational opportunities in surrounding state and national forests and nearby Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park complement a thriving intellectual atmosphere.

Set in the awesome natural beauty of western Montana, Davidson Honors College is a vibrant, inclusive intellectual community providing transformative educational opportunities and dedicated to strengthening our positive impacts on the world.

Davidson Honors College Values:

• Education of the whole person
• Critical thinking, academic rigor and excellence
• Authentic collaboration and interdisciplinary approaches
• Experiential and place-based learning
• Curiosity, creativity, inquiry, innovation and discovery
• Dialogue, reflection and meaning-making
• Grit, resilience and risk-taking
• Intellectual confidence and humility
• Global and cross-cultural perspectives, diversity and equity
• Passion, compassion, integrity and justice
• Deep engagement and love of learning
• Sustainable practices and environmental stewardship

We prepare thoughtful, informed, agile and impactful citizens. Our students are thinkers, doers, explorers, creators, servants, leaders, and agents of positive change. Through curricular and co-curricular experiences, they are equipped with new ways of knowing, seeing, doing and being in the world.

Through their experience in the DHC, students:

• Collect, analyze, and synthesize information.
• Demonstrate excellence in oral, written, interpersonal and digital communication.
• Engage in independent and collaborative work, problem-solving and community engagement.
• Learn and reflect on their own and others’ experiences.
• Demonstrate ethical, original, creative, and critical thought and action.
• Pursue a meaningful life and future personal and professional success.

To learn more about the University of Montana, Missoula, and the State of Montana, please visit the links below.

Criminal Background Investigation is required prior to Offer of Employment. In accordance with University policy, finalists for this position will be subject to criminal background investigations. ADA/EOE/Veteran's Preference. Reasonable accommodations are provided in the hiring process for persons with disabilities. For example, this material is available in alternative format upon request. As an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer, we encourage applications from minorities, veterans, and women. Qualified candidates may request veterans’ or disabilities preference in accordance with state law. References *References not listed on the application materials may be contacted; notice may be provided to the applicant. Testing Individual hiring departments at UM may elect to administer pre-employment tests, which are relevant to essential job functions. Employment Eligibility.  All New Employees must be eligible and show employment eligibility verification by the first date of employment at UM, as legally required (e.g., Form I-9).

Must be eligible to work in the United State upon hire. 

How to Apply:

Application Deadline: Wednesday, December 13, 2023 by 11:59 PM (Mountain Time)

Complete applications received by this date will be guaranteed consideration. To receive full consideration, candidates are required to submit all of the following materials.

Please submit the following application materials** via the UM Jobs portal and by clicking "New Resume/CV" button.  Please do not apply through Indeed.com*.

• Resume/CV
• Cover letter (up to two (2) pages)
• Teaching Statement - Teaching philosophy & describe two courses you would propose to teach at the DHC (up to two (2) pages)
• Three (3) professional references

*Applying through Indeed.com or easy apply through Indeed.com may result in submission of an incomplete application.  Applications may be removed from full consideration if they are not complete with materials listed above under the "How to Apply" section.  It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure complete application materials are submitted and received by the date listed above. 

**Please note: only five (5) attachments are allowed per application. Please combine documents accordingly.

Missoula, Montana, United States