The Ken and Mary Alice Lindquist Department of Nuclear Engineering (NucE) at The Pennsylvania State University (PSU) invites applications for tenure-track faculty positions in nuclear engineering at all ranks. All areas of nuclear engineering are of interest, including the areas of reactor physics, neutron science, radiation detection, and plasma and fusion sciences.
The NucE Department at PSU has been establishing ground-breaking research initiatives, both nationally and globally, to shape the future of nuclear science and engineering in the 21st century. The NucE Department has strengths in the areas of radiation detection, nuclear security, safeguards, and forensics, nuclear reactor design, thermal hydraulics, nuclear materials, advanced computing, radiochemistry, nuclear medicine, and nuclear fusion and plasma sciences. The Department’s mission is to provide residential and online education (B.S., M.S., M.Eng., and Ph.D.) that prepares undergraduate and graduate students for life-long learning and globally impactful careers in the public and private sectors. We promote diversity, work toward equity, and foster an inclusive environment by mentoring and providing innovative and supportive experiences designed to make nuclear engineering accessible, achievable, and world-wide successful. This is a very exciting time for nuclear engineering at PSU as we are innovating our nuclear science and engineering curriculum by integrating elements of advanced computing, problem-solving, entrepreneurship, digital innovation, next-generation nuclear reactor design, policy, socio-technical and techno-economic engineering, risk analysis, science communication, and sensing in extreme environments.
Nuclear engineering at PSU is witnessing an unprecedented growth with eight faculty hires in the past two years. In 2021, we opened a brand-new $2M Nuclear Innovation Commons (NIC) that features 5,000 sq ft of collaborative space including ideation rooms, flex space, undergraduate research space, a Nuclear Maker lab, and a Digital Instructional Lab for education and training of the future nuclear engineering workforce. In 2023, an expansion at the world renown Breazeale Nuclear Reactor of the Radiation Science and Engineering Center (RSEC) will be finished – featuring a $10M small angle neutron scattering (SANS) beamline with an additional $10M for the SANS lab space and 5,000 sq ft of educational space for nuclear engineering faculty, RSEC staff, and students for collaborations in areas of neutron and nuclear science. This new Penn State SANS facility will enable multi-disciplinary research in areas from soft materials to health science. In addition, the NucE Department is leading an initiative to establish a microreactor RD&D platform on the PSU campus. The NucE Department is also leading a new plasma science and engineering initiative establishing areas in nuclear fusion technology and extreme materials (e.g., magnets, liquids, alloys), plasma-material interactions, blanket technologies, plasma turbulence, advanced plasma reactors, and plasma medicine.
PSU promotes multi-disciplinary research through multiple centers and institutes including the Materials Research Institute and the Huck Institutes for the Life Sciences located in the innovative Millennium Science Complex.
Education and Experience:
Applicants should hold a doctorate in nuclear engineering or related field and have demonstrated outstanding scholarly research experience and teaching interests in nuclear engineering. The Associate Professor should possess the same qualifications as the Assistant Professor, but must also provide evidence of an established reputation in scholarly, artistic, or professional achievement. The Full Professor should possess the same qualifications as the Associate Professor, but must also provide evidence of a substantial record of advanced research and/or creative work, and of leadership in their field of specialization. This rank should be reserved for persons of proven stature in teaching and/or research.
Successful candidates will teach courses at undergraduate and graduate levels, develop an internationally recognized, externally-funded research program, and contribute to the operation and promotion of the department, college, university, and profession through service.
Nominations and applications will be considered until the positions are filled. Screening of applicants will begin on January 30, 2023. However, all applicants are strongly encouraged to apply as soon as their application documents have been completed. Specifically, the applicants should submit a cover letter, a statement on teaching and research, a statement of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), a curriculum vitae, and the names and addresses of four professional references. Please submit these items in one pdf file electronically to https://psu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/PSU_Academic.
The NucE Department values diversity among its faculty, it is committed to building a culturally diverse intellectual community, and it strongly encourages applications from women and minorities.
