Job description
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is a Carnegie R1 and community engaged university at the heart of the U.S.-Mexico border region that is increasing access to excellent higher education. We advance discovery of public value and positively impact the health, culture, education, and economy of the community we serve. UTEP enrolls 25,000 students – 85% of whom are Hispanic and half of whom are the first in their families to attend college. UTEP offers 171 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs at the only open-access, top-tier research university in America.
The city’s border location makes it an ideal venue for academic programs and research studies on topics of national interest such as bilingual education/language acquisition, Hispanic health, border environment and immigration, environmental sustainability and infrastructure, and international trade and commerce.
The Paso del Norte region’s center for intellectual capital, UTEP is one of the major economic engines in the region, adding more than $1.4 billion to the local economy annually.
El Paso’s active arts and culture community features the state’s longest-running symphony orchestra, a nationally recognized chamber music festival, a vibrant street art and mural scene, art galleries, museums, and a full schedule of seasonal events and festivals. UTEP adds to the arts and entertainment scene with concerts and live events at the city’s largest indoor and outdoor venues; theater, music and dance productions; contemporary and student art galleries; and a natural history museum and desert gardens. El Paso residents can also easily travel to our sister city of Ciudad Jurez, Mexico, to enjoy great food, markets and cultural events.
El Paso is also an ideal location for people who love the outdoors, as home to one of the nation’s largest urban parks – Franklin Mountains State Park, and many options for year-round hiking, mountain biking and rock climbing.
For sports fans, the UTEP Miners offer exciting Division I college athletics at several campus venues including Sun Bowl Stadium, where one of the oldest football bowl games takes place annually, and the Don Haskins Center arena. Southwest University Park, located a mile away in lively downtown El Paso, is home to the El Paso Chihuahuas, the Triple-A baseball affiliate of the San Diego Padres, and the El Paso Locomotive FC, a professional soccer team founded in 2019.
About the Department:
The Department of Biological Sciences offers two Ph.D. tracks (Bioscience and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology) and has over 100 graduate students and over 2000 undergraduate majors. The department boasts multiple state-of-the-art core facilities with full-time staff.. The core facilities include those focused on mass-spectrometry (MS)-based analyses (e.g., proteomics, lipidomics, small-molecule quantification), genomics, tissue culture, high-throughput drug screening, confocal microscopy, bioinformatics, and biostatistics. Biological sciences faculty maintain strong collaborative and programmatic ties with several other departments, including Psychology, Pharmacy, Physics, Chemistry, and Computer Science. This position represents a unique opportunity for an outstanding individual to be a part of this department and advance scholarship in genomics and transcriptomics research at UTEP, a research-intensive university.
Job Description:
The Department of Biological Sciences at The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) invites applications for a non-tenure-track faculty position as a Research Assistant Professor in the areas of Behavioral Genetics, starting in Spring 2026. The appointments will be for 12 months, and the position can be renewed for a maximum of 3 years; renewal beyond 3 years will depend on the candidate’s ability to secure extramural funding. We are seeking innovative and highly collaborative scientists with a strong background in Drosophila genetics and behaviors. Applicants with expertise in learning, memory, behavioral control and plasticity, and gene-environment interactions are especially encouraged to apply. The successful candidate is expected to participate in collaborative research programs across the Colleges of Science, Health Sciences, Engineering, and the School of Pharmacy; secure extramural funding independently or collaboratively; publish in high-impact peer-reviewed journals; contribute to the training of undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral/research associates.
Requirements:
Candidates must hold a Ph.D. (or equivalent) in a relevant field and have a minimum of three years of postdoctoral experience. Applicants must demonstrate a strong record of research productivity and clear potential to secure external funding. Competitive applicants will provide documented evidence of the following:
- Demonstrated success in collaborative research and peer-reviewed publications
- Grant writing & funding
- Experience writing or contributing to research grants, instrumentation grants, or collaborative proposals
- Ability to work effectively within diverse, multidisciplinary teams of faculty and students
- Commitment to involving students in research, mentoring, and publication opportunities
- Expertise in aging and dementia research
- Expertise in Drosophila genetics, behaviors and neuroanatomy
- Expertise in immunostaining, confocal microscopy, ELISA, molecular analyses (e.g., qRT-PCR), and statistical analyses.
- Strong communication & reporting skills
- Successful teaching and mentoring experiences
Additional Information:
In keeping with its access, excellence, and impact mission, The University of Texas at El Paso is committed to an open, diverse, and inclusive learning and working environment that honors the talents, respects the differences, and nurtures the growth and development of all. We seek to attract faculty and staff who share our commitment.
The University of Texas at El Paso is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or sexual orientation and gender in employment or the provision of services in accordance with state and federal law. Discrimination on the basis of sex includes an employee’s or prospective employee’s right to be free from sexual harassment under Title IX of the Higher Education Amendments of 1972. Inquiries-including the filing of a Formal Complaint or reporting an incident-about the application of Title IX may be referred to the Title IX Coordinator, who can be reached by phone at (915) 747-8358, by email at [email protected], or by mail at 500 W. University Ave., El Paso, TX, Kelly Hall, Room 312.
For accommodation information for employees and applicants with disabilities, please contact UTEP’s Equal Opportunity Office at [email protected].
To the extent that this position involves research, work, or access to critical infrastructure as referenced in Executive Order GA-48, being hired for and continuing to be employed in this position requires the ability to maintain the security or integrity of the infrastructure.
How to apply
Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. Candidates should submit a letter of interest, curriculum vitae, statement of research interests (max 2 pages), and complete contact information for at least three references.
Questions should be directed to Dr. Kyung-An Han, Ph.D., at [email protected].
