Assistant Professor, Chemistry and Chemical Biology

About the Opportunity

About Northeastern:

Founded in 1898, Northeastern is a global research university and the recognized leader in experience-driven lifelong learning. Our world-renowned experiential approach empowers our students, faculty, alumni, and partners to create impact far beyond the confines of discipline, degree, and campus.

Our locations-in Arlington; Boston; Charlotte, North Carolina; London; Miami; New York City; Oakland; Portland, Maine; San Francisco; Seattle; Silicon Valley; Toronto; Vancouver; and the Massachusetts communities of Burlington and Nahant-are nodes in our growing global university system. Through this network, we expand opportunities for flexible, student-centered learning and collaborative, solutions-focused research.

Northeastern’s comprehensive array of undergraduate and graduate programs- in a variety of on-campus and online formats-lead to degrees through the doctorate in nine colleges and schools. Among these, we offer more than 195 multi-discipline majors and degrees designed to prepare students for purposeful lives and careers.

The College of Science comprises six departments: Biology, Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Marine and Environmental Sciences, Mathematics, Physics, and Psychology. The Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology (“CCB”) (https://cos.northeastern.edu/chemistry-chemical-biology/) includes 38 tenured/tenure-track faculty, including joint appointments, 30% of whom are women; 25 full-time teaching faculty; two research faculty; and nine faculty with affiliated appointments. CCB enrolls approximately 150 undergraduate majors; 30 M.S. and PlusOne (BS/MS) students; and 100 Ph.D. students. In addition to degrees in Chemistry, a professional science Master’s degree in Biotechnology is also offered. The Department of Biology (https://cos.northeastern.edu/biology/) includes 25 tenured/tenure-track faculty, including joint appointments; and 26 full-time teaching faculty. With its core undergraduate degree programs in Biology and in Cell & Molecular Biology, the department enrolls around one-quarter of all undergraduate majors in the College of Science; it also co-manages the Behavioral Neuroscience major with the Department of Psychology. The graduate program in Biology currently has over 50 Ph.D. students in two primary concentrations (Cell & Molecular Biology, and Molecular Microbiology), including 15 Industry Ph.D. students who offer exciting partnership opportunities with pharma. In addition to degrees in Biology, professional science Master’s degrees in Bioinformatics and in Cell and Gene Therapies are also offered. The two departments co-manage the Biochemistry major.

Experiential education is a hallmark of our programs, where students gain experience at leading biotechnology companies based in Boston's globally-dominant entrepreneurial space (Moderna, Editas, Gingko Bioworks, for instance). Northeastern's integrative education model is ranked #1 in Cooperative education programs (US News and World Report: 2022) which leads directly to the remarkable career placement rate of 96% for our students. The Massachusetts campuses are physically located at the nexus of the largest concentration of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in the world.

Northeastern is home to the Coastal Sustainability Institute, the Global Resilience Institute, the Barnett Institute for Chemical and Biological Analysis, the Center for Drug Discovery, the Network Science Institute, the Northeastern University Center for Renewable Energy Technology, an NSF Frontier Center in Theoretical Biological Physics, and the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Complex Systems, providing a rich multidisciplinary intellectual environment.

About the Opportunity:

The College of Science at Northeastern University invites applications for positions at the rank of tenure-track Assistant Professor in Chemistry and Chemical Biology and/or Biology beginning in academic year 2027-2028 or 2028-2029. Candidates who are completing their PhD or at an early stage of their postdoctoral training are encouraged to apply to these tenure-track faculty appointments. Areas of interest in the current search include Physical AI, Robotics & Autonomous Systems for Chemistry and Biology, broadly interpreted. This spans intelligent infrastructure and adaptive construction/manufacturing robotics using digital twins and multi-agent controls; embodied and wearable AI systems that bridge human-computer interaction and design; automated self-driving laboratories that pair hardware instrumentation with active-learning machine learning for experiment design to accelerate chemistry, materials, and biomanufacturing experimentation. Primary appointments will be in Boston at the College of Science (Chemistry and Chemical Biology and/or Biology) with possible other joint appointments across the College of Engineering and Khoury College of Computer Sciences. Appointments will have the opportunity to collaborate in cross-disciplinary teams across the University and will complement existing strengths.

Our tenure and promotion process values collaborative research and teamwork. Hires will be mentored for success, with mentoring teams and group guidance. In addition, a strong and effective faculty development strategy is part of the Northeastern institutional mission. The ADVANCE Office of Faculty Development office works in conjunction with the Office of Research Development (ORD), the Office of Belonging, the Center for Advancing Teaching and Learning Through Research (CATLR), and University Decision Support (UDS) to provide programs and trainings to further develop and support a thriving faculty.

Responsibilities:

The potential hires are expected to develop vigorous research programs cross cutting the fields of automated/self-driving labs for chemistry and biology. Faculty members at Northeastern are expected to develop independent research programs that attract external funding; teach courses at the graduate and undergraduate levels; mentor students and postdocs in their area of research; and participate in service to the department, university, and discipline. Qualified candidates must be prepared to work with global student populations.

Qualifications:

Applicants must have a PhD in chemistry, biology, engineering or related fields by the employment start date. We encourage applicants from a wide range of backgrounds, including academia and industry.

Applicants should have a strong record of scholarly accomplishment that demonstrates the ability to build a strong research program. Evidence of potential as a research scientist is expected, but postdoctoral experience is not required for appointments at the Assistant Professor level.

Candidates must be committed to excellence in undergraduate and graduate teaching. They should embrace the Northeastern emphasis on experiential education and the college philosophy that access to science education and careers must be inclusive. Depending on the research profile and expertise, a joint or affiliate appointment in another department(s) within the University is possible.

Additional Information:

Interested candidates should apply here with a curriculum vita that includes a list of publications, statements addressing the prompts below, and names and contact information for at least three professional references from whom letters of reference can be solicited as needed.

Successful faculty at Northeastern will be dynamic and innovative scholars with a record of research and teaching excellence and a commitment to contributing to fostering belonging in the university community. Thus, strong candidates for this faculty position will have the expertise, knowledge, and skills to build their research, pedagogy, and curriculum in ways that reflect and enhance this commitment. Please indicate how your expertise, knowledge, and skills have prepared you to contribute to this work with written statements addressing the following prompts:

Research statement (no longer than 5 pages) :

Please describe the focus of your research, including the questions you have identified, the funding you have received to support the work (if applicable), the results you have discovered, and the products of these efforts. Highlight any cross-disciplinary research efforts you have undertaken. Please also describe any research you have undertaken with students and/or with the external community. Finally, please outline the research directions you foresee pursuing at Northeastern, any cross-disciplinary and collaborative aspects, and the strategies you will take to address each direction.

Teaching statement (1 page) :

Please summarize your past instructional and mentorship experiences, your pedagogical philosophy, your plans/goals for teaching in the College of Science (including existing and proposed courses), and your strategies for teaching and mentoring a diverse cohort of undergraduate and graduate students.

Leadership statement (1 page):

Leadership Statement: Please summarize your experience in leadership positions. Describe your leadership style, how you intend to cultivate a culture that promotes a sense of belonging, including fostering a free and open exchange of ideas and managing different perspectives to help others strengthen their practice.

Applications will be reviewed beginning on October 15, 2026, and will continue until the position is filled. Questions may be directed to the search committee chairs, Professor Sijia Dong, [email protected] and Professor Win Chai [email protected].

Northeastern University is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Position Type

Additional Information

Northeastern University considers factors such as candidate work experience, education and skills when extending an offer.

Northeastern has a comprehensive benefits package for benefit eligible employees. This includesmedical, vision, dental, paid time off, tuition assistance, wellness & life, retirement- as well as commuting & transportation. Visit https://hr.northeastern.edu/benefits/ for more information.

All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law.

Pay Range:

With the pay range(s) shown above, the starting salary will depend on several factors, which may include your education, experience, location, knowledge and expertise, and skills as well as a pay comparison to similarly-situated employees already in the role. Salary ranges are reviewed regularly and are subject to change.