Tenure-track Assistant Professor of Eastern European and/or Central European Literature and Culture

Tenure-track Assistant Professor of Eastern European and/or Central European Literature and Culture


Location: Philadelphia, PA
Open Date: Aug 25, 2026
Deadline:

The Department of Russian and East European Studies (REES) at the University of Pennsylvania invites applications for a tenure-track position in Eastern European and/or Central European Literature and Culture.

We are a collaborative and interactive area studies department, combining social scientists and humanists among its faculty members, that seeks to advance understanding of the societies and cultures of a complex region of the world. REES is housed within the School of Arts & Sciences, which is comprised of the College of Arts and Sciences, the Graduate Division, and the College of Liberal and Professional Studies. Interdisciplinary research and collaboration are supported by the breadth and depth of academic pursuits at Penn as well as the proximity of resources on our contiguous green urban campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. We promote and encourage curiosity, intellectual engagement, and discovery among all our students and faculty. University, School, and departmental resources that support our efforts include but are not limited to: the Offices of the Vice Provost for Faculty and Vice Provost for Research, PennGlobal, the Wolf Humanities Center, Wellness at Penn, the Center for Excellence in Teaching, Learning and Innovation, the Penn Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships, and Penn Human Resources.

The REES department offers an undergraduate major that provides students a flexible, multidisciplinary understanding of the geographies, histories, and cultures within our purview. Through departmental curricula as well as those of the Penn Language Center, students have access to education in Russian, Czech, Hungarian, Polish, Ukrainian, Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian, and other languages of the region. We contribute to the education of graduate students in several neighboring disciplines, including Anthropology, Comparative Literature, History, Political Science, and others. Our graduate students often go on to become assistant professors at leading universities. Our faculty also participate in cross-disciplinary undergraduate programs, such as Comparative Literature and Literary Theory, Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies, and International Relations.

We are especially interested in applicants whose research and teaching reach across national and linguistic borders to engage in the literatures and cultures of more than one Eastern European or Central European society, taking these terms in the broadest possible sense to include locations in the Baltic and Balkan regions in addition to those in between. We seek a dynamic and innovative researcher, educator, and colleague and welcome applicants with any historical focus and topic of research.

Qualifications:

• Deep training in one or more literatures and cultures of Eastern and/or Central Europe, broadly conceived, other than Russian literature and culture

• Native or near-native capability in the relevant languages

• Familiarity with Russian language, literature and culture welcome, but not required

• Clear evidence of establishing a high-quality, productive, and original research agenda, appropriate to career stage

• Capacity for teaching at both the graduate and undergraduate levels and mentoring and supporting a diverse student body

• The ability to direct graduate/undergraduate research

• Candidates are expected to have a PhD by the time of appointment, which is July 1, 2027

Application instructions/Required documents:

o Cover Letter

o CV

o A statement on research (2 pp.)

o A statement on teaching (2 pp.)

o Contact information for three recommenders

• Review of applications will begin on October 15 and continue until the position is filled.

• Please contact Alina Yakubova (yakubova@sas.upenn.edu) with questions regarding the application process.



Qualifications


Application Instructions


To apply, visit https://apply.interfolio.com/192175

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The University of Pennsylvania is an equal opportunity employer. Candidates are considered for employment without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, religion, creed, national origin (including shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics), citizenship status, age, disability, veteran status or any class protected under applicable federal, state, or local law.










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