Assistant Teaching Professor

Position Function:

The Data Science Program at Mississippi State University seeks an Assistant Teaching Professor in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence.

Salary Grade:  UC

For salary grade UC, these positions are "Unclassified" and salary ranges are determined by the hiring department.

Department Profile:

Data science explores and advances methods, systems, and processes to represent the world as data objects; extract insights about the world from these data objects and turn these insights into discoveries, decisions, and actions; and create artificially intelligent systems to perform tasks that have historically required human cognition and human decision-making abilities. MSU’s approach to Data Science goes beyond data analytics and embraces a vision in which data become the power behind the digital transformation of every field of human endeavor.

The Data Science Academic Institute is a program within the Office of the Provost (https://www.datascience.msstate.edu/). Data Science at Mississippi State offers a Bachelor of Science in Data Science (dsci.msstate.edu), an undergraduate minor, a Graduate Certificate in Data Science Pedagogy, and a Master of Applied Data Science. Ten Bachelor of Science concentrations have been created by MSU’s colleges and offer students the ability to apply Data Science knowledge and skills within specific fields. Current concentrations include:
• Business Information Systems
• Computational Agriculture and Natural Resources
• Computational Intelligence
• Geoinformatics
• Marketing and Supply Chain Analytics
• Psychoinformatics
• Social Data Analytics
• Sports Science
• Statistical Modeling
• Visualization and Visual Analytics for the Built Environment

Mississippi State University is a comprehensive Carnegie R1 “Very High Research Activity” campus and a top-100 university by research expenditure. The campus is situated in a small, cultured community boasting an exceptional standard of living (https://starkville.org). Within a short drive of Starkville are more than 120,000 acres of state and federal natural areas, with abundant opportunities for research and recreation. This includes the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge (https://www.fws.gov/refuge/sam-d-hamilton-noxubee), and the Tombigbee National Forest. We are Mississippi’s land-grant institution and principal research university with an enrollment of more than 23,000 students.

Area of Specialization:

Data Science & Artificial Intelligence

Anticipated Appointment Date:

August 16, 2025

Tenure Track Status:

Non-Tenure Track

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

The expected teaching load for this 9-month position is 4-4. Teaching opportunities within Data Science include courses and hands-on labs at the undergraduate and graduate level.

The successful candidate will be expected to teach a variety of courses, including existing online and in-person classes, while contributing to the development of several new courses over their first few years of employment. These new courses will focus on topics such as mathematics for data science, programming for data science, and foundational AI for data science. Existing courses may include an undergraduate introduction to data science, foundational graduate-level data science courses, data science project management, artificial intelligence, and other courses as needed at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Teaching duties may include courses with online components or those offered entirely online. Assignments will typically include support from graduate teaching assistants.
There will be opportunities for additional teaching or research employment in the summer related to data science and artificial intelligence.

Minimum Qualifications:

Ph.D. in a relevant discipline, instructional experience at the university or community college level, excellent communication and organizational skills, experience with data wrangling, statistical analysis, implementing machine learning and deep learning models in Python, experience with GPU computing, and familiarity with common instructional technologies.

Preferred Qualifications:

Ph.D. in Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, Computer Science, or Data Science. Multiple years of instructional experience at the university level. Preference will be given to candidates who demonstrate evidence of teaching excellence, experience in curriculum development, and scholarship that leverages artificial intelligence or engages the mathematical foundations of artificial intelligence. The position would also benefit from experience with high performance computing.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

Excellent interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills. Strong organizational skills. Demonstrated ability to use Python or other relevant programming languages for data wrangling and training machine learning and deep learning models. Deep knowledge of the mathematical foundations of machine learning. Understanding of the management of the data lifecycle including implementation of data pipelines that include acquisition, storage, augmentation, and processing of data. Ability to create instructional materials and tutorials.

Working Conditions and Physical Effort

No unusual physical requirements. Requires no heavy lifting, and nearly all work is performed in a comfortable indoor facility.

Instructions for Applying:

Candidates must apply on-line by submitting a cover letter; curriculum vitae (including link to code repository if possible); teaching statement; and a list of three references. Apply through the Mississippi State University HRM website: www.jobs.msstate.edu. The position will remain open until filled.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement:

MSU is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, ethnicity, sex, religion, national origin, disability, age, sexual orientation, genetic information, pregnancy, gender identity, status as a U.S. veteran, and/or any other status protected by applicable law. We always welcome nominations and applications from women, members of any minority group, and others who share our passion for building a diverse community that reflects the diversity in our student population.

What do I do if I need an accommodation?

In compliance with the ADA Amendments Act (ADA), if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to apply for a position with Mississippi State University, please contact the Department of Human Resources Management at tel: (662) 325-3713 or ada@hrm.msstate.edu.

If you have any questions regarding this policy, contact the Department of Human Resources Management at (662) 325-3713 or ada@hrm.msstate.edu. Upon request, sections of this job listing are available in large print, and readers are available to assist the visually impaired.