Postdoctoral Scholar to Tenure-Track Assistant Professor - Digital Visual Cultures of the Middle East and North Africa

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Job Title

Postdoctoral Scholar to Tenure-Track Assistant Professor - Digital Visual Cultures of the Middle East and North Africa

Department

Arts and Sciences | Near Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures

Postdoctoral Scholar to Tenure-Track Assistant Professor , Humanities-based Interdisciplinary World Languages and Cultures

Digital Visual Cultures of the Middle East and North Africa

Department of Near Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures

College of Arts and Sciences

Position Overview

The Department of Near Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures (NESA) at The Ohio State University invites applications for a Postdoctoral Scholar to Tenure-Track Assistant Professor position in Humanities-based Interdisciplinary World Languages and Cultures beginning August 15, 2027. We aim to hire a dynamic scholar who will contribute to the vibrant and collegial intellectual communities of our department by engaging with interdisciplinary research, innovative teaching, program development, community engagement, and service.

This is one of three Postdoctoral Scholar to Tenure-Track Assistant Professor positions in Humanities-based Interdisciplinary World Languages and Cultures, the other two being in the departments of French and Italian and Germanic Languages and Literatures. We are also conducting searches for three Tenure-Track Assistant Professors position in Transnational World Language Studies in the departments of East Asian Languages and Literatures, Spanish and Portuguese and Slavic, and East Europeans Languages and Cultures.

In keeping with the department’s commitment to interdisciplinarity, we are especially interested in scholars of digital visual cultures of the Middle East and North Africa. The successful candidate will engage the relationship between cultures, identities, and digital visual media in the Middle East, North Africa (MENA), and/or its diasporas globally, focusing on areas such as cinema, digital arts and curatorial practices, and the circulation of images across platforms. The successful candidate will fill a critical gap in our departmental offerings by studying visual cultures and/or media in dynamic relationship with the social, political, and artistic communities they create or engage.

We are particularly interested in scholars whose research and teaching reflect the department’s commitment to interdisciplinary research in the languages of MENA expressive cultures. Candidates must demonstrate high proficiency in at least one major language of the region and a record of integrating language expertise and interdisciplinary scholarship.

Experience in and/or commitment to public-facing or community engaged scholarship is preferred, in particular around initiatives relating to working with undergraduate students through interdisciplinary experiential learning initiatives to help prepare them for a variety of careers. Community engagement is an essential component of this position. The successful candidate will propose a plan for pursuing publicly engaged research and/or teaching. Potential pathways include local K-12 partnerships, curation of film festivals and/or film series, and promoting intercultural competency and global fluency broadly across the campus community.

Following a two-year Postdoctoral Scholar appointment, the Post-Doctoral Scholar will then transfer to a tenure-track faculty position at the rank of assistant professor within the Department and the tenure clock will begin. The postdoctoral scholar positions are funded by the Mellon Foundation grant “Global Fluency, Career Agility: Transforming World Languages at Ohio State.” Mellon Post-docs will focus time on research for up to two years allowing for an in-depth start on scholarship, teach one course per academic year, be involved with the Center for Languages, Literatures, and Cultures’ extensive programming around preparing students to enter careers in our global environment, participate in the activities within the Department, and have a set of designated faculty mentors who are engaged in research on topics relating to world language education, global fluency and intercultural competence, and their area of specialization.

Performance Objectives

• Maintain an active research agenda on digital visual cultures of the Middle East and North Africa, anchored in at least one of the major languages of the region.
• Develop and teach General Education courses related to Digital Visual Cultures of the Middle East and North Africa.
• Develop specialized courses that complement current department and college offerings for undergraduate and graduate students, including promoting AI fluency.
• Advance the Mellon-funded Transforming World Languages at OSU initiative by collaborating with faculty and staff across disciplines, contributing to innovative programming, and creating new courses that strengthen students’ global fluency and intercultural competence.
• Cultivate interdisciplinary initiatives across OSU departments and centers.
• Develop public facing and community-engaged teaching and/or outreach programs for OSU and Central Ohio communities.

Education and Experience Qualifications

Required

• PhD in Film, Media Studies, Art History, Comparative Literature, Anthropology, Near Eastern or Middle Eastern Studies, Area Studies, or related field required at time of appointment which is August 15, 2027. ABDs welcome to apply.
• Native or near-native fluency in at least one major language in the Middle East and North Africa, such as Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, or Turkish.
• Candidates must demonstrate achievement or strong promise of scholarly success.

Desired

• Experience in and/or commitment to public-facing or community engaged scholarship, teaching, and/or service .

Ohio State provides access to a depth and breadth of opportunities and resources. Starting your first day, Ohio State offers you a comprehensive benefits package .

How to Apply

To be considered, please submit your application electronically via Workday, https://osu.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/OSUCareers/job/Columbus-Campus/Postdoctoral-Scholar-to-Tenure-Track-Assistant-Professor---Digital-Visual-Cultures-of-the-Middle-East-and-North-Africa_R160526

The application period closes November 20, 2026.

Inquiries may be directed to J ohanna Sellman (Sellman.13@osu.edu) .

You will be presented with the opportunity to attach up to FIVE documents in the Application Documents section. Please include the following:

• Attachment 1: Cover Letter: 1-2 page letter, which should include a brief summary of your academic background and why you are interested in this opportunity.
• Attachment 2: CV (Curriculum Vitae): Detailed overview of your scholarly experience, including your research experience, teaching and mentoring experience, service, engagement, and publications.