Assistant Professor of Geography (Environmental Remote Sensing & Remotely Piloted Aerial Systems)

Current FAA Part 107 License Preferred

The Department of Geography and Planning currently enrolls 100+ undergraduate majors and 25 Master's degree students. Department resources include two GIScience labs, a shared visualization lab, and a full-time GIScience lab systems administrator.

The Department of Geography and Planning at Appalachian State University invites applications for a full-time, 9-month, tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor beginning August 2027.

We are seeking an active teacher-scholar specializing in Environmental Remote Sensing and Remotely Piloted Aerial Systems (RPAS/drones). The ideal candidate will leverage these technologies to address pressing climate, environmental, or earth systems questions. Given our location in the Southern Appalachian Mountains, candidates whose research can utilize or benefit from regional mountain environments-while maintaining a nationally or internationally recognized research program-are highly encouraged to apply.

The successful candidate will teach undergraduate and graduate courses in our core GIScience curriculum, including introductory and advanced Environmental Remote Sensing and GIS, RPAS/Drone workflows and regulations, and potentially other courses in physical geography, climate science, environmental modeling, or spatial data science. This position involves active mentorship of both undergraduate students and students in our M.A. in Geography program.

Essential Responsibilities

* Teaching: Teach a typical 3/3 load consisting of remote sensing, drone applications, and GIScience courses, one or more will be graduate level taught online.

* Research: Maintain a robust research agenda resulting in peer-reviewed publications and actively seek external funding.

* Service: Participate in departmental, college, and university-level service.

* Mentorship: Advise undergraduate majors and serve on graduate thesis committees for the M.A. in Geography program.

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions

ABD with reduction in rank and salary: ABD will be considered for this position. Evidence of successful defense of the dissertation must be received by July 31 for a fall hire or November 30 for a spring hire. If confirmation of defense is not provided by the deadline, the candidate will receive a new one-year fixed-term contract and be hired at the rank of Instructor. The candidate's salary will also be reduced to a lower rate commensurate with other full-time instructors in the same department. However, if degree verification is provided before the end of the one-year fixed-term contract, the candidate will be returned to the rank of assistant professor with commensurate compensation beginning July 1 of the following academic year.

No ABD consideration: Only candidates with an earned doctorate or terminal degree from an accredited institution will be considered for the position. Since ABD will not meet the minimum requirements, ABD will not be considered.

For full consideration, applications must be submitted electronically through the
Appalachian State University portal.
Applicants should submit:

The continued employment of a special faculty member during the term appointment may be made expressly contingent on items such as the continued availability of funding from any source, on enrollment levels, or any other contingency established by the institution.