Assistant Professor - Director of Forensics - Department of Communication Studies #27-10

Job no: 561468
Work type: Instructional Faculty - Tenured/Tenure-Track
Location: Northridge
Categories: Unit 3 - CFA - California Faculty Association, Tenured/Tenure-Track, Full Time, Faculty - Communications/Journalism, On-site (work in-person at business location)

Tenure-Track Faculty Position Announcement

Department: Communication Studies

Faculty Hire Number: 27-10

Rank: Assistant Professor

Effective Date of Appointment: Fall 2027 (Subject to Budgetary Approval)

Anticipated Hiring Range: $88,000 to $95,000 (Dependent upon qualifications)

Position:

The department of Communication Studies at California State University, Northridge (CSUN) is seeking a tenure-track faculty member as a Director of Forensics at the rank of Assistant Professor.

The successful candidate will teach undergraduate and graduate courses in the department. The ideal candidate will remain active in the discipline, continue to develop expertise in evidence-backed debate and forensics pedagogy, and maintain a scholarly agenda that results in publication or equivalent contributions.

We seek a candidate with demonstrated experience or clear potential for teaching, mentoring, advising, and organizing programs that foster equity, inclusion, and representation, especially in relation to CSUN's diverse student population. The candidate should demonstrate experience coaching evidence-backed debate formats, including but not limited to NDT/CEDA Policy debate, Collegiate Advocacy Research Debate, Lincoln-Douglas, and/or Public Forum, as well as the ability or potential for Individual Events coaching, contribute to public debate programming, collaborate with urban debate leagues (UDL) or traditionally underserved student populations, and engagement with inclusive pedagogical practices. The candidate will also demonstrate the ability to coordinate operations, logistics, and supervision of forensics travel.

In addition to teaching, the position requires weekly office hours, attending faculty meetings, participation in assessment of student learning, and service to the department, college, and university. The successful candidate may be required to teach on weekdays, evenings, weekends, and/or online, travel with the forensics team, and will be held to the standards and requirements of the college and department in which he/she/they is/are housed for recommending tenure and promotion. Given CSUN's commitment to excellence in teaching, research, and engagement in a diverse environment, the successful candidate will help the Department achieve equitable academic outcomes for all students through teaching, student mentorship, scholarship, and service.

Responsibilities:

Faculty success at CSUN is measured by the following criteria: professional responsibilities, teaching effectiveness, contributions to one's field of study, and service to the University and Community.

The standard teaching assignment is 12 units (4 courses per semester). However, new faculty members in their first two years teach 9 units per semester (3 courses). The successful candidate will be expected to join faculty and staff in a commitment to active learning, to assessment of learning outcomes, and to multiple teaching and learning modalities, including face-to-face, online, and hybrid courses.

Successful candidates should be able to teach undergraduate and graduate courses offered by the department. A description of Communication Studies courses can be found here. Faculty members may have the opportunity to develop new courses as needed by the department. Teaching in other departments is possible, depending on the candidate's interests and the needs of the Communication Studies department.

Peer-reviewed publications are required for tenure and promotion. CSUN faculty members can apply for competitive awards that provide course releases or fund travel for research.

Participation in shared governance, usually in Department, College, and University committees and other service assignments, and other service activities is expected.

Required Qualifications:

• An earned Ph.D. in Communication Studies or related field from an accredited institution at time of hire;
• Evidence of a minimum of two years of experience coaching an evidence-backed debate format, including but not limited to NDT/CEDA Policy debate, Collegiate Advocacy Research Debate, Lincoln-Douglas, and/or Public-Forum Debate;
• Evidence of, or clear potential for excellence in teaching argumentation and one or more undergraduate or graduate level courses offered in the department (in-person or online);
• Evidence of, or clear potential for, research and scholarly activity that results in peer reviewed publication or equivalent scholarly contributions; and
• Evidence of, or clear potential for, mentoring and advising students from diverse backgrounds.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Evidence of organizing public debate events;
• Evidence of, or clear potential for excellence in coaching individual events;
• Evidence of, or clear potential for, research and other scholarly activity that contributes to the department's commitment to social justice, including but not limited to research related to underserved, underrepresented, and/or marginalized communities; and
• Evidence of, or clear potential for, the use of inclusive pedagogical practices in the classroom.

Application Deadline:

Preferred application deadline is October 2, 2026 and applications received after this date may be considered on an as-needed basis. However, the position will remain open until filled.

How to Apply:

Candidates should apply by completing the CSUN online application. To apply and for more detailed information on the application and hiring process, please visit this link: www.csun.edu/careers

Applicants must submit the following to www.csun.edu/careers:

• a cover letter addressing the responsibilities and qualifications described above;
• a current curriculum vitae that includes contact information (name, title, e-mail address, and phone number) for three professional references; and
• a research statement of no more than one-single-spaced page addressing the candidate's scholarly agenda, publication or equivalent scholarly trajectory, and future research plans.

At the time of appointment, the successful candidate, if not a U.S. citizen, must have authorization from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to work in the United States. Applicants must be authorized to work for any employer in the United States.

Please note: California State University, Northridge (CSUN) is currently not sponsoring applicants for H-1B employment that are subject to the $100,000 fee established by the "Presidential Proclamation: Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers" issued on September 19, 2025. Applicants are responsible for determining the applicability of the fee.

Inquiries may be addressed to:

Dr. Melissa Tindage, Search Committee Chair

[email protected]

Education Code 89521 Requirements: Applicants will be required to disclose whether they have received a final administrative decision or final judicial decision determining that they have committed sexual harassment within the last 7 years only after a determination is made that they meet the minimum qualifications for the position, and before an offer of employment is extended. Applicants who reach the final stages of the application process must also sign a release form that authorizes the release of information by the applicant's current and/or former employers to the CSU concerning any substantiated allegations of misconduct.

General Information:

In compliance with the Annual Security Report & Fire Safety Report of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, California State University, Northridge has made crime-reporting statistics available on-line here. Print copies are available by request from the Department of Police Services, the Office for Faculty Affairs, and the Office of Equity and Diversity.

The person holding this position may be considered a 'mandated reporter' under the California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and is required to comply with the requirements set forth in CSU Executive Order 1083 as a condition of employment.

A background check (including a criminal records check) must be completed satisfactorily before any candidate can be offered a position with the CSU. Failure to satisfactorily complete the background check may affect the application status of applicants or continued employment of current CSU employees who apply for the position.

In accordance with the California State University (CSU) Out-of-State Employment Policy, the CSU is a state entity whose business operations reside within the State of California and prohibits hiring employees to perform CSU-related work outside of California.

Advertised: Sep 03 2026 Pacific Daylight Time
Applications close:

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