Posting DetailsPosition Information
Proposed Faculty Rank Associate or Full Professor
Department 01508 - Games
City Salt Lake City, UT
Track Tenure Track
New Position to Begin 7/1/2027
Details The Division of Games at the University of Utah invites applications for a tenure-line Associate or Full Professor in Games, with a focus on teams in the context of games, either in game development or game play, to begin Fall 2027.
This hire is part of the PRESS PLAY Initiative (https://games.utah.edu/pressplay/), a $25 million, multi-year investment by the University of Utah in the faculty, facilities, and programs of the Division of Games. PRESS PLAY is growing both our teaching faculty and our research faculty, and new colleagues will help shape the next stage of games education and research at the U.
We seek a scholar whose research examines how teams, groups, and organizations create, coordinate, and innovate in game development, gameplay, and/or virtual worlds. Candidates should demonstrate strength in advancing theories, models, methods, or tools that deepen our understanding of how people work together to design, create, and/or play with or within complex game systems. Areas of interest may include team cognition and collaborative design in game development; human-computer interaction and human-centered computing for game-making teams; organizational behavior and production processes in games and interactive media; team dynamics, coordination, communication, and performance in esports; computational social science and data-driven modeling of game-related team dynamics; human-AI teaming in game development or gameplay; and socio-technical systems in the creative practices around games.
The successful candidate will lead a nationally and internationally recognized, externally funded research program and will play a leadership role in growing the Division's research enterprise, including graduate education and collaborations across disciplines and funding agencies. They will teach undergraduate and graduate courses and mentor junior faculty and graduate students. We especially welcome candidates who connect these areas to broader domains of games research and practice, and whose work connects with the Kahlert School of Computing, the David Eccles School of Business, Psychology, or the University's planned Institute for Digital Experience.
Necessary Qualifications- A PhD in human-computer interaction, computer science, information science, psychology, organizational behavior, or a related field, with relevance to teams, processes, or collaboration in game creation or game play
- Broad knowledge of games and game development practice, sufficient to teach in-person courses across the Division's undergraduate and graduate curricula on the Salt Lake City campus
- Demonstrated depth of expertise and a distinguished record of scholarship in game-related areas, qualifying for appointment with tenure at the rank of Associate or Full Professor
- A sustained record of external research funding
- Demonstrated commitment to teaching and/or mentoring undergraduate and graduate students in lectures, seminars, and studio simulations
- Demonstrated capacity to contribute to university and professional service and leadership, such as collaborative curriculum development, unit or college administrative service roles, outreach to local industry and government partners, or recruitment
Preferred Qualifications- Research examining team dynamics, collaboration, coordination, cognition, communication, or performance in game development, esports, competitive gameplay, or other team-based gaming contexts.
- Expertise in one or more relevant areas, such as human-computer interaction, organizational behavior, cognitive science, computational social science, human-AI teaming, or socio-technical systems, with demonstrated application to games or interactive media.
- Experience with empirical, computational, qualitative, or mixed-methods approaches to studying teams, collaborative processes, organizational practices, or player behavior.
- Research that advances theoretical frameworks, methods, or tools for understanding or improving team effectiveness, collaborative creativity, or coordinated activity in game development or gameplay.
- Demonstrated academic leadership, such as directing a research lab or center, leading interdisciplinary collaborations, or developing externally funded research programs involving multiple investigators, institutions, or industry partners.
Special Instructions for Candidates All qualified individuals are strongly encouraged to apply. Review of applications will begin immediately and proceed until the position is filled. The position will start July 1, 2027.
Application MaterialsTo apply, candidates must submit the following materials:
- Current CV
- Cover letter describing your interest in the position, identifying the area(s) of expertise for which you wish to be considered in evaluation and summarizing your research expertise and personal academic goals.
- A Teaching Statement that addresses your experience and plans for teaching and student mentoring.
- A Research Statement describing your current and planned research.
- Up to three representative publications.
- Contact information for five references.
These materials should make clear how the applicant meets each of the necessary qualifications for the position and, at the candidate's discretion, how the applicant meets our preferred qualifications beyond the necessary ones.
Open Date 10/20/2026
Close DateOpen Until Filled Yes
Requisition Number PRN01610CF
Type Faculty
