Assistant Professor Bird or Mammal Biologist - Department of Biology

Assistant Professor Bird or Mammal Biologist - Department of
Biology #27-22

Tenure-Track Faculty Position Announcement

Department: Biology

Faculty Hire Number: #27-22

Rank: Assistant Professor

Effective Date of Appointment: August 19, 2027
(Subject to Budgetary Approval)

Anticipated Hiring Range: $83,349 to $92,610
(Dependent upon qualifications)

CSUN's Commitment to You

California State University, Northridge (CSUN) is committed to
achieving excellence through teaching, scholarship, learning, and
inclusion. Our values include a respect for all people, building
partnerships with the community and the encouragement of
innovation, experimentation, and creativity. CSUN strives to
cultivate a community in which a diverse population can learn and
work in an atmosphere of civility and respect. CSUN is especially
interested in candidates who make contributions to equity and
inclusion in the pursuit of excellence for all members of the
university community.

As a Hispanic-serving Institution (HSI), inclusiveness and
diversity are integral to CSUN's commitment to excellence in
teaching, research, and engagement. As of fall 2025, CSUN enrolled
36,960 students, where 57.5% are Latinx, 18.4% are White, 8.5% are
Asian-American, 5.5% are Black/African American, 0.1% are Native
American, and 0.1% are Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander.

For more information about the CSUN, visit: http://www.csun.edu.

About the College

For more information about the College of Science and Mathematics,
see: https://www.csun.edu/science-mathematics.

About the Department

For more information about the Department of Biology, see: https://www.csun.edu/science-mathematics/biology.

Position

The Department of Biology at California State University,
Northridge (CSUN) is seeking a tenure-track faculty member to serve
as a Bird or Mammal Biologist at the rank of Assistant Professor.
We seek candidates whose teaching and research interests focus on
extant birds or mammals, and who have a commitment to serving as
our next Curator of the Bird or Mammal collections. The successful
candidate may teach courses in introductory biology for majors
(BIOL 106) and in the candidate's specialty, including courses in
Avian Ecology (BIOL 414) or Mammalogy (BIOL 415) with lab and field
components, or other senior/graduate-level courses. The candidate's
teaching portfolio will complement existing courses in the
department, including upper division organismal and field courses,
ecology, evolutionary biology, molecular ecology, conservation
biology, biometry, and computational modeling. The successful
candidate will demonstrate the potential to develop an independent
externally funded research program that engages undergraduate and
graduate students in authentic research experiences. The successful
candidate will also be familiar with the natural history and
biology of extant birds or mammals of Southern California and
develop a teaching and research focus that leverages and grows the
department's vertebrate collections. The successful candidate will
seek opportunities for collaboration with other Biology faculty and
peers from other institutions and regional, state, and federal
agencies.

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 and will be held to the standards
and requirements of the College of Science and Mathematics and
Department of Biology 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 of Biology achieve equitable academic outcomes
for all students through teaching, student mentorship, scholarship,
and service.

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Biology or a closely related field from an accredited

institution

• At least one year of postdoctoral research experience or one

year as an assistant professor or museum curator at an accredited
institution by the time of hire

• Experience in college or university-level, in-person

teaching

• Ability to teach upper division courses in avian ecology or

mammalogy focused on extant taxa and including lab and field
components

• Experience mentoring undergraduate and graduate students in

research

• Strong publication record in peer-reviewed journals, including

first-authored papers

• Record of acquiring extramural research funds to support the

candidate's research

• Research experience focused on the biology of extant birds or

mammals, excluding humans and traditional model organisms (e.g.,
domestic poultry, lab rodents)

• Research experience that is at least partly collections

based

• Museum collections experience with bird or mammal specimens

(e.g., curator, collections manager, curatorial assistant,
preparator)

Preferred Qualifications

• Evidence of effective engagement or potential to engage with a

diverse student body

• Experience using culturally responsive pedagogy that leads to

equitable outcomes for all students

• Experience creating a student-centered learning environment,

including evidence of teaching effectiveness and/or training in
pedagogical strategies

• Research experience that includes working with students from

diverse backgrounds

• Experience adopting inclusive approaches to student

mentoring

• Ability to teach an introductory course for biology majors

focused on core principles in ecology and evolutionary biology

• A research program and complementary teaching interests focused

at the whole-organism, population, or taxon level, such as
systematics, biogeography, evolution, ecology, morphology,
biomechanics, physiology, or behavior

• Ability to serve as curator and commitment to contribute to the

maintenance and growth of the bird or mammal collections

• Ability to establish collaborations with departmental or

institutional colleagues, and/or evidence of prior collaborations
with peers from other institutions or state and/or federal
management agencies

Application Deadline

Preferred application deadline is November 16,
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: www.csun.edu/careers.

Applicants must submit to the website in the section above (1) a
cover letter, (2) curriculum vitae, (3) statement of research
interests (two pages), (4) statement of teaching philosophy and
experience (two pages), (5) names of three references. Although we
do not request a separate diversity statement, candidates should
highlight their experience and philosophy for working in a diverse,
equitable, and inclusive environment in their research and teaching
statements.

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.

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.

CSUN is an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination
based on race, color, ethnicity, religion, national origin, age,
gender, gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, genetic
information, medical condition, marital status, veteran status, and
disability. Our nondiscrimination policy is set forth in the
Interim
CSU Nondiscrimination Policy. Reasonable accommodations will be
provided for applicants with disabilities who self-disclose by
contacting Robert Espinoza at (818) 677-4980.

To apply, visit https://careers.pageuppeople.com/873/nr/en-us/job/563021/assistant-professor-bird-or-mammal-biologist-department-of-biology-2722

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