Assistant Professor Positions in Artificial Intelligence for Sustainability and Resilience

Position Description

The George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing at Rice University in Houston, Texas, invites applications for two tenure-track Assistant Professor positions in artificial intelligence for sustainability and resilience, with anticipated start dates of July 1, 2027. These positions are part of a coordinated, school-wide initiative to build strength in technically rigorous AI and its application to consequential scientific and engineering challenges.

We seek candidates who develop, advance, or apply artificial intelligence to address challenges in sustainability and resilience. We welcome research across a broad range of scientific and engineering domains that combines technical depth in AI with the potential for significant impact on sustainable and resilient systems.

Successful candidates will demonstrate technical depth in AI scholarship and clear potential for transformative domain impact. Rice seeks faculty who embrace a culture of excellence, innovation, collaboration, responsible technological development, and inclusive mentorship. Excellence in research and teaching will be the primary criteria for evaluation.

Responsibilities
The selected candidate will be expected to establish or maintain a vigorous, externally funded research program with national and international recognition; conduct innovative research and disseminate results through high-impact publications, conferences, and other scholarly activities; and teach undergraduate and graduate courses aligned with their expertise. Additional responsibilities include advising and mentoring undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral researchers; contributing to departmental, school, university, and professional service; and fostering interdisciplinary collaborations within Rice and with external partners. The successful candidate will demonstrate a strong commitment to excellence in teaching, advising, and mentoring students from a broad range of backgrounds and experiences and will contribute to the continued strength of undergraduate and graduate education across the department and the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing. Rice’s highly collaborative environment provides opportunities to engage with researchers in materials science, computational science, energy, advanced manufacturing, biomedical engineering, and other disciplines.

We welcome the fullness of diversity at Rice. Qualified applicants are considered without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability, or protected veteran status. In our candidate pools, we seek to increase the representation of women, scholars of color, people with disabilities, veterans, and others who have historically been underrepresented in engineering, computing, and the statistical sciences; attract scholars and students from a wide range of countries, backgrounds, and experiences; accelerate progress toward building a faculty and staff community with diverse perspectives and expertise; and maintain an environment that fosters interaction, understanding, and belonging throughout our community.

About the School of Engineering and Computing’s AI Initiative
The School’s Vision 2030 strategic plan identifies three research thrusts: Health and Well-being, Sustainability and Resilience, and Computing and AI. Consistent with that broader vision, Rice Engineering and Computing is undertaking a multi-year faculty hiring initiative in artificial intelligence. For the 2026–27 hiring cycle, the School is recruiting for three positions: one open-rank position in Foundational AI and two Assistant Professor positions in AI for Sustainability and Resilience. The initiative prioritizes deep, technically rigorous AI scholarship, interdisciplinary collaboration, responsible technological development, and research with the potential for significant scientific and societal impact.

Within this initiative, the two AI for Sustainability and Resilience positions lie at the intersection of the Computing and AI and Sustainability and Resilience thrusts. This search prioritizes domain-specific applications of AI to engineering, materials, environmental systems, and sustainability. It supports the School’s goals of reinventing what we make; transforming how and where we live; and designing technologies and infrastructure that anticipate and respond to environmental, societal, and space-related challenges.

Candidates applying through this posting will be considered for a potential primary appointment in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, or Electrical and Computer Engineering. Candidates whose work aligns with multiple departments may be reviewed across multiple applicant pools, and joint or affiliated appointments may also be considered.

About Rice University
Rice University is a private, comprehensive research university located on a 300-acre, tree-lined campus in Houston, Texas, adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice serves nearly 9,200 undergraduate and graduate students and is distinguished by research excellence, a collaborative culture, and close engagement between students and faculty.

Houston’s leadership in energy, health care, aerospace, manufacturing, and data-intensive industries creates exceptional opportunities for external partnerships and research impact.

Qualifications

Applicants must hold a Ph.D. in chemical or biomolecular engineering; civil or environmental engineering; mechanical or aerospace engineering; statistics, or data science; computer science or machine learning; electrical or computer engineering; applied mathematics; operations research; materials science; environmental science; or a closely related field by the time of appointment.

Candidates should demonstrate excellence or exceptional promise in research and scholarship; the potential to establish a highly impactful, externally funded research program; a commitment to excellence in undergraduate and graduate teaching; and a commitment to mentoring students and contributing to a collaborative academic community.

Application Instructions

For full consideration, applications should be received by December 1, 2026. Review of applications will continue until the positions are filled.

Applicants must submit the following materials through Interfolio:
1. Curriculum vitae
2. Research statement, up to five pages
3. Statement of teaching philosophy, up to two pages
4. Names and contact information for three to five professional references. Letters of reference will be requested only if the candidate advances to the interview stage.

Applicants will also be asked in Interfolio to indicate their first and second preferred home departments from the following eligible options: Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, and Electrical and Computer Engineering.The George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing at Rice University in Houston, Texas, invites applications for two tenure-track Assistant Professor positions in artificial intelligence for sustainability and resilience, with anticipated start dates of July 1, 2027. These positions are part of a coordinated, school-wide initiative to build strength in technically rigorous AI and its application to consequential scientific and engineering challenges.

We seek candidates who develop, advance, or apply artificial intelligence to address challenges in sustainability and resilience. We welcome research across a broad range of scientific and engineering domains that combines technical depth in AI with the potential for significant impact on sustainable and resilient systems.

Successful candidates will demonstrate technical depth in AI scholarship and clear potential for transformative domain impact. Rice seeks faculty who embrace a culture of excellence, innovation, collaboration, responsible technological development, and inclusive mentorship. Excellence in research and teaching will be the primary criteria for evaluation.

Responsibilities
The selected candidate will be expected to establish or maintain a vigorous, externally funded research program with national and international recognition; conduct innovative research and disseminate results through high-impact publications, conferences, and other scholarly activities; and teach undergraduate and graduate courses aligned with their expertise. Additional responsibilities include advising and mentoring undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral researchers; contributing to departmental, school, university, and professional service; and fostering interdisciplinary collaborations within Rice and with external partners. The successful candidate will demonstrate a strong commitment to excellence in teaching, advising, and mentoring students from a broad range of backgrounds and experiences and will contribute to the continued strength of undergraduate and graduate education across the department and the George R. Brown School of Engineering and Computing. Rice’s highly collaborative environment provides opportunities to engage with researchers in materials science, computational science, energy, advanced manufacturing, biomedical engineering, and other disciplines.

We welcome the fullness of diversity at Rice. Qualified applicants are considered without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability, or protected veteran status. In our candidate pools, we seek to increase the representation of women, scholars of color, people with disabilities, veterans, and others who have historically been underrepresented in engineering, computing, and the statistical sciences; attract scholars and students from a wide range of countries, backgrounds, and experiences; accelerate progress toward building a faculty and staff community with diverse perspectives and expertise; and maintain an environment that fosters interaction, understanding, and belonging throughout our community.

About the School of Engineering and Computing’s AI Initiative
The School’s Vision 2030 strategic plan identifies three research thrusts: Health and Well-being, Sustainability and Resilience, and Computing and AI. Consistent with that broader vision, Rice Engineering and Computing is undertaking a multi-year faculty hiring initiative in artificial intelligence. For the 2026–27 hiring cycle, the School is recruiting for three positions: one open-rank position in Foundational AI and two Assistant Professor positions in AI for Sustainability and Resilience. The initiative prioritizes deep, technically rigorous AI scholarship, interdisciplinary collaboration, responsible technological development, and research with the potential for significant scientific and societal impact.

Within this initiative, the two AI for Sustainability and Resilience positions lie at the intersection of the Computing and AI and Sustainability and Resilience thrusts. This search prioritizes domain-specific applications of AI to engineering, materials, environmental systems, and sustainability. It supports the School’s goals of reinventing what we make; transforming how and where we live; and designing technologies and infrastructure that anticipate and respond to environmental, societal, and space-related challenges.

Candidates applying through this posting will be considered for a potential primary appointment in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, or Electrical and Computer Engineering. Candidates whose work aligns with multiple departments may be reviewed across multiple applicant pools, and joint or affiliated appointments may also be considered.

About Rice University
Rice University is a private, comprehensive research university located on a 300-acre, tree-lined campus in Houston, Texas, adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice serves nearly 9,200 undergraduate and graduate students and is distinguished by research excellence, a collaborative culture, and close engagement between students and faculty.

Houston’s leadership in energy, health care, aerospace, manufacturing, and data-intensive industries creates exceptional opportunities for external partnerships and research impact.

Qualifications

Applicants must hold a Ph.D. in chemical or biomolecular engineering; civil or environmental engineering; mechanical or aerospace engineering; statistics, or data science; computer science or machine learning; electrical or computer engineering; applied mathematics; operations research; materials science; environmental science; or a closely related field by the time of appointment.

Candidates should demonstrate excellence or exceptional promise in research and scholarship; the potential to establish a highly impactful, externally funded research program; a commitment to excellence in undergraduate and graduate teaching; and a commitment to mentoring students and contributing to a collaborative academic community.

Application Instructions

For full consideration, applications should be received by December 1, 2026. Review of applications will continue until the positions are filled.

Applicants must submit the following materials through Interfolio:
1. Curriculum vitae
2. Research statement, up to five pages
3. Statement of teaching philosophy, up to two pages
4. Names and contact information for three to five professional references. Letters of reference will be requested only if the candidate advances to the interview stage.

Applicants will also be asked in Interfolio to indicate their first and second preferred home departments from the following eligible options: Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Statistics, Computer Science, and Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Rice University is an Equal Opportunity Employer with commitment to diversity at all levels, and considers for employment qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, disability or protected veteran status.

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