Assistant or Associate Professor Electrochemical Energy Storage and Conversion

Assistant or Associate Professor Electrochemical Energy Storage and Conversion

Location : Knoxville, TN

Open Date : Sep 24, 2025

Description :

The Tickle College of Engineering (TCE) at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) is seeking applicants to participate in a college-level cluster of tenure-eligible faculty members in Electrochemical Energy Storage in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.  This position is for a tenure-track faculty position at the assistant- or associate-professor level and will be supported by two additional hires at the full professor and assistant professor ranks.  This initiative is in response to substantial growth in the battery manufacturing sector statewide, encompassing both large and small businesses.  Successful applicants for appointments in the cluster are expected to contribute to the teaching mission of the university in their discipline.  For applicants to senior level positions, commitment to mentoring junior investigators is critical and demonstrated experience is highly desirable.

The successful applicants at each rank will have skills and experience complementary to those within the cluster and the broader UTK community.  They should have knowledge and expertise in electrochemical energy storage and conversion, including, but not limited to, battery-related science and / or engineering, testing and electrochemical characterization or material preparation, and / or in important areas that are synergistic with conventional electrochemical energy storage technologies, such as manufacturing or recycling of batteries. Candidates with research focus that includes components of electrochemical storage devices and systems are also encouraged to apply. In addition, a connection to advanced manufacturing of electrochemical storage devices is of interest given the strengths of the university in this area and the strong regional interest in battery manufacturing. We seek collaboration-oriented faculty.

The Tickle College of Engineering (TCE) is in the midst of an unprecedented period of growth and success, including adding over 30 new faculty to the college as part of ambitious hiring campaigns led by Chancellor Donde Plowman and Dean Matthew Mench. The college has set records in research expenditures, enrollment, incoming student GPA, intellectual property development, and USNWR rank in the past three years. New facilities include the state-of-the art Zeanah Engineering Complex, the University of Tennessee Manufacturing and Design Enterprise (TN-MADE) facility, and the Innovation South building now under construction that will house UTK’s Fibers and Composites Manufacturing Facility (FCMF).

TCE currently has 203 tenure / tenure track and 79 non-tenure track faculty in its nine academic departments and offers 11 undergraduate, 16 MS, and 15 PhD / DE degree programs. Affiliated with TCE and located in Tullahoma, Tennessee, the UT Space Institute is a hub of aerospace and defense research. The college is also home to eight research centers and three interdisciplinary institutes. With approximately 4,300 undergraduate and 1,500 graduate students, the college sits 29th among public universities in the most recent U.S. News and World Report graduate rankings. Faculty in the college have won 29 early career awards (NSF, DOE, DARPA, AFOSR, and ARO) since 2016. In FY24, the college had annual research expenditures of $113.6M.

Qualifications :

Minimum Qualifications :

• Applicants must have earned a PhD (or equivalent) in mechanical engineering or a closely related field at the time of appointment.
• All candidates must be able to teach Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering courses at undergraduate and graduate level.
• Candidates for the rank of Associate Professor must have at least five years of post-PhD (or equivalent degree) experience in the relevant field at the time of appointment.

Preferred Qualifications :

Application Instructions :

Applications should be submitted to the online listing ( apply.interfolio.com / 174595 ) and include : (1) a single-page cover letter articulating the applicant’s interest in and qualifications for this position, (2) a curriculum vitae, (3) a select subset of one to three representative publications, (4) a research statement outlining previous and future directions (maximum four pages), (5) a teaching and mentoring statement (maximum three pages), and (6) the names of three to five references. Applications will be reviewed continuously, but those received by November 30, 2025 will receive priority. Any additional questions may be sent to the search committee chair, Dr. Brett Compton at brettcompton@utk.edu.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement :

All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment and admission without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, veteran status, and parental status, or any other characteristic protected by federal or state law. In accordance with the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the University of Tennessee affirmatively states that it does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, or disability in its education programs and activities, and this policy extends to employment by the university.

Requests for accommodation of a disability should be directed to the ADA Coordinator at Equal Opportunity and Accessibility, 1840 Melrose Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37996-3560, by email to  eoa@utk.edu , or by phone at 865-974-2498. Inquiries and charges of violation of Title VI (race, color, and national origin), Title IX (sex), Section 504 (disability), the ADA (disability), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (age), sexual orientation, or veteran status should be directed to the Office of Investigation and Resolution, 216 Business Incubator Building, E J. Chapman Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996-3560, by email to  investigations@utk.edu , or by phone at 865-974-0717.