The College of Liberal Arts at the University of Minnesotaâ”Twin Cities and the Religious Studies Program invite applications for a full-time, tenure-track faculty position at the assistant professor level in Early Islam (to c. 1250). The appointment will begin on August 25, 2025. The appointment will be 100% time over the 9-month academic year with a 2/2 course load at the rank of tenure-track assistant professor. Salary is competitive. We seek a scholar of Early Islam who has some background in Religious Studies. Possible methodological approaches and areas of specialization include, but are not limited to:

• Early Islamic world 
• Critical historical, comparative, literary, or anthropological approaches
• Exegesis, rhetoric, oral and written textuality, interpretive traditions
• Historiography
• Qurâ™anic studies
• Islamic legal studies 
• Classical Islamic thought (and its modern resonances)
• Transnational connections, race, ethnicity, and identity
• Interreligious encounters, negotiations, and/or dialogue
• Social, political, and economic history of early Muslim/Islamic societies

This will be a joint appointment between the interdepartmental Religious Studies Program and the tenure-granting department within the College of Liberal Arts that best fits the candidateâ™s scholarship and research field. 

Responsibilities

As a tenure-track faculty member, responsibilities will include executing an innovative and consistent research and publication agenda; offering courses in the area of research specialty as well as teaching core courses in the Religious Studies and Islamic Studies undergraduate and graduate curricula (e.g., Foundational Islamic Texts; Introduction to Religions of the World; and/or Theory and Methods in the Study of Religion); supervising graduate research (in Religious Studies and the tenure-granting department); creating new avenues for cross-disciplinary research at the university that would include the study of Islam; and service to the Religious Studies Program, the tenure department, the College, and the University. Additional responsibilities in the tenure department will be determined. The regular teaching load is 2/2.

Faculty in the College of Liberal Arts are expected to maintain an active program of scholarly research or creative activity that includes publication, exhibition, or performance; develop and teach undergraduate and graduate courses; advise students; and contribute service appropriate for the rank of appointment to the department, college, University, and profession.

Applicants may be interested in the Workload Principles and Guidelines for Regular Faculty in the College of Liberal Arts.

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. must be completed by the starting date of the position (August 25, 2025).
• Strong command of classical Arabic
• Demonstrated ability to work outside of and across traditional disciplines

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated competence in other languages relevant to the study of early Islam, such as Hebrew, Coptic, Greek, Persian, Syriac, Geâ™ez, etc. 
• Teaching experience in Religious Studies and/or Islamic Studies. 

Selection Criteria 

Candidates will be evaluated according to the following:

• Quality, depth, and innovation of intellectual work (in progress and published)
• Relevance of research and teaching to the academic priorities of the Religious Studies program and the tenure-granting department
• Evidence of commitment to teaching and mentoring.
• Demonstrated skill as an undergraduate teacher and advisor.
• Potential contributions to academic service, administration, and departmental outreach for the Religious Studies and Islamic Studies programs
• Evidence of commitment to and experience creating a diverse and inclusive atmosphere within the program, department, and university.
• Strength of recommendations.
   

About University of Minnesota Twin Cities

The University of Minnesota, founded in the belief that all people are enriched by understanding, is dedicated to the advancement of learning and the search for truth; to the sharing of this knowledge through education for a diverse community; and to the application of this knowledge to benefit the people of the state, the nation, and the world.

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