Current Opportunities at Vanderbilt

EMIT Fellows will be an integral part of the first graduate program in Multimessenger Astronomy in the nation, as well as the first graduate astronomy certificate to center inclusion within every aspect of the program. Given our diverse community and goals, we prioritize candidates with experience in equity, diversity and inclusion in teaching, mentoring, research, life experiences, or service. EMIT Fellows are independent scholars who devote 80% of their time to research and 20% of their time to faculty development activities such as teaching, mentoring graduate students, or leadership within the EMIT program, depending on the Fellow’s career aspirations. 

Fisk University is a highly-ranked private historically black university with an outstanding reputation and collaborative and supportive faculty; it is the oldest college or university in Nashville, and home to the Fisk-Vanderbilt Masters-to-PhD Bridge Program, a national model for the recruitment, retention, and training of talented underrepresented minority scholars in physics and astronomy. Vanderbilt University is a private research university ranked in the top 15 nationally; its 330 acre park-like campus is located on the western edge of downtown Nashville, known colloquially as Music City and consistently rated as one of the best cities in the US in which to live and work.

Together, the physics and astronomy group at Fisk and Vanderbilt has access to ample computational, observational, and data science resources to facilitate research, mentoring, and education. Fisk and Vanderbilt are part of major astronomy and physics collaborations such as LIGO, LISA, NANOGrav, the International Pulsar Timing Array, SDSS IV, LSST, LHC, CMS, and EHT. Vanderbilt houses the state-of-the-art Advanced Computing Center for Research and Education (ACCRE) cluster with ~10,000 cores and cutting-edge GPU resources. In addition, Vanderbilt launched a new Data Science Institute, which will feature training, infrastructure, and support for data-intensive work, and Fisk launched a new Data Science Masters Program.

This position is for two years, with the potential for an additional year contingent upon performance and the availability of funding. The first year will formally be at Vanderbilt University, and subsequent years will formally be at Fisk University. EMIT Fellowships come with an attractive salary commensurate with other prestigious prize fellowships in physics and astronomy, including full benefits, relocation expenses, and a competitive research budget.

Competitive candidates should submit (1) a cover letter, (2) full curriculum vitae, (3) statement of research interests, and (4) and a statement addressing past and/or potential contributions to diversity through research, teaching, and/or service directly to stephen.r.taylor@vanderbilt.edu, with the subject line “EMIT Fellow”. Applicants should arrange for three letters of recommendation to be sent to the same email with a subject line “EMIT Letter” and the name of the applicant. Review of applications will begin immediately until the position is filled. Questions can be addressed to stephen.r.taylor@vanderbilt.edu. We look forward to hearing from you!