School of Pharmacy- Assistant Professor Pharmaceutical Engineering

About Virginia Commonwealth University

We are the university for Virginia. We know that the unique backgrounds and life experiences of the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) community are what drive the university forward. Together, we’re forging a future that is built by us. Here, artists and engineers, doctors and designers come together to reimagine the human experience and tackle the problems of tomorrow.

About the School of Pharmacy

The VCU School of Pharmacy has a 126-year tradition rooted in the Medical College of Virginia and is ranked among the top 20 Schools of Pharmacy nationwide. We are dedicated to graduating outstanding scientists and pharmacists who improve human health, conduct exemplary research, and contribute to interprofessional patient care. The University recognizes the School of Pharmacy as the highest-ranking academic unit for Inclusive Excellence.

As a full-time employee at VCU, you'll have access to a generous benefits package that includes health, vision, and dental coverage, life insurance, short- and long-term disability coverage, retirement plans, flexible spending accounts, tuition benefits, significant paid time off, and more. Explore our benefits here.

Employees working in or with VCUHealth in any capacity will be required to comply with all relevant health system policies and procedures, including the health system's vaccination requirements.

About Department of Pharmaceutics

Pharmaceutics, a multidisciplinary field integrating pharmacy and the life sciences, focuses on converting chemical entities into dosage forms that deliver and maintain the right drug levels at target sites in the body for safe and effective treatment. Our department brings expertise in physical pharmacy, biopharmaceutics, clinical pharmacokinetics, formulation, bioanalysis, drug metabolism and drug transport together to educate future researchers and industry experts and support advancements in discovering and developing drugs. The Department of Pharmaceutics provides teaching of the highest quality at the professional, graduate and undergraduate levels, and to perform creative and meaningful research in this field, coupled with service to the department, school, university, the national and international community, and the discipline.

About Pharmaceutical Engineering

Housed in the Center for Pharmaceutical Engineering and Sciences at VCU, the Ph.D. in pharmaceutical engineering is the first of its kind in the nation, and a collaboration between the School of Pharmacy and College of Engineering at VCU. The pharmaceutical engineering Ph.D. program will prepare students to respond to current, emerging and future challenges in the discovery, development and production of pharmaceutical products. The pharmaceutical engineering Ph.D. program will prepare students to respond to current, emerging and future challenges in the discovery, development and production of pharmaceutical products. The program will prepare talent and leaders who can pursue careers in industry, regulatory and nonprofit agencies, as well as academic settings that deal with drug products. The students will engage in a rigorous and cross-disciplinary educational experience that includes foundational and research-area specific coursework be empowered with the necessary tools to formulate and answer hypothesis-driven research questions in collaboration with mentors that have special expertise; engage in professional development opportunities to effectively promote and disseminate their work; and be immersed in a research and innovation environment of excellence.

Chief Purpose of this position:

VCU School of Pharmacy's Department of Pharmaceutics invites you to apply to our tenure-track faculty position in Pharmaceutical Engineering, with a start date of Fall 2025. The faculty member will assume teaching responsibilities in the professional, graduate and/or undergraduate program(s) of the university. A secondary purpose of the position is to establish and maintain a world-class extramurally funded program and provide the highest level of service within and outside the university.

Position Responsibilities:

• Research: Significant effort is expected from the candidate to establish and sustain a nationally and internationally recognized research program in the areas described above by securing extramural funding and demonstrating an exceptional record of scholarship.
• Teaching: Significant effort is also expected to be devoted to teaching at the professional, graduate and/or undergraduate levels in the Pharmaceutical Engineering Program, Department of Pharmaceutics and School of Pharmacy.
• Service: Significant to serve on departmental, School, and/or University committees as assigned, as well as in a professional capacity in their field, e.g., reviewer, conference organizer, etc.
• Other: Administrative duties.

Required Qualifications:

• PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Materials Science, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated experience working in and fostering an environment of respect, professionalism and civility with a population of faculty, staff, and students from various backgrounds and experiences, or a commitment to do so as a faculty member at VCU.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Those candidates whose research interests expand and complement existing expertise in the department, including nanomedicine and materials science as it applies to the design and formulation of novel drug delivery systems, pharmacokinetics, and drug disposition and transport, are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Teaching experience at the undergraduate and/or graduate level.

Application Process:

The search committee will review applications until the position is filled, but priority will be given to complete applications received by April 1, 2025.

Application materials submitted must include the following documents:

• Cover letter
• Statement of teaching experience and interests
• Statement of research interests
• Complete curriculum vitae with the names of three references
  

Further questions can be directed to the search committee chair, Dr. Sandro da Rocha, at srdarocha@vcu.edu.

ORP Eligible: Yes