Assistant Professor of Human Dimensions of Wildlife, Fisheries and Natural Resources

RESPONSIBILITIES: The Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture at Mississippi State University (MSU) invites applications for a 9-month, tenure-track Assistant Professor in Human Dimensions of Wildlife, Fisheries and Natural Resources Conservation.  This is a 65% teaching and 35% research appointment. We seek a candidate trained in the social sciences that has experience in coupled natural-human environments, which may include shaping policy related to natural resource management, and can integrate human dimensions with ecology and conservation. The successful candidate will develop a nationally and internationally recognized teaching and research program examining human dimensions, and/or policy, aspects of natural resource management, how people’s attitudes, values, behaviors, and decision-making influence resource use, conservation, and sustainable management. Applicants will use frameworks from behavioral, social and human dimensions field to inform decision making processes related to wildlife and fisheries resource conflicts.

Teaching responsibilities are three face-to-face courses per year and include two semesters of fish and wildlife policy, one semester of human dimensions of wildlife and fisheries management, and an on-line graduate-level course on human dimensions that is part of our MS program in Conservation Education and is taught every other year. Additional expectations include advising undergraduate students, directing graduate committees, and mentoring graduate students and postdoctoral researchers.

Research responsibilities include developing a robust, externally funded, interdisciplinary program that produces scholarly products including peer-reviewed publications, books and geospatial products that inform policy and management decisions. We recognize and value diverse forms of scholarly impact, including traditional academic publications, policy influence, stakeholder engagement, and public scholarship. Applied research should address real-world challenges faced by resource managers, landowners, policymakers, and the public, including issues at the interface of private and public lands, working landscapes, hunting and fishing heritage, and shifting recreational uses of natural resources. Collaboration is expected with other Mississippi State scientists, state and federal agencies, non-governmental organizations, and other partners who rely on MSU science to inform conservation outcomes.

The successful candidate is expected to contribute to service at the department, college, university, and professional society levels, consistent with MSU’s land-grant mission.

QUALIFICATIONS:  

• D. in a related field demonstrating expertise in human dimensions, social sciences or policy sciences related fields including but not limited to wildlife, fisheries, and natural resource management, conservation, coupled natural-human systems, and human-wildlife interactions.
• Demonstrated excellence in teaching, communication, and organizational skills.
• Ability to develop and sustain extramural funding and publish scholarly products such as peer-reviewed journals.
• Commitment to engaged-teaching, mentoring, and service.
• Ability to collaborate across diverse scientific disciplines and stakeholder groups, and to build strong partnerships with regulatory and resource management agencies.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Training and experience in quantitative and/or qualitative social and political science methods, and public policy and administration applied to wildlife, fisheries, and natural resource management.
• Experience translating research findings for public policy and practitioner audiences.
• Postdoctoral experience or equivalent professional experience.
• Teaching proficiency and capacity to develop new applied courses in human dimensions of natural resources.
• Research interests cross disciplinary lines and address pressing management and policy issues relevant to Mississippi and the broader Southeast.
• Experience engaging diverse stakeholders such as private landowners, consumptive and non-consumptive recreationalists, rural and urban communities, policymakers, natural resource agencies and organizations, and other relevant groups.
• Experience securing extramural funding to support research and graduate training.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills and ability to work in team-oriented, interdisciplinary settings.