Full-Time Clinical Assistant Professor, Master’s Program in Sport & Performance Psychology (MASPP)

About the Graduate School of Professional Psychology

The University of Denver (DU) is a top ranked university in a thriving city at the base of the Rocky Mountains. The Graduate School of Professional Psychology (GSPP) at DU was created in 1976 to house one of the first PsyD programs in the country, under the Vail training model (practitioner-scholar). The Master of Arts in Sport & Performance Psychology (MASPP) program was established in 2007 and has been an internationally recognized leader in the training of Sport & Performance Psychology practitioners. The MASPP program exists in GSPP alongside three other specialized master’s programs: Sport Coaching, Forensic Psychology, and International Disaster Psychology, offering rich opportunities for collegial relationships and professional collaborations. In addition to its broad and general education in Clinical Psychology, the PsyD program also provides specialty training in a variety of socially responsive service areas, including in Latinx Psychology, Military Psychology, Health/Oncology Psychology, Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health, and Substance Use Disorders. As a professional school, GSPP promotes and utilizes high-level pedagogy that integrates applied practice, theory, research, and scholarship. Our strategic plan Innovation and Impact: Psychology for a Complex World outlines how we are building on our academic strengths in order to expand our community reach.

All GSPP programs promote comprehensive academic and applied teaching within an academic in the mission to be welcoming and inclusive to all students, staff, and faculty. GSPP has developed a collegial atmosphere with significant opportunities for creativity, teamwork, and innovation. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive educational environment, which is in full accord with the value that DU places on its commitments to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Candidates must demonstrate ability to integrate content and issues relating to, and to work effectively with, ethnically/racially diverse populations. We encourage applications from individuals with minoritized identities. environment that values cooperation and collaboration and fosters critical thinking and self-determined functioning. The School is educating students to provide culturally informed services to clients and the community. Knowledge of diversity, equity, and inclusion guides GSPP.

MASPP Program Summary

The Master of Arts in Sport and Performance Psychology (MASPP) program aspires to develop competent, ethical, and socially conscious professionals who will be future leaders in the field of sport and performance psychology (SPP). The mission of the MASPP program is to serve our students and the Denver community, and in so doing establish standards for the field academically and professionally.

We serve our students by facilitating applied opportunities for sport and performance consultation, engaging them to advance scholarly inquiry and cultivate critical thinking, and actively mentoring students in the application of performance principles and professional issues. As part of our training model, MASPP students provide high quality sport and performance psychology services to the community through our Center for Performance Excellence (CPEX; https://psychology.du.edu/clinics/center-performance-excellence). We serve the community by teaching and modeling positive character traits that are assumed to be developed in sport and performance environments, with a special emphasis on providing and supporting opportunities in underserved populations. Academically, we provide an innovative, leading edge educational environment capitalizing on our faculty's ongoing applied experiences. Professionally, we contribute to our discipline's knowledgebase and are actively involved in professional organizations with a focus on protecting future consumers by improving and redefining the quality of training and practice for sport and performance psychology consultants.

Position Summary

Applications are invited for an Assistant-rank, full-time clinical faculty position (relocation to Denver required). This role is a 10-month benefited position. The position reports to the Co-Directors of the MASPP program.

The GSPP seeks to add a colleague to the MASPP program whose dedication to teaching and applied practice support our mission of setting standards for the field academically and professionally. The ideal candidate demonstrates experience and versatility in inclusive pedagogy. We are especially interested in qualified candidates who can contribute to diversity, equity, and inclusion through their teaching, scholarship, service, and practice. We seek applicants with an understanding of SPP from a variety of perspectives including exercise science/kinesiology, psychology, performing arts, business, and high-risk occupations. Duties include teaching, advising, supervising, participating as a core member of the GSPP faculty, and other duties as assigned to support the MASPP program, including administrative duties. The start date for this position will be September 1, 2023.

Appointment, tenure, and promotion for this role will be governed by the University of Denver’s Policies and Procedures Relating to Faculty Appointment, Promotion, & Tenure. The position will be filled at the Clinical Assistant Professor rank. Clinical Assistant Professors would typically be candidates in the first one to seven years of experience post-doctorate with strong, documented potential for excellence in teaching, service, clinical expertise, administration, and/or scholarship. Appointments at this rank will have a maximum of six years of service prior to consideration for promotion, and a reappointment review will take place before the fourth year at the clinical assistant rank.

Essential Functions

Teaching and Advising

• Teach practice-informed courses to fulfill needs of the MASPP program, with the teaching load and specific courses to be determined in discussions with the MASPP Co-Directors and Dean.
• Clinical faculty typically teach 9 classes over fall, winter, and spring quarters (because DU operates on the quarter system, this equates to 3 courses per quarter, or the equivalent of 6 courses over an academic year in a traditional semester system). Course releases may be possible for administrative or grant-related work.
• Provide high-quality advising for students in accordance with GSPP & DU protocols.
• Maintain high teaching standards informed by best practices in pedagogy and leveraging available technologies to improve the student experience.
• Provide supervision for students’ applied work.
• Pursue professional development to enhance leadership.

Service

• Exhibit good citizenship through collaboration and service on committees to support GSPP, the University, community, and national and global efforts to improve the practice of psychology.
• Participate in the MASPP admissions process.
• Uphold GSPP's commitment to inclusive excellence and to be a model workplace through all professional activities.

Other Functions

• Scholarship in the form of clinical knowledge creation and dissemination typically represent a small portion of a clinical faculty member’s workload.
• Based on the possible administrative duties of this role (e.g., CPEX director), these expectations can be negotiated with the MASPP Program Co-Directors.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Knowledge of and commitment to the practitioner-scholar model.
• Strong teaching, supervisory, organizational, and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to engage conflict resolution to mediate student issues.
• Ability to collaborate with colleagues and diverse partners in the community.

Required Qualifications

• Doctoral degree in sport and performance psychology (SPP) or related field (ABD will be considered).
• Commitment to teaching, applied practice, supervision, and professional contribution.
• Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC eligible will be considered).
• Candidates must have a demonstrated ability to work effectively with members of diverse communities and historically underrepresented groups.

Preferred Qualifications

• Expertise in one or more of the following specialty areas: multicultural issues in SPP, biofeedback/neurofeedback, and use of technology in SPP.
• Experience consulting with performers in a variety of settings to enhance performance and enjoyment of participation in their performance area.
• Administrative experience, such as directing a training clinic, graduate program, or private practice.

Working Environment

• Standard office environment.
• Unexpected interruptions occur often, and stress level is moderate to high.
• Noise level is quiet to moderate.

Physical Activities

• Ability to sit in front of a computer for an extended period of time.
• Occasionally required to move about the office/campus with the capability of transporting objects up to 20 lbs.

Work Schedule

While the University's administrative offices are open Monday – Friday, 8:00 am – 4:30 pm, faculty schedules vary from term to term and are based on courses taught, service commitments, and research agendas. The University's academic calendars are posted on the registrar's website (the law school is on a semester system and has a different academic calendar).

The schedule for this full-time position will be determined jointly by the MASPP Co-Directors with the candidate but will be shaped by instructional and course scheduling needs. Classes run Monday through Thursday between the hours of 8:00 am to 9:00 pm. Course offerings vary from quarter to quarter. The candidate will need to have flexibility with their schedule to meet programmatic planning needs. Evening availability will likely be required for synchronous courses to be taught online.

Application Deadline

For best consideration, please submit your application materials by 4:00 p.m. (MST) June 1, 2023.

Special Instructions

Candidates must apply online through jobs.du.edu to be considered. Only applications submitted online will be accepted.

Salary Grade Number:

The salary grade for the position is UC.

Salary Range:

The salary range for this position is $75,000 - $90,000.

The University of Denver has provided a compensation range that represents its good faith estimate of what the University may pay for the position at the time of posting. The University may ultimately pay more or less than the posted compensation range. The salary offered to the selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal salary equity considerations, and available market information, but not based on a candidate’s sex or any other protected status.

Benefits:

The University of Denver offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefit and ECO pass. The University of Denver is a private institution that empowers students who want to make a difference. Learn more about the University of Denver.

Please include the following documents with your application:

• Curriculum Vitae
• Cover Letter

The University of Denver is an equal opportunity employer. The University of Denver prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, age (40 years and over in the employment context), religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, marital status, veterans status, and any other class of individuals protected from discrimination under federal, state, or local law, regulation, or ordinance in any of the university's educational programs and activities, and in the employment (including application for employment) and admissions (including application for admission) context, as required by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended in 2008; Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967; and any other federal, state, and local laws, regulations, or ordinances that prohibit discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation. For the university's complete Non-Discrimination Statement, please see non‑discrimination‑statement.

The University of Denver recognizes that its success in being a great university dedicated to the public good depends greatly on how well it engages, supports, and champions the values of diversity, equity, inclusion and justice. As part of our intentionality in recruiting and retaining faculty from a wide variety of historically excluded intersecting identities, including those from communities of color, with diverse gender and sexual identities, first-generation college graduates, or with disabilities, new faculty will have the opportunity to choose to participate in a pilot University-wide initiative. This initiative will connect new colleagues in a cohort, building community across units with supportive programming led by the Office of the Vice Provost of Faculty Affairs in collaboration with the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and each faculty participant’s academic unit. To learn more about the University of Denver’s commitments and work in support of DEI and J, please visit: https://www.du.edu/equity. For more information about this program or if you have any questions, please email inclusion@du.edu and/or visit https://duvpfa.du.edu/faculty-resources/prospective-faculty/.

All offers of employment are contingent upon satisfactory completion of a criminal history background check.