Professor (Open Rank) of English — Creative Writing (Poetry)

Description

The Department of English Literature at Swarthmore College invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track appointment in Creative Writing with specific expertise in poetry. Because this is an open-rank position, we will hire a poet at the assistant professor or tenured associate/full professor level, depending on qualifications and experience. This position will begin in Fall 2025.

We are particularly interested in candidates who demonstrate through their teaching, mentoring, and writing a commitment to the inclusion of historically underrepresented perspectives and who bring multilingual, international, environmental, and/or cross-cultural perspectives to their work. Candidates whose work emerges from or engages BIPOC communities in the U.S. and/or the cultures of the Global South are especially encouraged to apply.

Candidates should also have an established record of undergraduate teaching, including teaching creative writing workshops for students at all levels, from beginning to advanced. We welcome candidates with demonstrated strengths in poetics, literary criticism, and literary theory who will be prepared to teach hybrid courses that blend critical and creative writing, which has been an important feature of our curriculum; we also welcome candidates with leadership experience inside academia and out—for example, building public reading series, editing a poetry journal, or working with community-based arts organizations. The position carries a four-course load for the academic year (2 workshops/courses per semester). In addition to teaching courses that reflect their interests and experience, the successful candidate will also advise individual writing projects and support other program duties, such as awarding writing prizes, organizing readings, advising student publications, and planning our new biennial Writers’ Festival.

The Creative Writing Program within Swarthmore’s Department of English Literature is thriving. To learn more about us, please visit: https://www.swarthmore.edu/english-literature/creative-writing-program

Located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Swarthmore College is a highly selective liberal arts college whose mission combines academic rigor with social responsibility. Swarthmore has a strong institutional commitment to diversity, and actively seeks and welcomes applications from candidates with exceptional qualifications, particularly those with demonstrable commitments to a more inclusive society and world. Applicants from traditionally underrepresented groups are strongly encouraged to apply. For more information on Faculty Diversity and Excellence at Swarthmore, see http://www.swarthmore.edu/faculty-diversity-excellence/information-candidates-new-faculty

Qualifications

The successful candidate will possess a terminal degree (e.g., and MFA in poetry or a related field and/or a PhD degree). The strongest candidates will be poets who demonstrate a commitment to impactful art and innovative teaching with a passion for motivating and mentoring young writers of diverse backgrounds and identities.

Application Instructions

To apply: visit apply.interfolio.com/152987 . Poets should provide us with (1) a cover letter addressing their research and/or creative work as well as the teaching and mentoring qualifications outlined above, (2) a CV, and (3) a writing sample of no more than 25 pages. Applicants should also be prepared to provide us with an additional writing sample, a teaching statement, and at least three letters of recommendation once we complete our initial review of applications. The co-chairs of our search are Professors Sangina Patnaik and Chinelo Okparanta. Please address any questions you may have to poetrysearch@swarthmore.edu

All applications received by November 15, 2024, will receive fullest consideration, though we will continue to review applications until the position is filled.

Equal Employment Opportunity StatementSwarthmore College is a highly selective liberal arts college, located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, whose mission combines academic rigor with social responsibility. Swarthmore has a strong institutional commitment to inclusive excellence through diversity in its educational program and employment practices. The College actively seeks and welcomes applications from candidates with exceptional qualifications, particularly those with demonstrable commitments to a more inclusive society and world.