Practice-Track Professor of Urban Technology (Open Rank)

IMDiversity; Ann Arbor (MI); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

University of Michigan’s Taubman College seeks a practice-track faculty member (assistant/associate/full professor) to develop field-defining urban technology teaching and practice. The candidate will contribute to the Master of Urban Technology program launching Fall 2027 in Detroit, joining URP’s vibrant community and teaching two courses yearly in Detroit.

Teaching in-person undergraduate and graduate courses, engagement in service, and ongoing engagement with professional work are expected,

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience or potential for excellence in teaching and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students.
• Excellence in creative practice in the area of urban technology.
• Entrepreneurial experience is a strong plus.

Responsibilities

• Teach two courses per year in Detroit for the MUT program, with potential teaching in Ann Arbor.
• Maintain service to the program, college, and university through committees or task forces.
• Stay engaged with professional practice in keeping with the appointment expectations.

Skills

Teaching experience

Mentoring students

Education

Background in related technical/design discipline

Experience in urban technology practice

Entrepreneurial experience

Job description

Job Summary
The University of Michigan (UM) Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning seeks a practice-track faculty member at the rank of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor to develop field-defining practice and teaching in the area of urban technology. We seek applicants whose teaching and practice will primarily contribute to our newly approved Master of Urban Technology program, with a planned launch in Fall 2027 at the University of Michigan Center for Innovation in Detroit.

The successful candidate will join a vibrant and collaborative community of faculty in the Urban and Regional Planning (URP) Program, home to our highly-ranked Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP), the Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning, and the Bachelor of Science in Urban Technology. URP faculty interests, research methods, and expertise are diverse, and we consider ourselves an innovative, welcoming, and inclusive community. Our academic programs span the fields of urban planning, real estate, and urban technology.

Professors of practice will be expected to teach as contracted; participate in service to the program, college, and/or university (i.e. serving on committees or task forces, participating in admissions processes, participating in reviews of student work, and similar activities); and maintain an ongoing engagement with professional work in keeping with the expectations for this appointment. Although professional practice is diverse, it is almost always conducted for pay for a client, and is shared with a broader community of practice through practice outputs or broader dissemination which shares aspects of the practice work. Excellence in professional practice is documented through recognized impact such as the implementation, adoption, or realization of creative ideas (whether plans, designs, technologies, policies, etc.), awards and recognition by professional peers and the broader public. Practice-track faculty at Taubman College typically have a 50% appointment, corresponding to one course in the Fall and Winter semesters.

This position is being made specifically to expand capacities to launch a Master's of Urban Technology (MUT), which will be offered at the University of Michigan Center for Innovation (UMCI) in Detroit. Consistent with the overall model for UMCI, all academic programs and faculty who teach at UMCI are housed and administered by U-M Ann Arbor units.

Practice: We seek applicants whose practice advances the urban technology field, which encompasses data, AI, and digital technologies applied to the work of the built environment. We are particularly interested in practitioners with experience related to innovation in how urban spaces are planned, realized, operated, and governed, which may include emerging industry areas such as contech, proptech, and AECtech.

Teaching: We seek applicants qualified to teach in-person courses at the undergraduate and graduate level. We expect this faculty member to teach two courses per year in Detroit for the MUT program, but some teaching in Ann Arbor in one of the existing degree offerings may be possible, depending on the candidate's expertise. We especially seek instructors qualified to teach courses in entrepreneurship, product development, urban data, and evidence-based design.

Service: Faculty will also carry service obligations consistent with interest and career rank, and may include service on committees and the potential to serve in academic leadership positions within the College.

This new Master of Urban Technology (MUT) is a 12-month degree distributed across three-semesters. The first semester, under the thematic banner of examining a Radically Better built environment, provides coursework offering in-depth analysis of urban sustainability challenges, a survey of the current landscape of innovation in the sector, and a foundation in data science skills. The second semester, called Radically Integrated, deepens an analysis of cities by introducing a systems perspective, and digging deeper into the industry through immersion in the regional ecosystem. Students are invited to begin exploring creative ideas to deploy innovations using analytics and design. Finally, the third semester, Radically Possible, equips students with the skills to bring their ideas to life through coursework on business models, finance, change management, and a culminating Capstone project.

Vision and Values: The mission of the Urban and Regional Planning Program is to lead the way for better urban and regional futures. We aim to build knowledge, develop capabilities, and imagine possibilities to cultivate flourishing communities, guided by four core values: justice-driven, environmentally minded, future-focused, and action-oriented.

Required Qualifications

• Educational and/or professional background in a related technical or design discipline, such as design, urban planning, architecture, digital media, human-computer interaction, geography, engineering, or information science.
• Demonstrated experience in, or demonstrated potential for, excellence in teaching and mentoring undergraduate and graduate students
• Demonstrated experience in, or demonstrated potential for, excellence in creative practice in the area of urban technology
• Entrepreneurial experience is a strong plus

Additional Information

In addition to a career filled with purpose and opportunity, U-M offers a comprehensive benefits package to help you stay well, protect yourself and your family, and plan for a secure future.

• Benefits include a retirement plan with two-for-one matching contributions after the first year
• Many choices for comprehensive health insurance
• Life insurance
• Long-term disability coverage
• Flexible spending accounts for healthcare and dependent care expenses

Learn more about U-M benefits.

About the Urban and Regional Planning Program

Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning is one of the leading schools of architecture and planning in the United States, offering degree programs in architecture, urban and regional planning, urban design, and urban technology. The college is housed in a recently expanded studio, classroom, and research complex on the University of Michigan's North Campus, alongside design fabrication labs, visualization facilities, and dedicated space for student-led research and collaboration.

The Urban and Regional Planning Program offers a Master of Urban and Regional Planning (MURP), a Ph.D. in Urban and Regional Planning, and the Bachelor of Science in Urban Technology. The MURP is consistently ranked among the top planning programs in the country, and the BS in Urban Technology is the first program of its kind in the United States, preparing students to design and govern the data-rich cities of the future. New faculty join a community of approximately 40 URP instructors and 500 students with access to the resources of one of the world's preeminent research universities.

About the University of Michigan

Our location offers a rare advantage: faculty and students work at the doorstep of metropolitan Detroit, one of the most distinctive urban landscapes in North America, and within easy reach of Chicago, Toronto and the Great Lakes region. U-M researchers have cultivated a number of unique assets that support applied research, partnerships, and project-based learning across a unique rural-urban land use spectrum that few peer programs can match.

U-M EEO Statement

The University of Michigan is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.