Assistant Professor, Chemistry for Sustainable/Healthy Foods

Assistant Professor, Chemistry for Sustainable/Healthy Foods

Department of Food Science, Cornell University

Position: Assistant Professor, Tenure-track

Location: Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-5701, USA.

The academic home for this position is the Department of Food Science in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

The Department of Food Science at Cornell University invites candidates for a 9-month, full-time, tenure-track assistant professor position to develop a research and teaching program related to Food Chemistry. While the department has identified several strategic areas of interest, listed below, exceptional candidates in Food Chemistry whose expertise lies outside the listed priority areas are also encouraged to apply.

Chemistry for Sustainable Foods: Appropriate research areas may include: Chemistry of sustainably sourced food components (flavor, color, nutritive and bioactive compounds) that promote human or animal health while ensuring a palatable and resilient food supply; Strategies to extend shelf-life, reduce food waste, and enhance nutritional quality through mechanistic understanding of chemical changes during processing and storage.

Foods for Health: Appropriate research areas may include: Food for health approaches, including mechanistic studies on how food components and bioactives influence physiological function, gut health, and the microbiome; Development and application of state-of-the-art physicochemical and analytical tools for characterization of novel and functional food components; Computational and systems-level approaches to understand key chemical and biochemical transformations in foods.

Chemical Food Safety and Food Toxicology: Appropriate research areas may include: Development and utilization of rapid, inexpensive, and/or in situ sensors for real-time detection of chemical hazards (e.g., allergens, heavy metals, mycotoxins, and emerging contaminants) across the food system; Food toxicology, including mechanistic and translational studies of dietary exposure to chemical hazards and their impacts on human and animal health; Risk assessment, predictive modeling, sampling strategies, and exposure assessment for chemical contaminants in foods; Novel analytical and/or computational approaches to detect adulteration of raw materials or finished products; Strategies for mitigation, detoxification, or prevention of chemical hazards in food systems.

Position Responsibilities: This position has a balanced effort between research (50%) and teaching (50%) on a 9-month academic year basis. A track-record of outstanding peer-reviewed scholarship is expected, as is excellence in and commitment to teaching, translation of knowledge, and advising and mentoring of students. We seek a colleague with an outstanding record demonstrating success and promise across all these areas, and who will be supported by and contribute to a vibrant culture of inclusive excellence at Cornell. A mentoring program for new faculty will provide guidance and assistance.

Research (50%): The successful candidate will be expected to conduct an internationally recognized and externally funded research program in chemistry for sustainable/healthy foods. The applicant need not be from a food science background but should be willing to develop a program centered around food.

Teaching (50%): The candidate will be expected to teach one undergraduate course per semester, and a third course every other year that could be a graduate seminar, or a course of equivalent effort. One undergraduate course is expected to be a general education course related to food science, and one is expected to be an upper-level food chemistry course. Specific courses taught may be adjusted based on departmental needs. The incumbent will be expected to advise undergraduate students and mentor Master’s and Ph.D. students.

Service to the Department: The candidate will be expected to work collaboratively with the food science community, participate in faculty meetings, select committees, and related service work appropriate to faculty members.

Qualifications: A Ph.D. in Food Science, Food Chemistry, Chemistry, Material Science, Biochemistry, Nutrition or a related field is required. The ideal candidate will show promise of or have already developed a national and international reputation for their innovative scholarship.

Applications and Starting Date: The anticipated starting date is July 2027 or as negotiated. Qualified applicants should submit 1) a cover letter briefly summarizing background, qualifications, and interest in the position; 2) a curriculum vitae; 3) a research statement outlining experience, interests, and goals, 4) a teaching statement outlining experience, interests, and goals, 5) copies of four relevant publications; and 6) names and contact information for four references. Materials should be submitted online to: .

Applications received by October 25, 2026 will be given full consideration. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. 

This is an in-person position. The successful candidate will be expected to live within commuting distance of Ithaca, NY. Relocation assistance may be provided. Finalists for this position will be asked to sign an affidavit that they have not been found to have violated employer policies at their previous institution(s).

Consistent with Cornell’s practice, appointments to academic positions require candidates to disclose relevant information about their prior employment including whether they have been found to have violated institutional or employer policies related to or governing unlawful discrimination and harassment, academic and research misconduct, or financial misconduct. 

Please forward questions to the search chair (Robin Dando, robin.dando @cornell.edu ) or the search administrator (Patti Wojcik, View email address on us.fitly.work ). 

In compliance with New York's Pay Transparency Law, the annual base salary range is $90,000 - $135,000 when hired at assistant professor rank. This pay range represents base pay (for a 9-month appointment). Cornell University considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, as well as market and organizational considerations when extending an offer.

Cornell University seeks to meet the needs of dual career couples, has a Dual Career program, and is a member of the Upstate New York Higher Education Recruitment Consortium to assist with dual career searches including positions available in higher education in the upstate New York area.

The new faculty member will join a collaborative, interdisciplinary community on the main campus in Ithaca, New York. Cornell University is an innovative Ivy League and Land-grant university and a great place to work. Our inclusive community of scholars, students, and staff impart an uncommon sense of larger purpose and contribute creative ideas to further the university's mission of teaching, discovery, and engagement.

Cornell’s regional and global presence includes state-wide Cornell Cooperative Extension programs and offices in all counties and boroughs, global partnerships with institutions and communities engaged in life-changing research and education, the medical college’s campuses on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and Doha, Qatar, and the Cornell Tech campus on Roosevelt Island in the heart of New York City.

With a founding principle of “any person, any study,” Cornell is an  equal opportunity employer .