The Department of English at Arizona State University invites applications for an Assistant Teaching Professor position in Creative Writing, specializing in prose with an anticipated start date of August 2026. This is a full-time, benefits-eligible appointment made on an academic year basis (Aug 16 – May 15). The typical teaching expectation for this position is four classes per academic semester.
About the Department of English:
The Department of English's motto—"Start here, go anywhere"—captures the unique value of our undergraduate and graduate English degrees, ones that can serve students in any art form, any discipline, and any profession. In fact, our degrees can take students anywhere they wish to travel. The Department of English faculty is internationally renowned for innovative research and teaching and explores the pan-world expression of the English language and its literature, which span the global yet connect directly to the local. The skills of critical thinking, reading comprehension, and analytic expression cultivated in the degrees are transferable into any endeavor. In particular, such skills provide the foundation for creative problem-solving and cultivate individual and collective expression. The department takes as its purview not just historical positioned work, whether linguistic or textual, but includes all forms of expression and all modes of new media, whether analogical or digital. We emphasize writing—academic, creative, personal, public, and workplace—that explores difference reflectively and functionally. Our goal is to educate citizens who can think, read, write, and act in robust and significant ways to meet new challenges.
About The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences:
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is the academic heart of Arizona State University, committed to improving communities on a local, national, and global scale. We support the professional development and growth of our faculty and staff in their cutting-edge research to advance these aims. Within The College, our faculty engage with a large, curious student body, guiding them as they grow into socially aware, critical thinkers and writers able to succeed in a wide range of careers and to address the challenges of the twenty- first century. Advancing the success of our students remains our top priority. To learn more about The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, please visit: https://thecollege.asu.edu/
About Arizona State University:
ASU exemplifies a new prototype for the American public research university. As articulated in the ASU Charter, ASU is a comprehensive public research university, measured not by whom it excludes, but by whom it includes and how they succeed; advancing research and discovery of public value; and assuming fundamental responsibility for the economic, social, cultural, and overall health of the communities it serves.
Essential Functions of the job:
- Teach undergraduate students in creative writing courses both in-person and online.
- Develop online creative writing courses and curriculum.
- Use Canvas for assessment of student work.
- Participate in all unit and university assessment activities
- Engage in additional professional, university, and community service or professional development, as appropriate.
- Promote student success and embed teaching and research in societal impact consistent with ASU’s charter.
Qualifications
Required Qualifications:
- MFA or PhD in Creative Writing in hand by the time of appointment.
- Evidence of a strong, active publication record in fiction and/or creative nonfiction.
- Evidence of strong commitment to undergraduate teaching and at least three years of experience teaching at the college level.
- Demonstrated ability to teach in at least one area of expertise (fiction, creative nonfiction).
- Demonstrated experience teaching in online or hybrid format.
Desired Qualifications:
- Experience writing and teaching in both fiction and creative nonfiction; experience teaching literature courses aimed at writers.
- At least one published book of fiction or creative nonfiction.
- Evidence of participation in relevant professional development.
- Experience developing online classes/curriculum.
- Demonstrated ability to work with faculty, staff, students, and communities to advance the principles of the ASU Charter.
Application Instructions
Application Instructions:
Initial review of applications will begin on December 1, 2025 and will continue on a weekly basis in subsequent months throughout the academic year as needed until the search is closed. Candidates will be asked to create or use an existing Interfolio Dossier to submit the following application materials:
- A curriculum vitae
- A letter outlining a teaching philosophy that includes a description of how the applicant's experiences fit the area(s) of expertise listed above
- Three (3) names with contact information for professional references to provide a letter of recommendation
The applicant’s last name should appear in each uploaded file name. Questions about the position should be directed to the search committee chair, Dr. Katie Berta at katherine.berta@asu.edu.