Department Chair of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the Swanson School of Engineering at the University of Pittsburgh seeks a dynamic and accomplished research scholar and educator for the position of Department Chair and Professor. Applicants must possess a PhD in electrical and/or computer engineering, or a closely related field, and be qualified for appointment as a tenured, full professor.
About the role
The successful candidate will bring a distinguished record of sponsored research, impactful publications, and excellence in teaching and mentoring, along with strong leadership skills and a clear, forward-looking vision for the department. As the primary bridge across faculty, staff, students, and university leadership, the chair is responsible for setting measurable goals and overseeing all education (undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral), research, service, and administrative activities of the department.
Responsibilities
- Set measurable goals for the department
- Oversee education (undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral), research, service, and administrative activities
- Manage departmental budget
- Lead strategic planning and facilities oversight
- Supervise staff
- Demonstrate interpersonal competencies: active listening, inclusive decision-making, and alignment of departmental priorities with the Swanson School's strategic plan
- Leverage synergies across Pitt, peer institutions, and industry to build strong partnerships, including major centers, initiatives, and industrial collaborations
- Cultivate donor relationships and engage communities to strengthen external ties and advance the department's visibility and impact
About the ECE Department
One of the oldest Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) departments in the country, the ECE department at Pitt is home to 37 full-time faculty members, 400 undergraduate students, and 160 graduate students. The department provides access to world-class research infrastructure including:
- Nanoscale Fabrication and Characterization Facility (NFCF), a cleanroom user facility in Benedum Hall offering researchers access to state-of-the-art e-beam lithography, deposition, and etching tools alongside advanced electron microscopy
- Western Pennsylvania Quantum Information Core (WPQIC) facility with cutting-edge equipment for fabrication and characterization of quantum devices and materials
- Energy Innovation Center (EIC), housing several Pitt laboratories and startup incubator space for industry-engaged research
- University’s Center for Research Computing and Data (CRCD), operating a large multi-thousand-core cluster with GPU co-processors and PhD-level consulting staff
Pitt ECE also leads the NSF Center for Space, High-performance, and Resilient Computing (SHREC), an Industry-University Cooperative Research Center advancing mission-critical computing for space science, defense, and resilient systems. The department’s deep ties to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), one of the nation’s largest academic medical centers, create exceptional opportunities for collaborative, translational research bridging engineering and the biomedical sciences.