Tenure-Track: Assistant Professor of Interactive Spatial Audio and Multimodal Computing

About the role

The Texas A&M University College of Performance, Visualization & Fine Arts (PVFA) and the Virtual Production Institute (VPI) invite applications for a full-time, 9-month tenure-track position in Interactive Spatial Audio and Multimodal Computing at the rank of Assistant Professor in the Visual Computing and Computational Media (VCCM) section. The anticipated start date is August 1, 2027. Candidates should demonstrate a strong potential for scholarly achievement and an ability to establish a nationally and internationally recognized research agenda. This position sits at the intersection of AI, multimodal computing, and audio and media technologies, with opportunities for research spanning computing, perception, and immersive systems.

The College of Performance, Visualization & Fine Arts was formed in 2022 at Texas A&M University, bringing together the Department of Visualization, the Department of Performance Studies, and the Dance Science Program. PVFA is built without departments; faculty sections and academic programs sit at the college level, fostering collaboration among musicians, composers, actors, directors, choreographers, dancers, painters, cinematographers, technical artists, level designers, spatial audio engineers, tools programmers, ethnomusicologists, art historians, UI/UX designers, and virtual set designers. The College offers the BS, MS, and MFA in Visualization, a PhD in Visual Computing and Interactive Media, and degree programs in music, dance, and theatre, operating at the main campus in Bryan-College Station and as part of Texas A&M – Fort Worth.

The Virtual Production Institute, formed in 2023, is a technology‑focused ecosystem for teaching, learning, and research. It develops emerging applications and the skilled workforce needed for virtual reality, augmented reality, sensors, projectors, and computing across multiple disciplines and industries. Its facilities in Bryan-College Station and Fort Worth include a performance capture and sound stage with supporting technology studio classrooms.

Responsibilities

• Establish an active program of research.
• Pursue external funding opportunities.
• Disseminate work through publications, presentations, software systems, patents, or other recognized scholarly outcomes.
• Contribute to the national and international visibility of PVFA and the VPI.
• Teach courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels.
• Advise and mentor graduate students, including the Ph.D. in Visual Computing and Interactive Media program.
• Participate in all aspects of PVFA’s and the VPI’s activities.
• Serve the professional community.

Requirements

• PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Media Arts and Technology, Acoustics, or a closely related field.
• Candidates who are ABD will be considered, provided they demonstrate clear progress toward completion.
• Demonstrated potential to establish a nationally and internationally recognized research program.
• Evidence of research accomplishment appropriate to career stage.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Qualifications

• Potential for extramural funding and industry partnerships.
• University teaching experience and student mentorship.
• Participation in multidisciplinary research.
• Record of academic or professional service.

Skills

• 3D and Spatial Audio Rendering and Computational Acoustics.
• Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for Audio and Multimodal Computing.
• Visual Computing and Multimodal Perception for Media and Entertainment, Simulation and Training, and/or Health and Wellness.
• Interactive Audio Systems and Immersive Media for VR/AR/XR and Virtual Production.
• Perceptual Evaluation and Psychoacoustics.
• Hardware and Software Integration for Interactive and Multimodal Systems.
• Audio Capture, Processing, and Sensing.
• Audio Modeling and Synthesis; Multimodal Content Generation.