Professor and Department Head of Biomedical Engineering

Applications are invited for the inaugural head of the Department of Biomedical Engineering (BME) being established in the Tickle College of Engineering (TCE) at the University of Tennessee Knoxville (UT). The newly formed department is the result of growing enrollment and positive momentum within the nationally ranked biomedical engineering graduate and undergraduate programs that presently exist within the Department of Mechanical Aerospace and Biomedical Engineering (MABE). The new BME department head will help shape the future by establishing and implementing a vision which aligns with university goals and research thrusts to grow UTs biomedical sciences portfolio. This is an exciting time in TCE with new records in research translation and enrollment being set in each of the past three years. The new department head will be equipped to grow the current BME faculty from the eleven core and multiple affiliate faculty members in alignment with their vision.

The BME degree programs presently reside within the MABE department. Operation of an independent department will commence upon the start of the appointment of the department head anticipated to be on August 1 2025. The BME program has current enrollments of over 350 undergraduate and more than 30 fulltime graduate students. Current BME faculty research strengths include cellular engineering cardiovascular biomechanics and imaging prosthetics neuroscience and robotics. Strategic partners in the region include the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the University of Tennessee College of Medicine Knoxville. In addition there are crossdisciplinary college and campus cluster faculty hiring initiatives in numerous areas including precision health bioinformatics and radiochemistry for imaging and therapeutics. The head of BME will have the opportunity to lead the department in its pursuit of excellence with strategic hires in key areas through the college and through participation in universitylevel initiatives. The goal is to establish UTs BME department as a national and global leader in research innovation and excellence in education.

Primary responsibilities of the inaugural department head include:

• providing visionary leadership to encourage excellence innovation and strategic growth in research teaching and service;
• recruiting and mentoring excellent faculty members;
• advancing professional development of faculty staff and students;
• promoting productive relationships with all constituents including students parents alumni industry and government agencies;
• fostering productive interdisciplinary relationships with a variety of entities across the University community; and
• advocating for and promoting the interests of the department within and outside the University.

TCE is in an unprecedented period of growth and success including adding over 30 new tenureline faculty members as part of ambitious cluster hiring campaigns led by Chancellor Donde Plowman and Dean Matthew Mench. The College has set records in research expenditures enrollment incoming student GPA diversity intellectual property development and USNWR rank in the past three years. TCE currently has 185 tenure/tenure track and 67 nontenure track faculty in its seven academic departments and offers 12 undergraduate 16 MS and 15 PhD degree programs. TCE is also home to eight research centers and three interdisciplinary institutes. With approximately 3800 undergraduate and 1150 graduate students the college ranks 29th among public universities in the most recent U.S. News and World Report graduate rankings up 6 spots since 2021. Faculty in the college have won 21 early career awards (NSF DoE DARPA AFOSR and ARO) since 2016. In FY22 the college had NSF HERD research expenditures of $109 million.

Applicants must hold a doctorate degree in biomedical engineering or other closely related field and be eligible for appointment at the rank of full professor.

The successful candidate must demonstrate: a commitment to a welcoming culture the ability to recruit and retain top faculty and staff recognized expertise and an established portfolio of external funding in a BMErelated field of research experience and willingness to work with alumni and donors a commitment to a team environment and collegial spirit within TCE the ability to manage conflict a strategic vision for the department that aligns with TCE priorities and the administrative skill to implement a plan for such a vision.