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POSITION SPECIFICS

The Department of Food Science at The Pennsylvania State University seeks a tenure track faculty member to build an Extension program in an area related to microbiological food safety food quality or industrial food processing. This position will be hired as an Assistant/Associate Professor of Food Science-Microbiological Food Safety Food Quality and Industrial Food Processing. Agriculture in Pennsylvania accounts for approximately $83.8 billion in direct economic output and more than 280500 jobs. Within the agriculture sector food processing and manufacturing is the largest sub-sector accounting for nearly 60% of the economic output and 32% of the total direct employment. Penn States land-grant mission is to provide education research and public service to all people in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Food Science Department is uniquely positioned in the College of Agricultural Sciences to provide expertise needed to meet the food safety and quality needs of food production and processing professionals.

Key Responsibilities

Extension (75%): The successful candidate will build a nationally recognized Extension education program to provide support to food industry stakeholders in Pennsylvania and beyond in the following ways:

• Conduct short courses and workshops including online programs offered through the Department of Food Science.

• Develop and deliver new workforce training programs to meet the current and emerging needs of small and large food processors in PA.

• Develop and maintain relationships and provide expertise to regulatory agencies including the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture The Food and Drug Administration and the USDA-FSIS.

• Provide expertise and direction to Cooperative Extension Food Safety and Quality program team in the areas of food production processing food service and retail and home food safety and preservation.

• Develop programs and processes that provide support to people interested in starting or scaling up a food manufacturing business. This approach could include facilitating access to laboratory services and assisting with product formulation and equipment scale-up.

• Provide professional development to Extension educators on food safety topics.

• Respond to questions from the public about food safety topics.

Research (25%): The successful candidate will conduct problem-solving food safety and quality research in critical issues and disseminate the findings through publications in scientific journals and public stakeholders. The candidate will seek internal and external collaboration opportunities with faculty members within the Food Science Department and other departments/units at Penn State and with regional national and international partners. Research areas of interest will vary depending on the expertise of the successful candidate; these include but are not limited to:

• Food safety process validation studies for small and large organizations.

• Development of processes and procedures to enhance food quality.

• Conducting regular needs assessments to determine education and research gaps.

• Evaluation of educational programs.

Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in Food Science Microbiology or a closely related field with a focus on food microbiology food safety or food processing.

• Strong record of research in areas such as microbial food safety foodborne pathogens or industrial food processing. Experience with advanced microbial detection methods or risk analysis.

• Experience working with diverse teams including academic industry and government stakeholders.

• Excellent verbal and written communication abilities to effectively teach mentor and collaborate.

Desired Qualifications:

• Post doctoral experience.

• Experience working with the food industry.

Applicants must upload (1) letter of application (2) curriculum vitae (3) academic transcripts (4) a statement summarizing the applicants philosophy and plan for establishing a successful research and extension program and (5) names of at least three professional references (including address telephone and e-mail address) to the Penn State Jobs system. System limitations allow for a total of 5 documents (5 MB per document) as part of your application. Please combine materials to meet the 5-document limit.

Please contact Dr. Jasna Kovac Search Committee Chair at with questions. Applications will be reviewed beginning January 12 2026 and will continue until a suitable candidate is found. The anticipated start date is 1 July 2026 or as negotiated.

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