Assistant Professor, Graphic Design

Job Number: 561655

Position Rank and Title: Assistant Professor, Graphic Design

School/Department Name: Department of Design

Compensation: Commensurate with qualifications, experience, and rank as established by the CSU Salary Schedule. Anticipated hiring academic year annual salary range: $90,000–$94,000 depending on qualifications.

Faculty employee benefits are very competitive for the higher education sector. See the CSU Employee Benefits Summary for details about the CSU’s excellent benefits package.

Target Start Date: August 17, 2027 (Fall 2027)

Application Deadline: January 8, 2027.

Position Description

The Department of Design at San José State University invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor position in Graphic Design, beginning in Fall 2027. This is a nine-month, academic-year appointment. We seek a designer, educator, and researcher whose practice bridges analog and digital forms, and who can teach across the undergraduate and graduate graphic design curriculum, including foundational studios, typography, visual systems, interaction design, and advanced electives aligned with the candidate's expertise. The ideal candidate will bring a strong foundation in typography, visual systems, and critical and experimental approaches to design-making, with agility in contemporary digital tools, technologies, and emerging practices.

We are particularly interested in designers who expand the possibilities of graphic design through experimentation, systems thinking, collaboration, and engagement with contemporary social and technological questions. The ideal candidate demonstrates formal rigor, conceptual depth, and an active practice that contributes new knowledge through creative practice, design research, scholarship, or public engagement. The department recognizes multiple forms of scholarly and creative activity, including peer-reviewed publications, exhibitions, commissioned work, funded research, public scholarship, and other contributions that advance the discipline.

The Department of Design is centered on design research, creative technologies, and interdisciplinary collaboration. We seek faculty who use technology in adaptive, inclusive, poetic, collaborative, and experimental ways while advancing socially responsible design practices. The department offers four professional degrees and is organized around five discipline groups: Interior Design, Industrial Design, Interaction Design, Graphic Design, and Animation. Our faculty includes designers, architects, artists, and historians committed to excellence and collaboration across the department, college, university, Silicon Valley, and beyond. Prospective faculty will have opportunities to engage with the Advanced Institute for Ethical Technologies (AI-ET), which advances interdisciplinary and community-centered dialogue about responsible technology, and the Digital Humanities Center, a collaborative hub for digitally informed research, teaching, and public engagement.

The Department of Design and San José State University value institutional excellence and are committed to advancing equity through research, teaching, and service. We enroll more than 40,000 students, many of whom are historically underserved; approximately 45% of our undergraduate students are first-generation college students and 38% are Pell Grant recipients. In addition, we are both a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institution (AANAPISI). SJSU aspires to create holistic learning environments that facilitate both individual and collective transformation. We seek teacher-scholars who cultivate inclusive, empowering spaces for mutual learning, skill-building, and knowledge exchange for all students. Our commitment to lifelong learning supports meaningful connections among faculty, staff, students, alumni, and the broader communities we serve.

We invite all applicants to include a Statement of Institutional Excellence (or incorporate it into your cover letter) to share how your lived and professional experiences will contribute to the SJSU community—particularly in relation to student success. A guide to writing this statement can be found at SJSU Institutional Excellence Statement Guidelines.

Required Qualifications

• A terminal degree (MFA, MDes, PhD) in a graphic design discipline or closely and demonstrably related field. The degree must be completed before the targeted start date.
• Evidence of successful teaching at the undergraduate and/or graduate college level.
• An active and sustained program of creative practice, graphic design research, scholarship, or a combination thereof.
• Demonstrated engagement with contemporary graphic design methods, tools, and modes of practice across digital and material media, including critical approaches to design making.
• Applicants should demonstrate an awareness of and sensitivity to the educational goals of a socially and economically diverse student population as might have been gained in cross-cultural study, training, teaching, and other comparable experience.

Preferred Qualifications

Priority will be given to candidates who possess two or more of the following:

• Evidence of professional visibility through exhibitions, publications, commissions, presentations, professional organizations, or other contributions to the discipline.
• A demonstrated ability to teach across the core curriculum at both undergraduate and graduate levels.
• Demonstrated engagement with evolving design practices that advance accessibility, equity, and broader cultural perspectives.
• A track record of success, or demonstrated potential for success, conducting research or creative activity relevant to the position that results in recognition (e.g., projects that have been published, exhibited, commissioned, implemented, recognized through awards, or otherwise disseminated within the discipline).
• Potential for collaboration across disciplines within the Department of Design and at the college and University levels. We believe such collaborations create a charged atmosphere for study and a critical edge for research, and we seek candidates who can thrive within this context. Applicants should consider how their work might connect with the college’s Public Programming Opportunities.

Key Responsibilities

• Teach undergraduate and graduate courses across the graphic design curriculum, including foundation studios, typography, visual systems, interaction, emerging technologies, and electives aligned with their expertise.
• Develop and sustain an active program of research and/or creative practice appropriate for a tenure-track appointment.
• Advise and mentor undergraduate and graduate students.
• Contribute to curriculum development and ongoing assessment within the graphic design program.
• The candidate will participate in shared governance, usually in department, college, and university committees and other service assignments.
• Faculty shall organize all their classes within the Canvas Learning Management System (LMS).
• The candidate must demonstrate awareness and experience in understanding the needs of a student population of great diversity—in age, abilities, cultural background, ethnicity, religion, economic background, primary language, sexual orientation, gender identity, and academic preparation—through inclusive course materials, teaching strategies, and advisement.

Other Duties

Note that all San José State University employees are considered mandated reporters under the California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and are required to comply with the requirements set forth in CSU Executive Order 1083 as a condition of employment. Pursuant to the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act) and CSU systemwide policy, some faculty duties may lead to designation as a Campus Security Authority (CSA). CSAs are required to complete Clery Act training and to immediately report Clery incidents to the institution.

Faculty employees must complete CSU employee training as assigned and required based on their role (e.g., Data Security, FERPA, Preventing Discrimination and Harassment, Title IX, Health and Safety). The President may recommend or require compliance with safety measures that decrease the likelihood of COVID-19 transmission or illness and allows the core mission and activities of the campus to continue.

Application Procedure

Select Apply Now to complete the SJSU Online Employment Application and attach the following documents:

• letter of interest
• curriculum vitae
• institutional excellence statement (dedicated statement or addressed in letter of interest)
• portfolio of professional, scholarly, or creative work (PDF or link to website)
• optional: a portfolio of examples of your students’ design work (PDF or link to website)
• statement of teaching interests/philosophy
• research and/or creative activity plans
• References: Three names with contact information are due at the time of application. Note: Three full letters of reference are due at the first stage interview

Inquiries may be directed to the Department Chair or Search Committee Chair:

Chair Virginia San Fratello (virginia.sanfratello@sjsu.edu)

Professor Connie Hwang (connie.hwang@sjsu.edu)

Pursuant to California Education Code 89521, applicants will be required to disclose whether they have received a final administrative decision or final judicial decision determining that they have committed sexual harassment within the last 7 years only after a determination is made that they meet the minimum qualifications for the position, and before an offer of employment is extended. Applicants who reach the final stages of the application process must also sign a release form that authorizes the release of information by the applicant’s current and/or former employers to the CSU concerning any substantiated allegations of misconduct.

Conditional Offer

The work for this faculty position may only be performed in the State of California and requires establishing an on-campus presence. Employment is contingent upon US residence and proof of eligibility to work in the United States. Satisfactory completion of background and reference checks (including criminal records and prior employment) are required. SJSU will make a conditional offer of employment, which may be rescinded if the background and reference checks reveal disqualifying information, and/or it is discovered that the candidate knowingly withheld or falsified information. Failure to satisfactorily complete the background and reference checks may affect the continued employment of a current employee who was conditionally offered the position.

San José State University: Silicon Valley's Public University

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley — one of the most innovative regions in the world — San José State University is the founding campus of the 23-campus California State University (CSU) system and the first public university in the West. Recognized as a leading transformative educational institution, San José State is an essential partner in the technological, economic, cultural, and social development of Silicon Valley, the Bay Area, and California. SJSU is a top-200 school nationally in research funding and second highest in research productivity in the CSU system. Cutting-edge research, world-class scholarship, student-centered learning, diverse communities, and commitment to social justice, allow SJSU to provide life-changing opportunities and advance the public good locally and globally.

Equal Employment Statement

San José State University prohibits discrimination on the basis of Age, Ancestry, Caste, Color, Disability, Ethnicity, Gender, Gender Expression, Gender Identity, Genetic Information, Marital Status, Medical Condition, Military Status, Nationality, Race, Religion, Religious Creed, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Sex Stereotype, and Veteran Status. This policy applies to all San José State University students, faculty, and staff as well as University programs and activities. Reasonable accommodations are made for applicants with disabilities who self-disclose.

Campus Security and Fire Safety Notification

Pursuant to the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, the Annual Security Report (ASR) is also now available for viewing at https://www.sjsu.edu/clery/docs/SJSU-Annual-Security-Report.pdf. The ASR contains the current security and safety-related policy statements, emergency preparedness and evacuation information, crime prevention and Sexual Assault prevention information, and information about drug and alcohol prevention programming. The ASR also contains statistics of Clery crimes for San José State University locations for the three most recent calendar years. A paper copy of the ASR is available upon request by contacting the Office of the Clery Director by phone at 408-924-1501 or by email at clerycompliance@sjsu.edu.

Pursuant to the Higher Education Opportunity Act, the Annual Fire Safety Report (AFSR) is available at https://www.sjsu.edu/clery/docs/SJSU-Annual-Fire-Safety-Report.pdf. The purpose of this report is to disclose statistics for fires that occurred within SJSU on-campus housing facilities for the three most recent calendar years, and to distribute fire safety policies and procedures intended to promote safety on Campus. A paper copy of the AFSR is available upon request by contacting the Housing Office by phone at 408-795-5600 or by email at uhs-frontdesk@sjsu.edu.

Advertised: September 28, 2026 (9:00 AM) Pacific Daylight Time

Welcome to San José State University!

San José State University is a major, comprehensive public university located in the center of San José and in the heart of Silicon Valley. SJSU is the oldest state university in California. Its distinctive character has been forged by its long history, by its location, and by its vision - a blend of the old and the new, of the traditional and the innovative. Among its most prized traditions is an uncompromising commitment to offer access to higher education to all persons who meet the criteria for admission, yielding a stimulating mix of age groups, cultures, and economic backgrounds for teaching, learning, and research. SJSU takes pride in and is firmly committed to teaching and learning, with a faculty that is active in scholarship, research, technological innovation, community service, and the arts.

Located on 154 acres in downtown San José, the university offers the excitement of studying at a large, metropolitan campus where many cultures meet. Yet students find personal attention from faculty members in the smaller setting of the university's eight colleges.

Mission Statement

In collaboration with nearby industries and communities, this faculty and staff is dedicated to achieving the University's mission as a responsive institution of the State of California.

To enrich the lives of its students, to transmit knowledge to its students along with the necessary skills for applying it in the service of our society, and to expand the base of knowledge through research and scholarship.

Leadership at SJSU

Leadership at San Jose State is defined by a belief that shared decision making and collaborative university governance is at the core of our culture. With this inclusive approach as a guide, President Dr. Cynthia Teniente-Matson and the university's leadership promote discussion and engagement among faculty, staff, students and the community to shape and accomplish the goals of San Jose State.

California State University System

San Jose State is one of 23 campuses within the California State University System, the largest, the most diverse, and one of the most affordable university systems in the country. The 25-member CSU Board of Trustees is responsible for the oversight of the California State University system. See the California State University, Office of the Chancellor website for more information.