Chair (at the Rank of Professor) Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Job description

The School of Global Public Health (GPH) at New York University seeks a distinguished scholar and leader to serve as its next Chair for the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences (SBS).

The Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences offers undergraduate classes, master’s level concentrations in Community Practice and Health Sciences and Social and Behavioral Sciences, and PhD level courses.

GPH seeks candidates with exceptional leadership, innovation, and vision to lead the department and build its academic and research enterprise in NYC, extending throughout NYU’s extensive Global Network University campuses and study-away sites.

Strong candidates will have a robust research portfolio and commitment to preparing undergraduate, master’s, and PhD students for the 21st-century workforce.

Position Summary

The Chair will serve as a key administrator responsible for assuring the quality and growth of the departmental academic and research programs.

The Chair will demonstrate broad command of the department’s key content and methodological areas, exemplary research and academic achievements, strategic leadership ability, strong interpersonal and communication skills, and an entrepreneurial spirit; supervise day-to-day operations of the department, including support staff.

The Chair will work with faculty and staff to develop and implement the department’s vision; nurture, recruit, and develop high-performance faculty; maintain a collaborative and transparent atmosphere; and work with other leaders of GPH to realize the mission of the School.

Candidates for this position should have an interest and experience that will aid in growing both master's concentrations.

The Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences includes faculty that work in domains that include the social and behavioral determinants of health and health behaviors; health promotion and disease prevention; health disparities and population-level trends; aging and the life course; chronic and infectious diseases; immigration; access to care; and urban health.

The Chair will join a faculty with backgrounds in sociology, medicine, psychology, prevention science, education, and political science.

The department houses two interdisciplinary research centers: the Center for the Advancement and Dissemination of Intervention Optimization (CADIO), the Center for Public Health Disaster Science, and several faculty-led research labs.

The department also trains PhD students, DrPH students, and postdoctoral fellows.

The successful candidate will be a well-established scholar with an international reputation, a strong record of external funding, and a demonstrated commitment to working with an interdisciplinary and diverse faculty.

Finally, and equally important, the individual will demonstrate the ability to foster the department's educational mission.

Strong candidates for this position will have substantive experience in faculty and student mentorship, experience in academic leadership, knowledge of the field of public health, a commitment to interdisciplinary research, and a research portfolio and teaching experience appropriate to the department.

Candidates should be interested in curricula development at the undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral levels and have a strong commitment to enhancing community practice.

The Chair of the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences will join the NYU School of Global Public Health’s leadership team and the chairs of five other departments and programs and report to the School's dean.

Candidates for this position must be able to receive tenure as full professors at NYU.

The position is a nine-month tenured faculty line, with a 12-month administrative appointment for the chair role.

The School of Global Public Health at New York University is preparing for the next generation of public health pioneers with the critical thinking skills, acumen and entrepreneurial approaches necessary to reinvent the public health paradigm.

GPH aims to improve health worldwide through a unique blend of global public health studies, research and practice.

Founded in 1831, New York University is now one of the largest private universities in the United States.

Of the more than 3,000 colleges and universities in America, New York University is one of only 60 member institutions of the distinguished Association of American Universities.

From a student body of 158 during NYU's very first semester, enrollment has grown to more than 50,000 students at three degree-granting campuses in New York City, Abu Dhabi, and Shanghai, and at study away sites in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North and South America.

Today, students come from every state in the union and from 133 foreign countries.

New York University has grown into one of the nation's leading institutions of higher education, a dynamic and prominent research university that is in and of the city with an academic presence that spans the globe.

NYU has an extensive global network of teaching and research sites throughout the world.

These sites include three portal campuses and 11 global academic centers in Africa, South America, China, Australia, Europe and the Middle East.

This unique arrangement allows GPH to establish and engage in research efforts worldwide and study around the world.

Additionally, it informs public health practice both locally and globally through the exchange of knowledge.


+ Doctoral degree or equivalent in one of the following areas: social and behavioral sciences, community health, demography, public health, psychology, sociology, or a related health or social science field; must be eligible for a faculty appointment with tenure at the Full Professor level.

+ Strong and established record of scholarly achievement

+ Administrative experience in a university or other research setting.

+ Strong candidates for this position will have substantive experience in faculty and student mentorship, academic leadership, knowledge of the field of public health, and a commitment to interdisciplinary research.


Apply Via Interfolio

Application Instructions (applications will be reviewed after November 15, 2025) - applicants must apply via Interfolio and submit:


+ Cover letter addressing candidate’s philosophy and qualifications related to the responsibilities of the Chair (including administration, graduate and undergraduate education, and research) and vision for the field of social and behavioral sciences and community health

+ Curriculum vitae

+ Three recent publications

+ Complete contact information for five references


In compliance with NYC’s Pay Transparency Act, the annual base salary range for this positio n is $281,000-$381,000 .

The position will provide additional compensation for serving as Chair of the Department.

New York University considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, as well as market and organizational considerations when extending an offer.



For people in the EU, click here for information on your privacy rights under GDPR: www.nyu.edu/it/gdpr

NYU is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to a policy of equal treatment and opportunity in every aspect of its recruitment and hiring process without regard to age, alienage, caregiver status, childbirth, citizenship status, color, creed, disability, domestic violence victim status, ethnicity, familial status, gender and/or gender identity or expression, marital status, military status, national origin, parental status, partnership status, predisposing genetic characteristics, pregnancy, race, religion, reproductive health decision making, sex, sexual orientation, unemployment status, veteran status, or any other legally protected basis.

All interested persons are encouraged to apply for vacant positions at all levels.

Sustainability Statement

NYU aims to be among the greenest urban campuses in the country and carbon neutral by 2040.

Learn more at nyu.edu/sustainability

Required Skill Profession

Other General