Description

At UBC, we believe that attracting and sustaining a diverse workforce is key to the successful pursuit of excellence in research, innovation, and learning for all faculty, staff and students. Our commitment to employment equity helps achieve inclusion and fairness, brings rich diversity to UBC as a workplace, and creates the necessary conditions for a rewarding career.

The Departments of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (BMB) and Chemical & Biological Engineering (CHBE) at the University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver campus, invite applications for one full-time faculty position. The successful candidate will hold a joint appointment between the two units at the rank of Assistant Professor, Tenure-Track, Associate Professor, Tenure or Professor, Tenure.

Background of UBC BMB and CHBE Departments

For more than fifty years, the Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (BMB: https://biochem.ubc.ca) has played an active and important role at UBC and in the greater scientific community. All members of the Department maintain active, well-funded research programs that encompass many areas of modern biochemistry, molecular and structural biology. The Department hosts an active Graduate program with more than 90 students and offers over 15 undergraduate courses and laboratory courses for honours, major and minor Undergraduate programs.

Chemical Engineering was established at the University of British Columbia (UBC) in 1915 as the first Canadian chemical engineering program west of Ontario. CHBE (http://www.chbe.ubc.ca) consistently ranks among the top departments in the world, having delivered over its more than 100-year history impactful technologies, major research innovations and professional leaders that contribute positively to a healthy society, economy, and environment. Each year, CHBE trains more than 400 undergraduate students and 180 graduate students in its academic and graduate research degree programs.

The mandate of BMB and CHBE at UBC includes three key responsibilities: (1) providing undergraduate and graduate- program trainees with excellent technical and leadership skills, integrity, and social responsibility through education;(2) creating internationally recognized and implemented technological advances, including fully sustainable solutions to address global needs and challenges through field-defining research; and (3) promoting an inclusive, safe, collaborative, and respectful community. This mission is guided at all levels by our values of collegiality, excellence, innovation, and integrity.

Faculty position in Nucleic Acids Nanomedicine

Reporting to the Heads of BMB and CHBE, the successful candidate is expected to establish a field-defining research and training program that merges principles and techniques of biochemistry/molecular biology and engineering at the forefront of nanomedicines and cellular therapeutics. The successful candidate is expected to concentrate on addressing emerging needs in diverse areas such as vaccine development, or treatment of cancer, blood disorders, or genetic diseases. Demonstrating significant achievements in delivering groundbreaking advancements and leading a high-impact research program, along with effectively educating and mentoring future leaders in the specified field, is a key expectation for this position. The successful candidate may assume a leadership role within UBC's nanomedicine initiative. They will be expected to capitalize on and contribute to resources and initiatives available at the university that foster the advancement of nanomedicines, such as NanoCore and the RNA Core. NanoCore offers expertise in lipid nanoparticle (LNP) design and manufacturing, established by Dr. Peter Cullis for the NanoMedicines Innovation Network (NMIN). The RNA Core provides high-quality custom RNA to both academic and industrial researchers on demand.

Additionally, the successful candidate will actively engage in teaching responsibilities across both the Departments of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology (BMB) and Chemical and Biological Engineering (CHBE). They will provide guidance and training to undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate students, and will collaborate with other pioneering researchers across the University's Vancouver and Okanagan campuses to foster interdisciplinary innovation as well as provide service to the University and the broader community. The candidate must embrace productive relationships across cultural differences and develop an equitable, diverse and inclusive learning and research approach that promotes a respectful environment for all students, staff, and faculty.

Candidates must possess a Ph.D. in chemical engineering, chemistry, biochemistry, physics, or a related field. Of particular interest are candidates who study and develop fundamental nucleic acid-based nanomedicines, including but not limited to mRNA or other RNA-based medicines, genome editing approaches, and all aspects of the delivery technologies required for these to be effective. The ability of the candidate to become licensed as a professional engineer (P.Eng.) in the province of British Columbia is viewed as an asset. At the rank of Assistant Professor, the successful candidate will have demonstrated evidence of ability in teaching and scholarly activity. At the rank of Associate Professor (tenure), the successful candidate will have demonstrated evidence of successful teaching and ability to direct graduate students and evidence of a growing body of productive scholarly activity and must be willing to participate in the affairs of the Department and the University. At the rank of Professor, the successful candidate will have demonstrated appropriate standards of excellence in teaching, wide recognition in the field of their interest, a growing body of productive scholarly activity, and participated significantly in academic and professional affairs.

In addition, the successful candidate will demonstrate a willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one’s own, and a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion.

The expected salary range for this position is $140,000-$160,000 at the rank of Assistant Professor, $160,000-$180,000 at the rank of Associate Professor and $180,000- 220,000 at the rank of Professor. The Faculty of Medicine and Faculty of Applied Science are committed to offering equitable and competitive salaries, commensurate with the qualifications and experience of the candidate. At UBC, in addition to a generous benefit package and highly valued pension plan, faculty members also have access to a comprehensive range of leaves, services, resources and career development opportunities. For more information, please visit: https://hr.ubc.ca/working-ubc.

Application Details

Applications must be submitted online at UBC Faculty Careers and should include 

•       a cover letter stating one’s suitability for the position
•       a 100-word summary, suitable for a non-specialist audience, outlining the nature and purpose of your research
•       a curriculum vitae
•       a statement (1-2 pages) of one’s teaching approach, interests and accomplishments
•       a five-year research program plan (max 3 pages)
•       a statement of how one’s research and teaching will contribute to an equitable, diverse and inclusive academic environment (max. 1 page)
•       the names and addresses (e-mail address included) of 3 references at the Assistant Professor rank and at least four qualified arm’s-length referees at the Associate Professor or Professor ranks. 

Details on Statement on Teaching Approach: Describe your teaching experience at any and all scales, d explain your teaching philosophy, including specific examples that have informed the evolution of that teaching philosophy. 

Details on Five-Year Research Program Plan: Provide information about your research experience and expertise, and about your research plan as a new faculty member, including as appropriate current and potential collaborators (at UBC and elsewhere) and sources of funding.

Details on Statement of Contributions to an Equitable, Diverse and Inclusive Academic Environment: We welcome colleagues with the experiences and competencies that can contribute to our principles of inclusion, equity, and diversity throughout campus life. Please provide a statement describing your experience working with a diverse student body and your contributions to creating/advancing a culture of equity and inclusion on campus or within your discipline.

Should you have any queries around this position, please contact Ayaka Bosshard, Human Resources Manager at ayaka.bosshard@ubc.ca.

Review of applications will begin on 15 September 2026, and continue until the position is filled. The anticipated start date for this position is 1 July 2027, or upon a date to be mutually agreed.

The University of British Columbia hires on the basis of merit, assessed in areas of scholarly activity, teaching and service, and is strongly committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and equitable work environment for all members of its workforce. An inclusive work environment presumes an environment where differences are accepted, recognized, and integrated into current structures, planning, and decision-making modes. Within this hiring process we will make efforts to create an inclusive and equitable process for all candidates (including but not limited to people with disabilities). Confidential accommodations are available on request for applicants who are short-listed. To confidentially request accommodation, please contact Ayaka Bosshard, HR Manager at ayaka.bosshard@ubc.ca.To learn more about UBC’s Center for Workplace Accessibility, visit the website here https://hr.ubc.ca/CWA.

With gratitude, we acknowledge that the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine and its distributed programs, which include four university academic campuses, are located on traditional, ancestral and unceded territories of First Nations Peoples and communities around the province.

Our Vision: To Transform Health for Everyone.

Ranked among the world’s top medical schools with the fifth-largest MD enrollment in North America, the UBC Faculty of Medicine is a leader in both the science and the practice of medicine. Across British Columbia, more than 12,000 faculty and staff are training the next generation of doctors and health care professionals, making remarkable discoveries, and helping to create the pathways to better health for our communities at home and around the world.

The Faculty of Medicine - comprised of approximately 2,200 administrative support, technical/research and management and professional staff, as well approximately 650 full-time academic and over 10,000 clinical faculty members - is composed of 19 academic basic science and/or clinical departments, three schools, and 24 research centres and institutes. Together with its University and Health Authority partners, the Faculty of Medicine delivers innovative programs and conducts research in the areas of health and life sciences. Faculty, staff and trainees are located at university campuses, clinical academic campuses in hospital settings and other regionally based centres across the province.

The UBC Faculty of Applied Science includes all Engineering activities at both the UBC Vancouver and UBC Okanagan campuses, as well as the Schools of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, Community and Regional Planning and Nursing. The Faculty was one of UBC's three founding faculties, admitting some of the University's first students in engineering in 1915. The Faculty includes over 300 full-time faculty members and more than 8,600 students. 

The Faculty of Applied Science comprises a unique constellation of disciplines and is committed to creating lasting change by discovering and applying knowledge. Our core purpose is to discover, design, and innovate, provide unwavering top-tier education, and champion a community of responsible professionals devoted to serving a thriving, sustainable and healthy society. Our work and the professional disciplines we represent span the entire human- centred built environment. We represent innovation at all scales from nanoscale electronic devices that power communications to the design of entire cities. 

UBC - One of the World's Leading Universities. As one of the world's leading universities, the University of British Columbia creates an exceptional learning environment that fosters global citizenship, advances a civil and sustainable society, and supports outstanding research to serve the people of British Columbia, Canada and the world.

Equity and diversity are essential to academic excellence. An open and diverse community fosters the inclusion of voices that have been underrepresented or discouraged. We encourage applications from members of groups that have been marginalized on any grounds enumerated under the B.C. Human Rights Code, including sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, racialization, disability, political belief, religion, marital or family status, age, and/or status as a First Nation, Metis, Inuit, or Indigenous person. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents of Canada will be given priority.