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Assistant Professor - Civil Rights - School of Law

Position overview

Position title: Assistant Professor of Law
Salary range: The current salary range for this position is $203,900 –$333,600 (9-month academic year salary), however, off-scale salary and other components of pay, which would yield compensation that is higher than this range, are offered to meet competitive conditions.
Anticipated start: July 1, 2027

Application Window

Open date: August 1, 2026

Next review date: Wednesday, Sep 30, 2026 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.

Final date: Wednesday, Sep 30, 2026 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Applications will continue to be accepted until this date.

Position description

Berkeley Law is one of the nation’s great centers for legal education, ever exploring and pushing new intellectual boundaries while tackling urgent, real-world issues. The law school is also known for its vibrant and engaged community of students and scholars who are committed to providing leadership and making a difference on problems of local, national and global import. Currently ranked among the top law schools in the country, the School of Law has ambitious development goals as it looks to continue producing leaders in law, government, and society.

Berkeley Law invites applications from untenured candidates for a full-time, tenure-track faculty position. This position will advance the work of the Civil Rights Endowment, which was established to honor the life and legacy of Judge Thelton Henderson, whose career was dedicated to public service and the advancement of equal justice under the law. We welcome applications from scholars whose research focuses on Civil Rights, including but not limited to the study of identity and discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexuality, religion, and disability, in domains that include voting rights, policing and prisons, and freedom of speech and expression.

Berkeley Law strives to educate responsible, effective, and forward-thinking advocates who serve the public through legal practice, public policy, academic scholarship, and related fields. In doing so, the school addresses some of society’s most pressing challenges by leveraging its strengths in teaching and research to improve law, policy, and public institutions. At the heart of Berkeley Law’s public mission is a commitment to access, affordability, and empowering students from all backgrounds to pursue impactful careers across a wide range of professional paths.

Berkeley Law is committed to addressing the family needs of faculty, including dual career couples and single parents. We are also interested in candidates who have had non-traditional career paths or who have taken time off for family reasons, or who have achieved excellence in careers outside academia. For information about potential relocation to Berkeley, or career needs of accompanying partners and spouses, please visit: New Senate Faculty | Office for Faculty Equity & Welfare.

Qualifications

Basic qualifications (required at time of application)

Candidates must either: a) hold a J.D. or equivalent international degree by date of application, or b) hold a Ph.D. or equivalent international degree.

Preferred qualifications
  • Ability to teach at least one first-year (1L) required course.
  • Demonstrated ability to teach and mentor students from diverse disciplinary, educational, and experiential backgrounds.
  • Commitment to fostering an equitable, inclusive, and interdisciplinary learning environment.
  • Demonstrated potential to contribute to the Law School's public mission through excellence in scholarship, teaching, mentorship, and service, including:
    • advancing rigorous legal scholarship and intellectual inquiry;
    • preparing students in legal theory, doctrine, and practice while engaging broader political, social, and economic contexts; and
    • addressing significant legal and societal challenges through research, teaching, and public engagement.

Application Requirements

Document requirements
  • Curriculum Vitae - Your most recently updated C.V.

  • Statement of Research, Teaching, and Service - Please provide a statement discussing your scholarship, teaching and mentoring, and service.

    In discussing your scholarly research, we are particularly interested in work relating to civil rights issues. We are interested in both your accomplishments (e.g. publication record and any awards) and future plans (e.g. research agenda) with regard to scholarship in civil rights. We are also interested in any scholarly work or plans relevant to our public mission, including efforts to build an equitable and diverse scholarly field.

    In discussing your teaching interests, we are particularly interested in your teaching experiences or plans regarding teaching civil rights subjects, in addition to your general approach to teaching and mentoring. We are also interested in how your approach to teaching aligns with our public mission, including, e.g., working with students from diverse backgrounds and building an equitable and inclusive learning environment for all students through curriculum design, classroom environment, and pedagogy.

    In describing your service, we are particularly interested in your experience and/or plans regarding public service involving civil rights or related issues, in addition to general service to academic, professional, and/or community institutions. We are also interested in how your prior and proposed academic, professional and/or public service activities align with our School's public mission. This could include, for example, service activities that remove barriers and support increased participation in the civil rights community by individuals from all backgrounds.

  • Job Talk Paper or Recent Publication - Please provide a recent sample of your scholarship, published or unpublished (e.g., articles, book chapters, dissertation chapters).

  • Authorization to Release Information Form - An institutional reference check will be completed only if you are selected as the candidate to whom the hiring unit would like to extend a formal offer. Download, complete, sign, and upload the Authorization to Release Information form.

Reference requirements
  • 3 required (contact information only)

References will be contacted only for candidates who are under consideration by the full faculty. We will seek your permission before contacting any of your references.

Apply link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF05436

Help contact: academicpositions@law.berkeley.edu

About UC Berkeley

UC Berkeley is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in our public mission of research, teaching, and service, consistent with UC Regents Policy 4400 and University of California Academic Personnel policy (APM 210 1-d). These values are embedded in our Principles of Community, which reflect our passion for critical inquiry, debate, discovery and innovation, and our deep commitment to contributing to a better world. Every member of the UC Berkeley community has a role in sustaining a safe, caring and humane environment in which these values can thrive.

The University of California, Berkeley is an Equal Opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status.

For more information, please refer to the University of California’s Affirmative Action and Nondiscrimination in Employment Policy and the University of California’s Anti-Discrimination Policy.

In searches when letters of reference are required all letters will be treated as confidential per University of California policy and California state law. Please refer potential referees, including when letters are provided via a third party (i.e., dossier service or career center), to the UC Berkeley statement of confidentiality prior to submitting their letter.

As a University employee, you will be required to comply with all applicable University policies and/or collective bargaining agreements, as may be amended from time to time. Federal, state, or local government directives may impose additional requirements.

The University of California is committed to creating and maintaining a community dedicated to the advancement, application, and transmission of knowledge and creative endeavors through academic excellence, where all individuals who participate in University programs and activities can work and learn together in a safe and secure environment, free of violence, harassment, or discrimination. Consistent with this commitment, UC Berkeley requires all applicants for Senate faculty positions to complete, sign, and upload an Authorization of Information Release form into AP Recruit as part of their application. If an applicant does not include the signed authorization, the application will be considered incomplete, and as with any incomplete application, will not receive further consideration. Although all applicants for faculty recruitments must complete the entire application, applicants will only be subject to institutional reference checks if and when they are selected as the candidate to whom the hiring unit would like to extend a formal offer. More information is available on this website.

As a condition of employment, the finalist will be required to disclose if they are subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct.

Job location

Berkeley, CA