JOB: Assistant or Associate Professor in Games, Gaming, and Gamification – Canada Research Chair

The School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design (AMPD) at York University, Toronto, is seeking an outstanding emerging researcher at the level of Assistant or Associate Professor in the area of Games, Gaming, and Gamification. The successful candidate must be sufficiently qualified for nomination for a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair following their appointment to the tenure stream position. One of North America’s leading schools for the arts, AMPD offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in Dance, Design, Computational Arts, Cinema and Media Arts, Music, Theatre, Visual Arts, Art History, Media Studies, Theatre and Performance Studies.

The candidate’s research and theoretical interests should span games, gaming, and organized play as both a cultural phenomenon and a platform for creative practice. While we are not seeking a specific area of specialization, training, or expertise, applicants should be broadly conversant in the emerging field of game studies, explore gaming as it manifests in a wide range of contemporary practices, and align their research program with the York University’s new Vision: Science to Application (VISTA) program. VISTA builds on York’s role as a world-class leader in vision research by investing $120 million in a cutting-edge interdisciplinary research program of visual neuroscience, computer vision, and immersive and screen-based vision technology. The VISTA program is supported by the Canada First Research Excellence Fund (CFREF) one of the nation’s most prestigious research grants.

Possible areas of research interest include the following: interactive game design, game mechanics, game related art and installation, games and disability, narrative and trans-media storytelling, game ecologies, critical game studies, serious games, playbor, social gaming and gaming communities, alt-games, gamification, videogame history, gender and games, and the gaming industry. The candidate might be a maker or a scholar able to work across a range of methodologies, theoretical frameworks, digital tools and technologies, and cultural practices. The ideal candidate must show a promising future in scholarly research and publication, have demonstrable familiarity with a variety of tools found in professional game development, incorporate interdisciplinary approaches between art and technology, and have substantial theoretical and technical breadth in their teaching. The successful candidate will play a strong role in Sensorium: Centre for Digital Arts and Technology Research, a catalyst for new ideas and experimentation. Based in AMPD, the centre supports cross-disciplinary work in application and content creation, artistic and scientific inquiry, design practice and methodologies, policy development and critical discourse in digital media arts.

The successful candidate must have a PhD or equivalent in the areas of Game Studies, Digital Media, Media Studies, Computational Arts, or a closely related field. Candidates should be able to collaborate internally with the members of AMPD and also communicate his or her ideas across the diverse domains of knowledge found at York University’s other faculties, such as health, biology, computer science, engineering, industrial design, environmental studies, and science and technology studies. The candidate is also expected to provide leadership by fostering collaborative research, securing external funding, supervising graduate students, and generating national and international academic, community and industry partnerships. The ideal candidate would be able to contribute to York University’s strong tradition of promoting social justice, knowledge mobilization, economic access, and social equality among diverse groups in both their research and their pedagogy.

This appointment is subject to approval by the CRC program review process. The Canada Research Chairs program was established by the Government of Canada to enable Canadian universities to achieve the highest levels of research excellence in the global, knowledge—based economy. Tier 2 Chairs have five—year terms, once renewable, and are intended for exceptional emerging researchers (fewer than 10 years post terminal degree) who have the acknowledged potential to lead their field of research. Information about the CRC program can be found at <www.chairs.gc.ca>.

York University is an Affirmative Action (AA) employer and strongly values diversity, including gender and sexual diversity, within its community. The AA Program, which applies to Aboriginal people, visible minorities, people with disabilities, and women, can be found at www.yorku.ca/acadjobs or by calling the AA office at 416-736-5713. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents will be given priority.

This position, subject to budgetary approval, will commence July 1, 2017. Applicants should submit a detailed CV, statement of research and teaching, one or more scholarly publications, a research creation portfolio (if applicable), and three signed letters of reference.