VIS AST PROF

Candidates shall have received the academic degree appropriate to the assignment of duties, or equivalent experiences or accomplishments in the field may be substituted.

Visiting Assistant Professor in Band/Instrumental Conducting

Position: Full-time, 9-month, non-tenure accruing faculty position with potential for an initial Summer Adjunct Appointment

Date of Expected Hire:

July 1, 2026 – August 15, 2026 Adjunct Assistant Professor

August 16, 2026 – May 15, 2027 Visiting Assistant Professor

The University of Florida School of Music in the College of the Arts invites applications for a full-time, 9-month Visiting Assistant Professor in the Bands area with an initial Adjunct appointment from July 1-August 15, 2026. We seek an accomplished pedagogue who will contribute to the continued success and growth of a comprehensive band program. The successful candidate will instruct concert and athletic ensembles, bringing a dynamic personality and enthusiasm for teaching to our existing community of outstanding scholars and musicians.

The University of Florida College of the Arts intends to be a transformative community, responding to and generating paradigmatic shifts in the arts and beyond. As artists and scholars, we embrace the complexity of our evolving human experience and seek to empower our students and faculty to shape that experience fearlessly through critical study, creative practice, and provocation. We seek a colleague who identifies as a change-maker. We seek a colleague who will position emerging artists and researchers as catalysts for justice on local and global levels.

Responsibilities:

• Collaborate with the Director of Bands and Associate Director of Bands in the day‑to‑day operations of the band program, ensuring effective rehearsals, performances, and administrative coordination.

• Assist with the planning, preparation, and execution of performances, including concerts, athletic events, tours, and special programs.

• Conduct and rehearse assigned concert bands, athletic bands, and related ensembles in support of the artistic and educational mission of the band program.

• Teach undergraduate conducting courses.

• Collaborate with band faculty and staff on scheduling, equipment coordination, and ensemble logistics.

• Support recruitment, retention, and outreach activities for the band program and School of Music.

• Participate in service activities appropriate to a visiting faculty appointment, including faculty meetings and School of Music events.

• Perform additional duties as assigned in support of the mission and goals of the band program and School of Music.

 Summer Adjunct Responsibilities

• Assist with planning and preparations for the upcoming 2026-2027 academic year band program

SCHOOL OF MUSIC: Organized within the College of the Arts, the School of Music plays an important role in the academic and cultural life of the University, the College’s Creative Campus initiative and the community. The School has 40 full-time and nine adjunct faculty, serving some 200 graduate and 200 undergraduate music majors. Degree programs include B.S., B.A., B.M., M.M., D.M.A., and the Ph.D. in music education, composition, ethnomusicology, and historical musicology. Program emphases include performance, music education, theory, composition, music history and literature, ethnomusicology, conducting, and sacred music. The School of Music is also home to the UF Bands program, which includes “The Pride of the Sunshine” Gator Marching Band. School of Music facilities include the School of Music Building and Steinbrenner Band Hall, among others.  The University of Florida is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges and is an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Music. For more information, visit www.arts.ufl.edu/music.

THE COLLEGE OF THE ARTS: The College of the Arts is an engine of transformation that generates paradigmatic shifts in the arts and beyond, while nurturing adaptability, innovation, and excellence. We foster an environment where novel creative practice, leading research, and experiential learning thrive. Our students, faculty, and staff interrogate and respond to the ever-changing relationship between technology and the human spirit. We prepare future leaders in artistic professions and creative industries, while developing student capacity for interdisciplinary scholarship that serves and engages local and global communities.  The College offers baccalaureate, masters, and doctoral degrees. Approximately 1,600 students are pursuing majors in degrees offered by the College of the Arts under the direction of 150 faculty members in its three accredited schools— the School of Art + Art History, the School of Music, and the School of Theatre + Dance, and in the Center for Arts in Medicine, the Digital Worlds Institute, and the Center for Arts, Migration, and Entrepreneurship. In addition, the college comprises the University Galleries, and the University level of the New World School of the Arts in Miami. 

The University of Florida: The University of Florida is a comprehensive learning institution built on a land grant foundation. We are The Gator Nation, a community dedicated to excellence in education and research and shaping a better future for Florida, the nation and the world. Our mission is to enable our students to lead and influence the next generation and beyond for economic, cultural and societal benefit. UF is a graduate research institution with more than 50,000 students and membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities. Gainesville, which is consistently ranked as one of the nation’s most livable cities, is located midway between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. Together, the University and the community comprise the educational, medical and cultural center of North Central Florida.

In addition to salary, the University of Florida (UF) offers low cost State Health plans, a number of Dental plans to fit you and your family’s needs, and Vision. Domestic partner coverage through GatorCare is also available. Optional plans such as life, disability, legal and accident insurance are also available.

UF provides a variety of leave programs including vacation, sick leave, 11 paid holidays, personal leave days, and family medical leave. 9-month faculty employees accrue approximately 13 sick days annually, and 4 personal leave days, typically used during the holiday closing. UF also provides you the flexibility to deal with life’s challenges by offering paid family leave, eight full weeks of leave over a 24-month period.

Build a retirement roadmap with competitive pension plans, investment accounts and a host of voluntary add-ons, such as 457 deferred compensation and 403(b) plans.

UF Employees are also eligible for the GatorPerks discount program, which provides big savings at various business and retailers!

Explore UF’s plethora of benefit options here: FACULTY Benefits

$5,000 Adjunct Assistant Professor

$60,000 Visiting Assistant Professor with a comprehensive and highly competitive leave and benefits package

The successful candidate must meet all of the following

• Masters degree in music
• Evidence of successful music teaching experience in instrumental music (concert and athletic bands) at the collegiate and/or high school level
• Evidence of success in marching band drill design and/or music arranging
• Evidence of successful collaboration and collegiality with faculty, students, and staff
• Evidence of skill in designing and facilitating academic work that advances curiosity, respect, open intellectual discourse, and the welcome incorporation and well-being of all in an environment of complex differences. 

The successful candidate will ideally meet some of the following

• Doctorate or ABD in music (Instrumental Conducting or Music Education)
• 3–5 years of university-level teaching experience beyond the graduate assistantship
• Expertise in marching band drill design and/or music arranging
• Demonstrated capacity for effective engagement in recruitment
• Organizational, management, and communication experience within higher education

Application Deadline: Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until an applicant pool is established. To ensure full consideration, all application documents must be submitted by April 24, 2026. Applications received after this date may be considered at the discretion of the committee and/or hiring authority. The committee will conduct two rounds of virtual interviews over an accelerated timeline after the submission window closes. Applicants who are invited to the second round should expect to give a lecture presentation. Specifics for the subject of this presentation will be shared upon invitation to the second round. 

Application Process: Applications must be submitted via the University of Florida's online application system and must include the following:

1. A detailed letter of application explaining how your qualifications, work, and perspective will contribute to and enhance our transformative community
2. A curriculum vitae
3. Link to Streaming Video: Please upload a PDF document with video links of both rehearsal and performance of concert band (15 minutes rehearsal / 15 minutes performance).  Video must be conductor facing.
4. Please upload a PDF document with link(s) to streaming video of candidate-designed drill and/or audio samples of music arrangements for marching band. 
5. Optional: Please upload a PDF document with link(s) to streaming video of both rehearsal and performance of collegiate marching band demonstrating the candidate’s experience.

The Search Committee may request additional materials and list of references at a later time.      

Inquiries may be sent to:
Jay Watkins
Chair, Visiting Assistant Professor of Band Search
Email: watkins@ufl.edu

The selected candidate will be required to provide an official transcript to the hiring department upon hire. A transcript will not be considered “official” if a designation of “Issued to Student” is visible. Degrees earned from an educational institution outside of the United States are required to be evaluated by a professional credentialing service provider approved by National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES).

If an accommodation due to a disability is needed to apply for this position, please call +1 (352) 392- 2477or the Florida Relay System at +1 (800) 955-8771 (TDD). Hiring is contingent upon eligibility to work in the US. Searches are conducted in accordance with Florida's Sunshine Law.

Application must be submitted by 11:55 p.m. (ET) of the posting end date.