Assistant Professor of Art in Digital Media

Position Description

The Art Department at Augustana University, a rigorous undergraduate-focused private liberal arts institution, invites applications for a full-time tenure-track faculty position in Digital Media beginning August 2027.

The Augustana University Art Department is a NASAD-accredited BA and BFA degree-granting program with areas including studio art, design, art education, and Pre-Architecture.

We seek a dynamic artist/designer/creative practitioner whose expertise centers on contemporary animation, motion graphics, digital compositing, rendering, immersive digital environments, and time-based media workflows. The ideal candidate will demonstrate fluency in current industry-standard software and digital production pipelines, along with strong visual storytelling, spatial thinking, and world-building sensibilities within an undergraduate liberal arts environment.

The department is particularly interested in candidates whose practice emphasizes:

• Animation and motion graphics
• Digital compositing and visual storytelling
• Rendering and digital environment/world-building workflows
• 3D modeling and spatial visualization
• Time-based digital media
• Interactive and immersive media

Familiarity with professional workflows related to cinematic visualization, immersive environments, virtual production, game environments, digital photography, or entertainment-oriented digital pipelines is welcome.

This position is intended for candidates whose primary expertise is grounded in contemporary 3D and time-based digital media practices rather than traditional graphic design, experimental film/video, or studio photography-based practices alone.

Preferred software proficiencies may include Maya, Blender, Rhino, Cinema 4D, After Effects, Unreal Engine, Twinmotion, Houdini, Substance 3D, Adobe Creative Suite, or comparable professional tools. Experience with real-time rendering environments, immersive visualization workflows, or spatially oriented digital production pipelines is welcome.

Primary Responsibilities

• Teaching digital media studio courses for B.A. and B.F.A. art majors and non-majors
• Developing and expanding curriculum in digital media in collaboration with the Art Department and multimedia entrepreneurship program
• Maintaining an active record of creative scholarship and/or professional practice
• Advising undergraduate students
• Service to the department and university community
• The successful candidate will typically teach three courses per semester, including Digital Photography, Digital Media I, and Advanced Digital Media. Interim/J-term offerings may align with the candidate's areas of expertise and specialization. The new hire will receive course-development release time during their first January term and will teach every two out of three January terms thereafter.

Qualifications

MFA in Digital Media, 3D Animation, Motion Design, Multimedia, Digital Visualization, Interactive Media, or a related field required.

Professional or industry experience is strongly preferred, particularly in areas related to contemporary digital production, visualization, animation, immersive media, or professional digital content creation workflows. Previous college-level teaching experience is preferred.

The successful candidate will demonstrate:

• Strong technical and conceptual fluency in contemporary digital media practices
• Commitment to innovative undergraduate teaching and mentorship
• Ability to teach both foundational and advanced digital workflows
• Evidence of strong design sensibilities and visual communication
• Interest in curriculum development and interdisciplinary collaboration
• Commitment to fostering an inclusive and supportive learning environment
• Appreciation for the liberal arts and student-centered education

We especially encourage applicants whose work demonstrates excellence in digital visualization, spatial/world-building practices, animation, motion design, and technologically forward studio approaches.

Salary

Salary is competitive and dependent upon qualifications; excellent benefits included.

Closing Date

Review of applications will begin September 10, 2026, and continue until the position is filled.

Application Instructions

Please submit the following materials in seperate pdfs electronically to our Career Center Portal. If assistance is needed during the application process, please reach out to humanresources@augie.edu.

• Cover letter
• Statement of teaching philosophy
• Artist statement and description of future scholarly/research plans
• Copies of undergraduate and graduate transcripts
• Curriculum vitae
• Single PDF of 20 work samples with image list (max file size 10MB)
• Single PDF of 10 student work samples with brief descriptions of assignments/projects (max file size 10MB)
• Provide the names, with email and phone number, of three references

Official website: www.augie.edu

Questions may be directed to:

Liz Van Westen, SHRM-CP, MSA

Sr. Employment Specialist

Human Resources | Augustana University

Office: 605-274-4107 | Fax: 605-274-5547

liz.vanwesten@augie.edu

Dr. Lindsay Twa, Art Chair

twa@augie.edu | 605-274-4010

More information about the department can be found here:

https://www.augie.edu/art-department

Augustana University is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action/Title IX Employer. Applicants must comply with the Immigration Reform and Control Act and may be required to submit official transcripts upon employment. Finalist candidates must satisfactorily complete a pre-employment background check.