The Department of Physical Therapy at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley is inviting applications for five full-time faculty in the developing Doctoral Physical Therapy Program. Multiple open rank, Tenured and tenure track positions are available. Faculty rank and salary will be commensurate with the applicant’s experience and qualifications and based on established university and department standards. Start dates for the positions are during the 2024-25 academic year, three positions at the beginning of the Fall semester (approximately 1 September 2024) and two positions at the beginning of the Spring semester (approximately 15 January 2025). The positions may fall under either a nine-month contract with part time summer employment available or a nine-plus-three contract with full time summer employment.

The successful candidate will: engage in scholarship; teach courses in their area of expertise; advise and mentor physical therapy students; and participate in university, professional and community service. Additionally, the successful candidate will have demonstrated knowledge and expertise in one or more of the following physical therapy areas: orthopedics, sports medicine, cardiopulmonary management, geriatrics, pediatrics, adult neurology management, acute care, pathology, primary care, management of chronic health conditions, health promotion and wellness, or anatomy.

About UTRGV:

It is UTRGV’s Vision “To be one of the nation’s leaders in higher education, its premier Hispanic-serving institution, and a highly engaged bilingual university, with exceptional educational, research, and creative opportunities that serve as catalysts for transformation in the Rio Grande Valley and beyond.” As such, UTRGV is committed to building a diverse faculty and staff that can contribute to an enriching learning environment that strives for more equitable outcomes for student success.

UTRGV is a distributed campus, one university spanning four counties and multiple locations. Our purpose is to be a university for the entire Rio Grande Valley and beyond. Over 91% of the students enrolled at UTRGV identify as Hispanic, making UTRGV one of the top 3 universities with the highest percentage of Hispanic students. For additional information, please visit our website.

The College of Health Professions (CoHP) at UTRGV includes seven health professions departments with 11 undergraduate, twelve graduate and three doctoral degree programs. The CoHP and programmatic faculty work closely with the UTRGV Medical School and the UT Health System to provide robust interprofessional education opportunities and training experiences for health professions students.

The developing DPT program is a nine-semester (three-year), full-time program and will accept its first cohort in the summer of 2025. The program will serve a unique role in the PT profession in general and the Rio Grande Valley specifically to improve diversity in the field and inequities in health care services provided by and to persons in minority populations. Current data from the Commission on Accreditation of Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) and the American Physical Therapy Association indicate that fewer than 25% of DPT graduates and 16% of clinicians overall identify as an ethnic or racial minority and fewer than 7% of graduates and 4% of clinicians are Hispanic or Latino. Projections for the developing DPT program at UTRGV estimate that 75% of our cohorts will come from racial or ethnic minority populations, with over 50% being Hispanic or Latino. 

The successful candidate at the Assistant Professor level must meet the following requirements:

1. Hold a degree in physical therapy (BS, MS, or DPT) from an accredited institution; if that degree is not a DPT, the candidate must have an earned or be in the candidacy phase of a terminal academic doctoral degree (e.g. DSc, EdD, PhD) by the start date of employment.

2. Hold or be eligible for an active, unrestricted Physical Therapy license in the state of Texas.

3. Demonstrate evidence of professional or community service activities / engagement

4. Demonstrate contemporary expertise in areas of teaching (i.e. post-professional certifications, continuing education, etc.)

5. Demonstrate evidence of participation in the design, conduct or dissemination of original research

In addition to the previous requirements, the successful candidate at the Associate Professor level must also have:

1. At least 5 years of full-time teaching experience at the Assistant Professor rank.

2. A minimum of 4 peer-reviewed publications or presentations.

3. A minimum of 2 service activities at the department, college, or university level.

4. Evidence of satisfactory student evaluations.

5. Must meet College of Health Professions Qualifications for Tenure

In addition to the previous requirements, the successful candidate at the Professor level must also have:

1. At least 5 years of full-time teaching experience at the Associate Professor rank.

2. Evidence of sustained scholarship (e.g. a minimum of 5 additional peer-reviewed works, established extramural grantsmanship, mentorship of faculty/student scholarly activity)

3. Evidence of professional, department, college, or university service leadership.

4. Evidence of exemplary student and peer teaching evaluations.

5. Must meet College of Health Professions Qualifications for Tenure

The ideal candidate will have strong communication, organizational, interpersonal, problem-solving, and counseling/mentoring skills; and have the ability to prioritize, plan and organize work independently. Additionally, the ideal candidate will have participated in research and have the desire to expand their research expertise and portfolio; the ability to collaborate with a variety of professionals within a university and clinical/community setting; and professional association engagement and commitment to professional and community service.

If the candidate is a physical therapist, they will be licensed or eligible for licensure as a physical therapist in Texas, hold a certification in a clinical specialty and hold a terminal degree in a discipline relevant to physical therapy (i.e. Rehabilitation Science, , etc.).

If the candidate is not a physical therapist, they will hold a terminal degree in a discipline relevant to physical therapy (Anatomy, Physiology, Biomechanics, Kinesiology, etc.).

It is the policy of The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley to promote and ensure equal employment opportunities for all individuals without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information or protected veteran status. In accordance with the requirements of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, our University is committed to comply with all government requirements and ensures non-discrimination in its education programs and activities, including employment. We encourage women, minorities and differently abled persons to apply for employment positions of interest.

UTRGV is a distributed institution. As such and as assigned, the position may require presence at multiple locations throughout the Rio Grande Valley. Work is performed primarily in a general office environment. This position is security sensitive and thereby subject to the provisions of the Texas Education Code §51.215. The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length. This position has the option to elect the Optional Retirement Program (ORP) instead of TRS, subject to the position being 40 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

Dear Applicant,
Human Resources will not be held responsible for redacting any confidential information from the documents you attach with your application. The confidential information includes the following:
Date of Birth
Social Security Number
Gender
Ethnicity/Race
Please make sure that you omit this information prior to submission. We are advising that Human Resources will be forwarding your application to the department as per your submission.
The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley reserves the right to discontinue accepting applications prior to the stated close date of this position, after meeting the posting requirement of three (3) calendar days.

Security sensitive; All UTRGV employees are required to have a criminal background check (CBC). CBCs will be conducted for all candidates invited for an on-campus interview.

Texas law requires faculty members whose primary language is not English to demonstrate proficiency in English as determined by a satisfactory paper-based test score of 500 (computer-based of 173 or internet-based of 61) on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or a satisfactory test score of 6.0 on the International English Language Testing System (IELTS).

Incomplete applications will not be considered. All positions are subject to budget approval.