The Department of Human Centered Design (HCD) at Cornell University's College of Human Ecology invites applications for an open rank, tenure-track faculty position in Fashion Design Management. We seek an exceptional scholar whose work sits at the intersection of management inquiry and empirical analysis of the global fashion industry — work that bridges analytical depth with an understanding of how individuals, organizations, and markets interact within complex, evolving fashion systems.
HCD is housed within the College of Human Ecology. Guided by its Vision 2030 priorities — including sustainability and society, technology and human thriving, and health equity — the College is committed to scholarship that connects rigorous inquiry to consequential human questions. HCD brings that orientation to design, policy, and business, and faculty in this position will find an intellectual home that values both analytical depth and real-world relevance.
HCD is a transdisciplinary community spanning creative studio practice, fiber and materials science, environmental design, and fashion business. Formed through the integration of two longstanding departments — Design + Environmental Analysis and Fiber Science & Apparel Design — HCD brings together scholars and practitioners who share a conviction that design is a powerful lever for human and societal flourishing. Faculty work across a wide spectrum, from computational fabrication and textile engineering to spatial design and environmental psychology to consumer behavior and global supply chains, with a shared commitment to human-centered inquiry. Within this community, the department is now seeking to deepen its expertise in fashion management specifically.
We want to hear from scholars who can make a compelling argument for how their work extends and advances the department's existing strengths and priorities in fashion design management — researchers with a distinctive point of view about where the field is heading, and the methodological and theoretical tools to contribute to that trajectory. Successful candidates will articulate a coherent and focused research agenda.
Scholarship in one or more of the following areas is especially encouraged:
global supply chain strategy, sourcing, and trade policy; brand strategy, consumer behavior, and the economics of fashion cultural production; the application of big data, machine learning, and quantitative methods to fashion business problems; entrepreneurship and innovation in fashion creative industries.
The successful candidate will demonstrate an active research program that is nationally and internationally recognized — or, for junior candidates, clear and convincing evidence of the trajectory and momentum to build one— with a publication record in top-tier, peer-reviewed journals appropriate to the discipline. Empirical and quantitative competence is expected; the ability to bring analytical methods to bear on fashion management problems is central to what we are seeking. We are particularly interested in candidates whose scholarship is rigorous, theoretically grounded, and generalizable to fashion-related industries.
Faculty responsibilities center on research and teaching in equal measure, with service understood as an integral part of both rather than a separate obligation. The successful candidate will teach undergraduate and graduate courses and advise students across B.S., M.A., M.S., M.P.S., and Ph.D. programs. A doctoral degree is required. We welcome scholars from management, fashion, strategy, business, economics, organizational behavior, consumer behavior, and related disciplines whose doctoral training includes strong empirical and quantitative foundations and whose work engages meaningfully with the fashion industry.
Cornell University is committed to its founding principle of educating "any person…in any study," and offers a collegial and intellectually vibrant environment in Ithaca, in the heart of the Finger Lakes region. Cornell actively supports dual-career couples through its Dual Career program and membership in the Upstate New York Higher Education Recruitment Consortium.
To apply, please submit the following materials via this link: https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/32233
Where any of these materials are available online, please also submit a Word document identifying each posting and providing the corresponding URL.
The start date for this position is to be determined but may be as early as July 2027. Applications submitted by October 15, 2026, will receive priority consideration. The search committee will conduct the majority of its screening during November and December 2026. Applications will continue to be accepted after that date until the position is filled.
For more information, please contact Sienna Torbitt at slt86@cornell.edu.
Pay Range:
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Pay Ranges:
The hiring rate of pay for the successful candidate will be determined considering the following criteria:
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