Law Fellow & Visiting Assistant Professor

Law Fellow and Visiting Assistant Professor
The Illinois Academic Fellowship Program helps new legal academics obtain tenure-stream faculty positions at U.S. law schools. In recent years, our fellows have obtained tenure-stream positions at the University of California-Irvine, Indiana University-Bloomington, the University of Arizona, the University of Alabama, the University of Nebraska, Cardozo School of Law, and other institutions.

Fellows spend one or two years in residence at the College of Law researching and writing under the close mentorship of Illinois faculty, teaching one course per semester, and fully participating in the College’s famously rich intellectual environment. Fellows are treated like tenure-stream faculty although with a light teaching load and no administrative responsibilities. Fellows are provided with the support and counseling necessary to the development of a serious scholarly portfolio. By the end of the program, we expect fellows to be competitive for tenure-track positions at leading law schools.

Fellows are appointed as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Law and also carry the title of Ribstein Fellow in honor of the late Professor Larry Ribstein.

Selection Criteria
Applications for the Illinois Academic Fellowship Program are invited from law school graduates as well as Ph.D. recipients or candidates in any field who have a sustained academic interest in the law’s interaction with their discipline. Applicants may be in the final stage of a doctoral program, recent graduates, or individuals completing a judicial clerkship or employed in legal practice. Fellows will be chosen on the basis of an assessment of their potential, with appropriate support and mentoring, to obtain a tenure-track position at a leading U.S. law school.

Applications are welcome from potential fellows in all subject matter areas and methodological approaches. In the coming academic year, we expect to hire one new fellow.

Scholarship and Teaching
Fellows will teach one class per semester. Depending on the interests of the fellow, the teaching package may include traditional law school courses across the full range of the curriculum and seminars that focus on the research interests of the fellow. Each fellow’s teaching package will be designed to provide meaningful preparation for the academic job market and to complement the current writing projects of the fellow, subject to the curricular needs of the College of Law. The exact courses assigned are ultimately in the discretion of the Dean of the College of Law.

Most importantly, fellows will receive substantial faculty assistance with their research projects; the opportunity to present works in progress to the faculty in a workshop setting; the opportunity to attend and participate in lectures, colloquia, symposia, roundtables, and faculty workshops; faculty advice and assistance in preparing for the academic job market; and, where appropriate, pairing with a faculty mentor. Assisting fellows in preparing a substantial piece of scholarship, with an emphasis on the “job talk” paper, is a primary goal of the Illinois Academic Fellowship Program.

The College of Law offers a rich intellectual environment with numerous faculty workshops and specialized speaker programs. Fellows will be full participants in faculty workshops and similar programs.

Appointment Information
This is a nine-month (paid over twelve months), 100% time, visiting appointment that is typically renewed for the second year of the fellowship assuming satisfactory performance of assigned duties. Salary is commensurate with experience, ranging from $68,500 - $72,000. The expected start date is as soon as possible after 8/16/2026. Fellowships are not tenure-stream positions.

Application Procedures & Deadline Information
The College of Law is accepting applications for fellowship positions for the 2026-2027 academic year. Applicants should submit a cover letter, a CV, a research agenda, and a list of three references at https://jobs.illinois.edu/.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit their materials by January 1, 2026. We expect interviews to take place starting in January 2026. No applications will be accepted after January 31, 2026. For further information about this specific position, please e-mail Tish Howard at lehigh@illinois.edu. For questions regarding the application process, please contact Illinois Human Resources at 217-333-2137.

Location
The University of Illinois College of Law is located in Champaign-Urbana, a location that offers a variety of affordable housing options in a college-town environment with rich cultural offerings. The College of Law is part of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a world-class research university with vast academic resources and opportunities.

Benefits
In addition to salary, Illinois Academic Fellows receive full benefits, including health insurance. Fellows also receive a regular faculty office and administrative and secretarial support.

This position is intended to be eligible for benefits. This includes Health, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, a Retirement Plan, Paid time Off, and Tuition waivers for employees and dependents.

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The University of Illinois System is an equal opportunity employer, including but not limited to disability and/or veteran status, and complies with all applicable state and federal employment mandates. Please visit Required Employment Notices and Posters to view our non-discrimination statement and find additional information about required background checks, sexual harassment/misconduct disclosures, and employment eligibility review through E-Verify.

Applicants with disabilities are encouraged to apply and may request a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (2008) to complete the application and/or interview process. Accommodations may also be requested on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions, or religion. Requests may be submitted through the reasonable accommodations portal, or by contacting the Accessibility & Accommodations Division of the Office for Access and Equity at 217-333-0885, or by emailing accessibility@illinois.edu.

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Requisition ID: 1031832
Job Category: Faculty
Apply at: https://jobs.illinois.edu