Position Description
Northeastern's Dublin Innovation Institute invites applications for two open-rank faculty positions at the Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Full Professor faculty levels in computational social science to begin on January 1, 2027. Appointment will be to the Institute and will report to the Head of the Institute directly. We seek scholars whose research advances our understanding of how people acquire, process, and share information in democratic societies and/or in the service of democratic norms.
Academic rank at the Associate Professor and Full Professor levels will be commensurate with experience and qualifications reflecting a record of demonstrated teaching and scholarly excellence. We welcome applicants from a wide variety of social, scientific, and computational disciplines.
Dublin Innovation Institute
The Dublin Innovation Institute is an Irish registered company wholly owned by Northeastern University, launched in 2025 by Northeastern University, based at University College Dublin. One of the missions of the Institute is to help build a trans‑Atlantic research community around the themes of information, the internet, and contemporary democracy. These hires will be key building blocks in this initiative.
The Dublin Innovation Institute (DII) is a collaborative initiative built on the long‑standing partnership between University College Dublin (UCD) and Northeastern University. For nearly two decades, the two universities have worked together across teaching, research, and innovation. In 2024, the DII was created to deepen this trans‑Atlantic partnership and strengthen the research ecosystem connecting Europe and the United States, with a shared focus on addressing global challenges. Located on the UCD campus, the Dublin Innovation Institute (DII) serves as an independent research entity. Faculty appointed through this competition will be based at the DII and employed directly by the Institute, not by University College Dublin.
About Northeastern University
Established in 1898, Northeastern University stands as a leader in global experiential learning and interdisciplinary research, addressing international issues in health, security, and sustainability. Externally funded research programs and graduate Ph.D. education programs at Northeastern University have been executed for almost 80 years. Transforming into a global research university over the last two decades, Northeastern has experienced remarkable expansion through strategic collaborations with businesses, government entities, and non‑profit organizations. This surge in partnerships has propelled the university's research initiatives and enriched experiential learning avenues for students across all academic levels. Through a focus on, and substantial investment in, impactful, interdisciplinary research, Northeastern University is fostering innovation in emerging fields. This approach recognizes the need for inventive configurations to comprehend intricate systems and effectively translate foundational discoveries into practical, real‑world applications. Currently, Northeastern is the fifth‑highest funded private research university without a medical school, among others such as MIT, CalTech, Princeton, and Carnegie Mellon. The University has also been a leading generator of spin‑out companies.
Position Overview
We welcome applications from exceptional scholars from all sectors of the community who employ computational social science approaches to study information ecosystems and their implications for democratic governance. The successful candidate will contribute to our growing interdisciplinary community of scholars examining the social, political, and technological dimensions of information flows in contemporary democracies. The position is structured to start with research responsibilities exclusively, transitioning to a combined research and teaching role in a later phase. This is a full‑time, permanent position. The successful applicant will be based in, and work from, Dublin.
Research Focus
The ideal candidate's research will address questions at the intersection of information acquisition and democratic processes. Of particular interest is a research portfolio focused on potential harms and/or approaches to mitigating harms related to digital information technologies. Demonstrated interest and engagement in translational research that informs public policy is a plus. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
How AI is affecting the ways in which people get civic and political information
Information exposure and political behavior in digital environments
Social media dynamics and democratic participation
Misinformation, disinformation, and their effects on public opinion
News consumption patterns and media fragmentation
Computational approaches to studying political communication
Algorithmic curation and its democratic implications
Digital platforms and civic engagement
Information networks and political polarization
Media effects on electoral processes and accountability
Public opinion formation in information‑rich environments
Qualifications
Ph.D. in Political Science, Communication, Computer Science, Information Science, Computational Social Science or related fields in hand by the employment start date is required.
Documents to Submit
Applicants should submit a cover letter that addresses their interest in and qualifications for the position, a curriculum vitae, a research statement, a teaching statement, sample syllabi, evidence of teaching effectiveness with complete sets of recent student evaluations, and the names and contact information for at least three individuals who can each provide a letter of recommendation.
Closing Date
May 1, 2026
Pay Ranges
Assistant Professor: 70,000 – 85,000 EUR
Associate Professor: 80,000 – 110,000 EUR
Full Professor: 95,000 – 130,000 EUR
Position Type
Academic
Application Instructions
Please be sure to indicate you saw this position on geopolist.com.
Applications can be sent directly to David Lazer, Search Committee Chair, at david.lazer@neut.edu.
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