The Department of Music at Xavier University of Louisiana invites applications for a tenure-track position in Music Theory at the rank of assistant professor level beginning August 2025. The ideal candidate will have a Ph.D. or D.M.A. in Music with expertise in music theory and composition.
The department is seeking an innovative and dynamic scholar-teacher with a commitment to excellence in teaching, research, and service. The successful candidate will demonstrate expertise in music theory and analysis, with the ability to engage a diverse student body in a range of theoretical perspectives and repertoires.
The Department of Music has been pivotal in the history of the great musical culture of Louisiana. As the center of cultural activity in the College of Arts and Sciences at Xavier University of Louisiana, it continues to be a significant force in developing great artists and educators who change lives around the world. Our faculty members are active scholars who teach a highly engaged undergraduate population. The department is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion and is particularly interested in candidates who can teach in a diverse university community and have demonstrated ability in helping students from diverse backgrounds succeed.
Duties and Job Requirements:
Teach in-person undergraduate courses in music theory and composition using appropriate technology (or technological platforms).
Advise and mentor students in musical and academic development.
Maintain an active record of research, creative activity, and publication in music theory/composition.
Contribute to the continued development of the music theory curriculum.
Creative/scholarly activity, and service contributions as appropriate for a university faculty member.
Participate in student-focused departmental initiatives, including recital classes, student performances, and juries, while also fostering collegiality.
Participate in on-campus department, division, college, and university meetings and assemblies, as well as university convocations and graduation.
About our Department
The Department of Music is the center of cultural activity in the College of Arts and Sciences at Xavier University of Louisiana. It continues to be a significant force in developing great artists and educators who change lives around the world. A primary objective of the Department of Music is to prepare students to enter one or more of the specialized music fields as a career. Our music students participate in special programs such as the University Jazz Festival, Opera Workshop, and performances in the various large, chamber, and small ensembles. Through specialized training and opportunities designed for the music major, students can study and develop their talents and skills to become a consummate professional. Students who excel may also find opportunities to perform with great orchestral, jazz, and operatic institutions around the New Orleans area. The Department of Music is dedicated to training students to make significant contributions within the African-American community, academia and the social world.
Minimum Qualifications:
Ph.D. or D.M.A. in Music with expertise in music theory and composition (ABD candidates will be considered, but the Ph.D. or D.M.A. must be completed by the start date).
Demonstrated excellence in teaching music theory at the university level.
Write and speak English proficiently.
Demonstrate a commitment and strong potential for excellence in teaching, mentoring, and advising of HBCU undergraduate students;
A promising or established record of scholarly research and publication.
Ability to work effectively with students and colleagues from diverse backgrounds.
Interest in interdisciplinary approaches and collaboration with other areas of the music department is highly desirable.
A commitment to Collaborative effort of teaching, learning, performance within the music department.
A commitment to service and the mission of Xavier University of Louisiana.
Preferred Qualifications:
Experience in teaching diverse repertoires and theoretical perspectives.
Ability to contribute to the department's goals of diversity, equity, and inclusion through teaching, research, and service.
Xavier University of Louisiana, founded by St. Katharine Drexel and the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament in 1925, is Catholic and historically Black. The ultimate purpose of the University is to contribute to the promotion of a more just and humane society by preparing its students to assume roles of leadership and service in a global society. The only historically Black, Catholic university in the United States, XULA is a private, liberal-arts based, co-educational institution offering 40 undergraduate majors, 5 master’s degree programs and a doctor of pharmacy program. More than one-half of its 3,100 students are from Louisiana, but it draws students from nearly all fifty states and 35 countries. Xavier is recognized as a national leader in the sciences and the liberal arts: • #1 in the nation in the number of African American graduates who go on to complete medical school (AAMC data 2019). • Among the nation’s top four colleges of pharmacy in graduating African Americans with Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm D) degrees. (2018) • #1 in the nation in awarding bachelor's degrees to African American students in the biological and biomedical sciences, the physical sciences, and physics. ...(2018) • #3 in the nation in the number of African American graduates who go on to earn a Ph.D. in science and engineering disciplines. (2018) • The Department of Physics is #1 in the nation for awarding African Americans baccalaureate degrees in physics and the physical sciences, according to the American Institute of Physics. (2018) Xavier is consistently ranked by the American Chemical Society as one of the top 25 universities in the nation. • The 2020 edition of the Fiske Guide to Colleges named Xavier among its 300 “best and most interesting” four-year colleges and universities. • Xavier was also singled out as one of the nation’s 385 best institutions for undergraduate education by The Princeton Review in the 2020 edition of its annual “The Best 385 Colleges”. • College Consensus, a unique college ratings website that aggregates publisher rankings and student reviews, ranks Xavier as the nation’s #3 Historically Black Colleges and Universities) (2019). It also ranks Xavier as #3 among all Louisiana colleges. • College Factual ranks both Xavier’s biology and chemistry programs as program as No. 1 in Louisiana. (2019) • Your 2018 Guide to College Transfer lists Xavier as one of only 90 colleges and universities nationwide profiled as “transfer friendly” in this guide to the college transfer process by the Kaplan Educational Foundation. • The Student Loan Report ranks #Xavier 12 out of 800 Private schools who left graduates with the least amount of private student loan debt, a form of financial aid known for higher interest rates and less forgiving repayment programs. (2018) • Zippia.com named Xavier's Psychology Program as #1 in Louisiana. (2018) • Learn.org ranks Xavier Among the Top 50 STEM schools in the U.S. (2019) • The Edvocate ranks Xavier as the nation’s No. 3 Catholic University. (2019) • Zippia.com rates Xavier #1 in Louisiana in its 2019 report, “Best College in Each State for Getting a Job”.