Research Assistant Professor

Lingnan University is one of the eight publicly funded institutions in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and has the longest established tradition among the local institutions of higher education. It is widely recognised for providing quality education with a focus on whole-person development and conducting high-impact research for a better world. Moving forward, Lingnan University is well positioned to take lead as a comprehensive university in arts and sciences in the digital era, with impactful research and innovations.

Lingnan University offers undergraduate, taught postgraduate, and research postgraduate programmes in the Faculties of Arts, Business, Social Sciences, and the Schools of Data Science, Graduate Studies and Interdisciplinary Studies. To foster interdisciplinary collaboration and scientific progress, Lingnan University established the Lingnan University Institute for Advanced Study (LUIAS), attracting distinguished scholars from around the world to collaborate with its faculty and students. With traditional strengths in arts, business, social sciences, and interdisciplinary studies, the University aims to equip students with practical knowledge and critical thinking skills to thrive in the future. Subsequent to the establishment of the School of Data Science and LUIAS, Lingnan University is transforming into a hub for global leaders to develop and promote human-centric technology and social policies. Further information about Lingnan University is available at https://www.ln.edu.hk/.

Applications are now invited for the following post:

Research Assistant Professor

Hong Kong Catastrophic Risk Centre

(Post Ref.: 25/265/JAC) 

About the Centre

Hong Kong Catastrophic Risk Centre (HKCRC) was established in January 2022 as a research centre within the Department of Philosophy at Lingnan University, one of Asia's best in analytic philosophy. The department has a thriving research environment and already hosts several Postdoctoral Fellows/Research Assistant Professors. Faculty members publish in leading journals, such as Analysis, Australasian Journal of Philosophy, British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, Ethics, Journal of Philosophical Logic, Mind, Noûs, Philosophers’ Imprint, Philosophical Quarterly, Philosophical Studies, Philosophy and Phenomenological Research, and Philosophy of Science.

More information on the research centre can be found at: https://www.ln.edu.hk/philoso/hkcrc 

More information on the interests and publications of philosophers at Lingnan University can be found at: https://www.LN.edu.hk/philoso/?page_id=9.

Requirements

The Centre seeks to appoint a Research Assistant Professor with expertise in philosophy of AI (broadly understood) and/or ethics of risk. Candidates should have obtained / been conferred a PhD degree or an equivalent qualification for no more than five years prior to the commencement of the appointment, and a record of publications in Philosophy, preferably in leading journals. A technical background in AI—such as knowledge of machine learning or neural networks—will be an advantage.

The appointee is expected to conduct focused research, publish scholarly outputs in reputable, peer-reviewed international philosophical journals, and apply for competitive peer-reviewed grants offered by the Hong Kong Research Grants Council, as well as other local/overseas competitive grants and/or fellowship schemes. Teaching experience at undergraduate and/or taught master’s programme levels is a definite advantage.

Research: The Research Assistant Professor will (i) conduct research and submit papers to top philosophy journals (e.g., including 3*/4*-ranked journals per the current departmental journal list), (ii) submit grant proposals to various funding bodies, and (iii) organise seminars, reading groups, workshops, or other related research activities.

Teaching: The appointee will play a central part in the daily operation of the Master of Arts in Artificial Intelligence and the Future (MAAIF), the Taught Postgraduate Programme offered by HKCRC and the Department of Philosophy, which has welcomed its second cohort of students in the 2025-26 academic year. The teaching load will be three courses per year, distributed according to the Centre's needs and upon mutual agreement. English will be the language of instruction. The appointee would also be required to supervise students’ capstone projects.

Service: The appointee will perform administrative duties as assigned by the Director of HKCRC in accordance with the Head of the Department.

Appointment

The conditions of appointment will be competitive. Commencing salary will be commensurate with qualifications and experience. Fringe benefits include annual leave, medical and dental benefits, mandatory provident fund, gratuity, and incoming passage and baggage allowance for the eligible appointee. The appointment will normally be made on an initial contract of up to three years.

The initial application must include:

1. An updated CV
2. A letter of interest
3. One writing sample (no more than one writing sample will be read)

Application Procedure (online application only)

Please click "Apply" to submit your application. Personal data collected will be used for recruitment purposes only.

We are an equal opportunities employer. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the post is filled, starting from January 5, 2026. The candidate will be expected to start their position in August 2026. Qualified candidates are advised to submit their applications early for consideration.

Informal inquiries concerning the post can be directed to the Director of HKCRC, Professor Andrea Sauchelli at andreasauchelli@ln.edu.hk

The University reserves the right not to make an appointment for the post advertised, or to fill the post by invitation or by search. We regret that only shortlisted candidates will be notified.