School Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Department/Area East Asian Languages and Civilizations

Position Description

The Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University seeks applications for the position of Senior Preceptor in Chinese Language beginning July 1, 2020. The senior preceptor’s responsibilities will include acting as instructor in charge of one level of Chinese taught at Harvard, between elementary and advanced; training and supervising instructors in the Chinese program; and assisting the Director in administration of the Chinese Language Program.

The position is for five years and renewable, contingent upon performance, enrollments, and curricular need.

The Senior Preceptor is also expected to serve as the Resident Director for Harvard Summer School’s (HSS’s) intensive Chinese language study abroad program: helping to recruit, hire, and manage faculty and staff; serving as course head for one level; and coordinating curricular and extracurricular activities on-site for the duration of the program. The Senior Preceptor will also work throughout the year with HSS staff on the program’s administrative tasks. These include, but are not limited to: marketing, recruiting, and communication with prospective students; facilitating program admissions and orientation; completing an annual report in consultation with the Director; coordinating and negotiating with HSS and the program’s host institution; managing mass mailings in coordination with Summer School staff; and other duties as needed. The Resident Director position is a separate, annual appointment through the Harvard Summer School.

Basic Qualifications

The successful applicant should have native or near-native command of modern standard Chinese, both written and spoken, and fluency in spoken and written English. Completion of an advanced degree at the master’s level or PhD is required in a field relevant to teaching Chinese as a second language, such as Chinese pedagogy, the acquisition of Chinese as a second language, or Chinese linguistics.

Additional Qualifications

Must be able to travel to and work at the summer program site for 9-10 weeks each summer and undertake additional domestic and international travel of shorter duration as needed. A record of demonstrated excellence in teaching Chinese at all levels, elementary through advanced, in an American university setting or its equivalent, and experience in training and supervising other instructors in such a setting is strongly preferred. Experience in study abroad program administration and logistics is desirable. Publication of creative or scholarly work in a field relevant to Chinese language education and experience using language teaching technology are also pluses.

Special Instructions

Candidates interested in applying for the position should submit the following documents through the ARIeS portal (http://academicpositions.harvard.edu), Req.# F01745 no later than October 4, 2019:
(1) a letter of application,
(2) a curriculum vitae,
(3) a teaching statement,
(4) a list of Chinese courses taught at the university level,
(5) representative syllabi of courses taught,
(6) summaries of representative course evaluations,
(7) a 20-minute teaching demonstration, submitted by URL,
(8) the names and email contact information of three references to http://academicpositions.harvard.edu. The references will be contacted separately and invited to upload letters of recommendation, and
(9) a statement describing efforts to encourage diversity, inclusion, and belonging, including past, current, and anticipated future contributions in these areas.

Contact Information

Chair, Chinese Senior Preceptor Search
Chinese Language Program
Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations
Harvard University
2 Divinity Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138

Contact Email ChairEAL@fas.harvard.edu

Equal Opportunity Employer

We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions or any other characteristic protected by law.

Minimum Number of References Required 3

Maximum Number of References Allowed 3