Description

The Wisconsin Research, Innovation and Scholarly Excellence (RISE) Initiative is designed to help address significant, complex challenges of particular importance to Wisconsin and the world, through accelerated and strategic faculty hiring, research infrastructure enhancement, interdisciplinary collaboration and increased student and educational opportunities. Wisconsin RISE Initiatives allow UW–Madison to attract top scholars at all stages of their careers to bring interdisciplinary perspectives to solving deeply complex problems. RISE-THRIVE, which stands for Transforming Healthspan through Research, InnoVation, and Education, is set to harness and grow the university’s reputation as a global powerhouse in interdisciplinary health research — translating both medical discoveries and innovative social science approaches into tangibly healthier lives for Wisconsinites and people and communities around the world.

As part of the THRIVE initiative, the Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences (FNS) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, an international leader in food and nutritional sciences research and instruction, invites applications for a 9-month tenured or tenure-track appointment with responsibilities in research, teaching, outreach, and service. The successful candidate will develop a nationally recognized, extramurally funded research program aligned with the RISE-THRIVE initiative and advancing understanding of the role of human nutrition and metabolism in healthspan, aging, immune function, and chronic disease.

This position will explore understanding, characterizing, and translating human nutritional and metabolic variation to improve health and wellness across the lifespan. The vision for this position is to act in concert with complementary programs and researchers within the FNS department, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS), and campus communities, including participation in initiatives such as RISE-THRIVE, to foster and establish novel links between human diet, metabolism, and health outcomes, ultimately leading to impactful advances in clinical and translational nutrition. Areas of focus could include but are not limited to: human clinical nutrition and metabolism, nutrition and aging, immune function, and chronic disease, and application of multi-omics, large-scale data, and AI approaches to advance personalized and performance nutrition.

The ideal candidate will produce high-impact, health-relevant research that can be meaningfully applied to improve human health and complement existing departmental strengths in metabolism, chronic disease biomarkers, and clinical nutrition. Applicants from a range of disciplinary backgrounds are encouraged to apply but must indicate how they plan to build a cohesive research, teaching, and outreach portfolio in human nutrition. We value scholars who demonstrate a strong commitment to public engagement and real-world impact. We seek a faculty member who will combine rigorous, extramurally funded research with a deep interest in outreach that engages communities, healthcare systems, and policy-relevant institutions as well as foster collaboration within the FNS department. This position offers an outstanding opportunity to participate in interdisciplinary research, contribute to ACEND-accredited dietetics training and emerging undergraduate programs.

Key Job Responsibilities:

• Develop and conduct a nationally recognized research program relevant to the multidisciplinary field of food and nutritional sciences. The successful candidate will be expected to secure extramural funding and publish in high-quality peer-reviewed journals.
• Contribute to interdisciplinary research collaborations across the Department of FNS, CALS, and the broader UW–Madison community.
• Contribute to undergraduate and graduate teaching, including participation in the ACEND-accredited dietetics program and emerging undergraduate program tracks, to leverage current strengths and trends in food and nutritional sciences. Additional responsibilities include mentoring students and trainees, engaging in outreach and public engagement activities that connect research to clinical, community, and policy settings, and participating in departmental, college, campus, and professional service activities.
• Demonstrated commitment to, or potential for, instructional excellence and pedagogical scholarship in teaching and mentorship across undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs.

Compensation:

Negotiable – 9 months / ongoing

Requirements

Required Qualifications:

Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) credential required.

Successful candidates will have a record of or demonstrate potential for:

• Producing publications in peer-reviewed journals
• Graduate student training and mentoring
• Writing extramural grants
• Contributing to the community and service functions of the department and CALS

Strong communication and collaboration skills are required and will be assessed via written materials submitted with the application and interactions during the interview process.

We encourage applicants of any rank. At the rank of Associate Professor or Professor, the candidate's qualifications must be sufficient to meet the requirements for tenure in the Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, at the University of Wisconsin- Madison.

Education:
Ph.D. in Nutritional Sciences, Metabolism, Biochemistry, or a related biological science or M.D

Applications received by August 30, 2026 will receive full consideration. For complete position details and application instructions, visit https://go.wisc.edu/12v428