The Faculty of Philosophy at Heidelberg University invites applications for a Professorship in “East Asian Art History” (f/m/d) (Full Professorship (W3) or Tenure Track Professorship (W1 to W3)
to be filled as early as possible.

Here is the link to the official announcement in both German and English: https://adb.zuv.uni-heidelberg.de/info/INFO_FDB$.startup?MODUL=LS&SESSID=0&M1=1&M2=0&M3=0&PRO=39907
The successful applicant will join the vibrant intellectual community of the Centre for Asian and Transcultural Studies (CATS), a consortium of four Institutes: East Asian Studies (ZO), Transcultural Studies, South Asian Studies, and Ethnology, linked by the CATS library holding over 600,000 volumes. Founded in 1955, the Institute for East Asian Art has a dynamic student body comprised of BA, MA, and PhD students pursuing all aspects of Chinese and Japanese art. Beyond CATS, Heidelberg University offers opportunities for collaboration with art history and the humanities broadly across the University, which include the Institute for European Art History, Global Art History, Archaeology, and Cultural Heritage Studies, among many others.

Applicants are expected to represent East Asian art history with a regional focus in Japanese, Chinese, or Korean art. Areas of expertise may include, but are not limited to, painting, Buddhist art and architecture, or contemporary art. We particularly welcome applicants whose research advances innovative questions and approaches in the field, including transcultural perspectives and methodologies. Appropriate linguistic expertise is required, including, where appropriate, capacity to handle primary sources in their historical dimensions.

The successful applicant will participate actively in the Institute’s teaching and research activities, contributing to both undergraduate and graduate programs as well as to the ongoing development of research initiatives, including third-party funding and digital humanities. They should be committed to helping shape and strengthen the Institute’s academic profile and strategic direction.

In accordance with Article 51 and 51b Higher Education Act of the state Baden-Württemberg, the appointment to a tenure track professorship (W1) requires a completed degree, an excellent doctorate, and pedagogical aptitude which has generally been proven through teaching experience. If you spent time employed as a research assistant (before or after your doctorate), this employment and the period of your doctoral studies combined should not exceed six years. The Tenure Track Professorship (junior professorship, salary grade W1) will usually be limited to six years and, following a positive tenure evaluation, will be converted to a permanent full professorship (salary grade W3). The provisions of the evaluation statutes for junior professorships apply www.uni-heidelberg.de/en/research/support-for-early-career-researchers/career-paths-following-a-doctorate/tenure-track-professors-and-junior-professors.
The appointment to a full professorship (W3) additionally requires a Habilitation, a successfully evaluated junior professorship or equivalent qualifications (Article 47 (2), Higher Education Act).

Applicants will be evaluated according to their career status and in consideration of their individual career paths and qualifications. This will determine whether the position is filled at salary grade W3 or salary grade W1 (junior professorship with a tenure track to W3).

The application deadline is August 15, 2026. Please send your application with a curriculum vitae, a list of publications and courses as well as your five most important publications (application documents should be submitted in one PDF file, the publications as five separate PDF files) to the Dean of the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Heidelberg, Voßstr. 2, Gebäude 37, 69115 Heidelberg, E-mail: philosophische.fakultaetuni-heidelberg.de.

Heidelberg University stands for equal opportunities and diversity. Qualified female candidates are especially invited to apply. Persons with severe disabilities will be given preference if they are equally qualified. Information on job advertisements and the collection of personal data is available at www.uni-heidelberg.de/en/job-market.