Regius Professor of Moral Philosophy (EXPIRED)

Established in 1505 by King James IV of Scotland ten years after the founding of the University of Aberdeen, the Regius Chair of Moral Philosophy is one of the longest-established professorships in Scotland’s ancient universities. An opportunity has now arisen for an outstanding philosopher of international standing to join the University of Aberdeen in this prestigious post as the University embarks on Aberdeen 2040: its 20-year institutional strategy.

The successful candidate will join a dynamic Philosophy team of nine academic staff, contributing to our internationally recognized research, highly-rated undergraduate teaching, and growing postgraduate programmes. Philosophy staff conduct research in diverse areas including epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, philosophy of science, and history of philosophy. Recent research grants include the Leverhulme Trust project What’s So Special about First-Person Thought? and the AHRC project Equalities of Wellbeing in Philosophy and Architecture. Our new research centre, the Centre for Knowledge and Society (CEKAS), supports interdisciplinary and outward-facing research that focuses on questions of social and political significance: current projects include Epistemic Aims of Education and Free Will and Neuroscience.

The Regius Chair of Moral Philosophy will contribute to the objectives of the School and University by conducting outstanding research and teaching in philosophy. The Chair will lead in the development and implementation of research strategy, attracting external grant funding, recruiting and supervising PhD students, and forming collaborative networks, as well as publishing and disseminating research in academic and public fora. They will contribute high-quality teaching across the curriculum and lead new developments, with particular responsibility for developing and recruiting to the new MLitt in Philosophy and Society.

The successful applicant will be a leading authority in one or more areas of moral philosophy. “Moral philosophy” is broadly construed and philosophers in any area of expertise are welcome to apply. However, the successful candidate must be able to teach ethics and must have an interest in applied ethics. They will have an international reputation for research of the highest quality, demonstrated by publications deemed “internationally excellent” or “world-leading” in highly-ranked peer-reviewed journals, a record of national and international speaking engagements, and experience of PhD supervision. They will show evidence of research leadership through a clear record of seeking external research grant income, forming research collaborations, and leading research teams.

We welcome applications from candidates in traditionally underrepresented groups.