The Department of Agricultural Economics in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University invites applications for five (5) full-time, 9-month, tenure-track positions at the rank of Assistant Professor. This strategic cluster hire will strengthen the Department's leadershipin agricultural economics and agribusiness education, discovery, and engagement by building critical mass across four high-impact areas:
• Agricultural Finance
• Agricultural Real Estate & Appraisal
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Machine Learning in Agricultural Economics
• Managerial Agricultural Economics (two roles)
All five faculty members are expected to meaningfully contribute to teaching, research, and outreach/engagement, and to help advance the Department's mission as part of Texas A&M's land-grant system.
Common expectations across all five positions
Teaching
• Teach undergraduate and/or graduate courses aligned with the candidate's expertise and departmental needs.
• Contribute to curriculum design and continuous improvement, including development of new courses and modernized learning experiences.
• Mentor and advise students; contribute to graduate student training (as appropriate to role and departmental assignment).
Research
• Develop and sustain a high-quality, externally supported research program in the candidate's field area.
• Publish in peer-reviewed outlets appropriate to agricultural economics and related disciplines.
• Pursue external funding to support research, graduate students, and scholarly activities.
• Engage in collaborative research within the Department and across Texas A&M University, as appropriate.
Outreach / Engagement / Service
• Engage with agricultural and food industry stakeholders through outreach, applied economic analysis, and professional engagement,
• Build partnerships with industry, government agencies, and professional organizations to enhance student opportunities and increase the impact of research.
• Participate in departmental, college, and university service.
Role-specific responsibilities and focus areas
Candidates should indicate clearly which position(s) they are applying for. Applicants may be considered for more than one role if qualified.
Assistant Professor - Agricultural Finance
• Provide teaching leadership in agricultural finance and related areas such as financial management, rural financial markets, agricultural lending, credit analysis, commodity markets, derivatives, and risk management.
• Contribute to the development of a stand-alone Agricultural Finance theme in the B.S in Agricultural Economics by building on existing Department strengths.
• Develop an applied and/or policy-relevant research program addressing financial decision-making in agricultural and agribusiness settings (including but not limited to, farm credit, regional banking, capital markets serving agriculture, and commodity price risk management).
• Establish and maintain partnerships with the agricultural finance industry (e.g., farm credit, banking, lending institutions, and related professional communities) to support experiential learning and research relevance.
Assistant Professor - Agricultural Real Estate & Appraisal
• Provide teaching leadership in agricultural real estate, land economics, appraisal valuation, rural property markets, land use and policy, and related institutional and legal-economic topics.
• Help develop a stand-alone Agricultural Real Estate & Appraisal theme in the B.S in Agricultural Economics including strengthening professional alignment for students seeking appraisal-related credentials and careers.
• Develop a research program focused on rural/agricultural land markets and valuation, appraisal and investment analysis, land use change and policy, and/or related real estate economics questions pertinent to Texas and beyond.
• Build and maintain partnerships with appraisal practitioners, land professionals, real estate firms, agencies, and other stakeholder groups to enhance student career pathways and applied impact.
Assistant Professor - AI & Machine Learning in Agricultural Economics
• Provide teaching leadership in AI/ML and data-driven methods as applied to agricultural economics (machine learning, predictive analytics, big data economics, decision analytics, applied econometrics/data science tools).
• Contribute to new curriculum development and/or courses that equip agricultural economics and agribusiness students to work effectively with modern data sources and AI-enabled analytical methods.
• Conduct a research program that advances AI/ML applications in agricultural economics and generates high-quality methodological and/or applied publications, with clear relevance and engagement with the agricultural and food sectors.
• Collaborate with other College of Agriculture and Life Sciences departments (and relevant campus units) to support the development of an interdisciplinary "AI in Agriculture" minor, including cross-listed courses and coordinated experiential learning opportunities.
Assistant Professor - Managerial Agricultural Economics (two roles)
• One role will provide teaching leadership for AGEC 317 (Economic Analysis for Agribusiness Management) and related courses in managerial economics, decision analysis, quantitative methods for firm-level problems, and agribusiness strategy.
• One role will contribute to the Dianne and M. Edward Rister '74 Agribusiness Entrepreneurship Program, with teaching responsibilities in agribusiness entrepreneurship and related courses. This role will support the program's experiential, student-centered approach to business planning, economic analysis, financial analysis, and venture development.
• For the Rister Program-focused role, responsibilities may include mentoring students as they evaluate the economic and financial feasibility of farm, ranch, agribusiness, rural, or metropolitan business ventures; develop comprehensive business plans; prepare and present economic analyses; prepare loan or capital investment requests; incorporate risk management strategies; and engage with entrepreneurs, lenders, financial experts, and other management professionals.
• Both roles will develop innovative learning experiences that strengthen students' quantitative decision-making capabilities, including optimization, forecasting, budgeting, sensitivity analysis, risk analysis, and applied economic and financial tools relevant to agribusiness management and entrepreneurship.
• Both roles will build applied research programs in managerial agricultural economics, such as firm behavior, production, marketing and financial decision-making, agribusiness strategy, entrepreneurship, value chain economics, risk management, business feasibility analysis, or related areas.
• Both roles will engage with agribusiness stakeholders, entrepreneurs, lenders, industry partners, and professional communities to ensure the relevance and practical impact of teaching, research, and outreach.
Qualifications
Required qualifications (all positions)
• Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics, Applied Economics, Economics, Agribusiness, Business, or a closely related discipline.
• Demonstrated potential for excellence in research, including a high-quality research pipeline.
• Demonstrated potential for high-quality teaching.
• Ability to communicate effectively with students, colleagues, and external stakeholders; commitment to collegiality and collaboration.
Preferred qualifications (general; role-dependent)
• Evidence of (or strong potential for) external funding success.
• Experience developing curriculum, new courses, or experiential learning activities.
• Demonstrated ability to build partnerships with private industry, government agencies, and/or professional organizations.
• For the AI/ML role: experience in teaching leadership in AI/ML and data-driven methods as applied to agricultural economics, including predictive analytics, applied econometrics, and AI modeling approaches such as time-series forecasting models, neural networks, large language models, computer vision, and machine-learning decision-support tools for food and agribusiness systems.
• For the Real Estate & Appraisal role: professional engagement with valuation/appraisal practice and/or land market analysis.
• For the Agricultural Finance role: applied experience or professional engagement in agricultural lending/finance and risk management contexts.
• For the Managerial Agricultural Economics roles: demonstrated capacity to teach quantitative managerial economics and applied decision analysis; for the Rister Program-focused role, experience with experiential learning, business plan development, feasibility analysis, student venture mentoring, and engagement with entrepreneurs or agribusiness professionals is preferred.
Application Instructions
For full consideration, please submit all applications by August 25 th , 2026, through Interfolio at apply.interfolio.com/187665 . Review of applications will continue until the positions are filled.
Applicants must submit:
1) Cover letter (identify which of the four roles you are applying for; you may select more than one)
2) Curriculum vitae
3) Personal statement to include philosophy and plans for research, teaching, and service, as applicable
4) Names and contact information for three references (letters may be requested later)
Applications must be submitted electronically via Texas A&M University's faculty hiring system (details provided in the official posting).
Contact
For questions about the cluster hire, please contact:
Dr. Simon Somogyi, Head of Department, simon.somogyi@ag.tamu.edu or Dr. Marco Palma, Chair of the Search Committee, mapalma@tamu.edu , Department of Agricultural Economics, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Texas A&M University.
Application Process
This institution is using Interfolio's Faculty Search to conduct this search. Applicants to this position receive a free Dossier account and can send all application materials, including confidential letters of recommendation, free of charge.
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