University of Wisconsin - Madison - Two-Year Postdoctoral Fellowship in Design History and Material Culture

University of Wisconsin

• Madison
• Two-Year Postdoctoral Fellowship in Design History and Material Culture H-Net Job Guide
• 05/17/2026 Job Institution University of Wisconsin
• Madison Institution Type College / University Department Nancy M.

Bruce Center for

Design and Material Culture, Design Studies Department Location Wisconsin, United States Position Post-Doctoral Fellow Position Requirements :

Applicants must have a meaningful research interest in at least one of the CDMC's three pillars of Design, Material Culture, and the Study of Textiles and have filed their PhD dissertations before August 17, 2026 and must be no more than five years past their dissertation filing date on May 1, 2026.

Position Duties :

This is a two-year Postdoctoral Fellowship in Design History and Material Culture, spanning from 2026-2028. The Nancy M. Bruce Center for Design and Material Culture in collaboration with the Design Studies Department in the School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is seeking applications for a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in material culture and design history. The Fellow will conduct original research related to one of the center's three pillars of Design, Material Culture, and the Study of Textiles (see the CDMC's website for reference) and will teach three courses over two years in the Design Studies department, including at least one designed by the Fellow. Fellows will participate in our active community of interdisciplinary material culture scholars through the Material Culture Workshop and will engage with students in design and material culture, including students pursuing the Certificate in Material Culture Studies, the PhD in Design History, and students in the new Design, Innovation, and Society major, which has a track that focuses on design and culture. Fellows will also be expected to engage with the Nancy M. Bruce Center for Design and Material Culture in a way appropriate to and beneficial to their research goals, whether through curating a related exhibition, studying the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection, or offering public programs and workshops. The fellow will receive a research budget of up to $10,000 to support these goals. This fellowship is a pilot program funded by the Chipstone Foundation.

Application Instructions :

To apply, please upload these four documents no later than June 12, 2026 as a single PDF file: a CV, a cover letter describing how your research in material culture and design history would fit into the teaching, research, and outreach possibilities of our programs, a one-page description of a course you would love to offer and that would serve both our program and your intellectual trajectory, and the names, titles, and contact information of two references. Please save this PDF as LastName-FirstName-CDMC. Please upload your PDF application here: https://uwmadison.app.box.com/f/19fe4086d6c94a51820adc466064c5e7. This position has an expected start date of August 17, 2026.

Website :

https://cdmc.wisc.edu/postdoc-fellow/

Salary :

$63,480

Percent Time :

100

Start Date :

08/17/2026

Contact Information Contact Name:

Laura Sims Peck, Senior Operations Manager Contact Email & Phone:

cdmc@wisc.edu, (608) 262-1162 Job URL https://cdmc.wisc.

edu/postdoc-fellow/ Website https:

//cdmc.wisc.edu/ Posting Date May 17, 2026 Closing Date June 12, 2026 Disclaimer H-Net, in accordance with its policies and procedures , reserves the right to reject, edit, and/or delete any posting that is found to violate its policies and/or procedures, and/or is found to violate federal or state law. Additionally, the pages and documents posted on this site often include links to information created by other public and private organizations. The inclusion of any material is not intended to endorse any views expressed, or products or services. These materials may contain the views and recommendations of the individual subscriber/user, as well as links or references to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations. The opinions expressed in any of these materials do not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of H-Net .