Where to Find Academic Job Postings: Global Academic & Postdoctoral Job Boards

by Laura Stark, Associate Director for Academic Careers, Mignone Center for Career Success, Harvard University

with contributions from Jeremy Hale (The Ohio State University), Justine Lottermoser (SUNY Downstate) and Jennifer MacDonald (The New School), and Paolo Mangahas (MD Anderson Cancer Center)

This guide is designed to support PhD students and early-career researchers in identifying faculty and postdoctoral opportunities around the world.

Job boards (aggregators) are represented here, rather than specific universities, research institutions, fellowships, etc. Because aggregated listings may be incomplete or out of date, always verify the position details on the hiring institution’s website before applying.

Many of these sites have extensive career advice/webinars/additional resources – be sure to explore beyond the job postings!

1. Global Aggregators (Worldwide)

Best for broad searches across multiple continents and disciplines.

  • Nature Careers – International research and academic positions, especially in the life, physical, biomedical, and health sciences.
  • ResearchGate Job Board – Especially useful for finding research and scientific positions aligned with a researcher’s publications, skills, and profile.
  • Science Careers (AAAS) – Academic, research, postdoctoral, and industry positions in the life, physical, and related sciences.
  • Times Higher Education (THE) UniJobs –  International faculty, research and university administrative positions; particularly strong in the UK, Europe, Australia, Asia, and the Middle East
  • Explore the hidden job market! Search academic networks such as Bluesky, LinkedIn, and X using discipline, position, and location terms. Faculty members often circulate openings informally or alongside formal advertisements.

2. Country-Specific & Regional Portals

Targeted portals for specific national markets and emerging research hubs.

Africa

Academic hiring in Africa is highly decentralized, and many positions appear only on individual universities’ employment pages.

  • HEJobs (South Africa) – Higher-education faculty, research, postdoctoral, and professional positions from participating South African universities. (Note: Not to be confused with HigherEd Jobs which is primarily US-focused with some international positions).
  • MyJobMag (Education) – General country-specific job boards that include some university and education positions in Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa; use alongside university career pages.

Asia & Middle East

Academic hiring practices vary widely across Asia and the Middle East, and many positions appear only on individual universities’ employment pages.

  • China University Jobs – Focuses on international faculty recruitment for Chinese institutions.
  • CU-Chayan (UGC India) – The University Grants Commission’s (UGC’s) unified faculty-recruitment portal for participating Indian Central Universities and other higher-education institutions.
  • GulfTalent (Education) – General Middle East employment platform with some faculty and higher-education listings, including positions in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.
  • JREC-IN Portal (Japan) – The official Japanese government database for research careers.

Europe & UK

  • Academic Positions –  International academic and research job board with particularly substantial coverage of Northern and Western Europe.
  • EURAXESS – The official EU portal for research jobs, fellowships, and funding. (requires EU-based VPN to search and filter the job board from the U.S. – e.g. ProtonVPN (Note: not an endorsement; do your due diligence)
  • EuroScienceJobs – Focuses on research roles across Europe, including industry-academic crossovers.
  • FindAPostDoc –  International postdoctoral-opportunity database with particularly strong UK and European coverage.
  • Jobs.ac.uk – The essential hub for all UK-based academic and research vacancies.

Latin America

Academic hiring in Latin America is highly decentralized, and many positions appear only on individual universities’ employment or “concursos” pages.

  • Docente Federal (Brazil) – Aggregates faculty competitions at Brazilian federal universities and institutes; confirm requirements and deadlines in the institution’s official edital.
  • FAPESP (Brazil) – Frequently updated vacancies, especially postdoctoral fellowships, in FAPESP-supported research projects in São Paulo state, Brazil.

United States & Canada

  • AcademicKeys – Faculty, postdoctoral, research, and higher-education administrative positions, with primarily US listings and some international coverage.
  • Chronicle of Higher Education (Jobs) – Major US job board for faculty, administrative, and higher-education leadership roles.
  • HERC (Higher Education Recruitment Consortium) – Excellent for regional U.S. searches and dual-career couples.
  • HigherEdJobs – Large US-focused database of faculty, administrative, and other higher-education positions, with some international listings.
  • H-Net Job Guide – Faculty, postdoctoral, and related opportunities, particularly in history and associated humanities and social-science fields.
  • Interfolio – Searchable database of faculty, postdoctoral, fellowship, and other academic opportunities posted by institutions using Interfolio’s application system. A free Dossier account also allows applicants to store application materials and confidential recommendation letters.
  • National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) – Postdoctoral and research-related vacancies, predominantly in the United States.
  • University Affairs (Canada) – The definitive source for Canadian academic jobs.

3. Field-Specific Job Boards

Example targeted resources for discipline-specific expertise.

Note: Always check the career portals of your specific disciplinary professional associations for the most specialized listings.

4. Institutional Research & Ranking Tools

Use these to identify top-tier institutions by region or subject, then visit their individual “Faculty Careers” or “Jobs” pages.

This is not an exhaustive list! If you have suggestions for edits or additions, please contact Laura Stark (lstark at fas.harvard.edu).

By Laura Stark
Laura Stark Associate Director: Academic Careers & Pursuing the PhD
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