University of Sydney Bosch Chair of Infectious Diseases Job 2026: Requirements, Visa Sponsorship and Deadline

The University of Sydney is recruiting for the Bosch Chair of Infectious Diseases, a named professorship at Level E (full professor) in its Faculty of Medicine and Health. The job is full time and fixed term for five years, with a possible renewal for a further five years depending on performance and funding. It is based at the Camperdown campus in Sydney, Australia, and applications close at 11:59 pm on Saturday 28 November 2026.

The salary is not published; the advert offers an “attractive remuneration package” based on experience and qualifications. Visa sponsorship and relocation assistance will be provided if required, so infectious diseases researchers from Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas can apply on equal terms. This guide covers the duties, the essential and desirable criteria, how to apply, how to write the cover letter, and how this chair compares with similar professorships open now.

Bosch Chair of Infectious Diseases job: key facts

What the Bosch Chair will do

The faculty wants a leading authority in infectious diseases to build a program of work in the field. The advert lists these duties:

1. Lead a research program: build an internationally strong program that complements and draws on what the school and faculty already do.
2. Act as scientific leader: connect with academic, industry, professional and other partners.
3. Choose the research mode: basic or applied research, or translational work with commercial milestones, are all acceptable.
4. Develop people: mentor students and academic staff.
5. Teach: contribute mainly through research student supervision, and teach undergraduate or postgraduate students where appropriate.

The flexibility on research mode is unusual. A laboratory scientist working on pathogen biology, a clinician-researcher running trials, and a researcher taking a diagnostic or vaccine towards market could all fit. Your letter should make it clear which kind of chair you would be and how that fits Sydney’s existing strengths.

Where you sit also depends on you. The advert says the chair may be placed in the School of Medical Sciences or in the Sydney Medical School. According to the advert, the School of Medical Sciences attracts more than $50 million a year in competitive grants, while the Sydney Medical School has formal links with more than 50 hospitals and health services across New South Wales. A basic scientist would probably find the first more natural, and a clinical academic the second. Ask the contact which way the faculty is leaning.

Essential and desirable criteria

The listing separates its criteria clearly.

Essential

• A PhD in a relevant discipline and an international reputation for scholarship and research.
• Experience leading people and managing a research team in higher education.
• Experience supervising higher degree by research students to completion.
• An outstanding record of grant funding and an exceptional publication record in infectious diseases.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, and experience of collegial, inclusive decision-making.

Desirable

• Experience in educational design and delivery, ideally with recognition for improved or consistently excellent student outcomes.

Note what is missing. The advert does not require a medical degree or Australian clinical registration, so non-clinical scientists are eligible. If you are a clinician and want to keep clinical work in a Sydney hospital, registration with the Medical Board of Australia through AHPRA is a separate process. Raise it early, because it can take months.

Salary, renewal and visa sponsorship

No salary figure appears in the advert. Level E is the top academic level in Australian universities (professor), and the University sets its academic pay in its enterprise agreement. For context only: other current University of Sydney adverts on the same jobs board list Lecturer and Senior Lecturer pay from AUD 132,533 to AUD 162,347 plus 17% superannuation. A Level E named chair sits above those levels. These figures are not the advertised salary for the Bosch Chair, so ask Dr Sobhan for the package range.

The contract runs five years, and a second five-year term is possible “subject to performance and funding”. If you are leaving a permanent professorship elsewhere, weigh that carefully and ask what the renewal review measures.

The advert states that visa sponsorship and relocation assistance will be provided if required. It does not name the visa subclass or list what relocation covers.

Other conditions in the advert:

• Satisfactory pre-employment and background checks.
• A declaration of any investigation for, or finding of, sexual harm or gender-based violence in previous employment or legal processes, under the National Higher Education Code.
• A Working with Children Check if the role involves child-related work.
• Ongoing employment depends on keeping the relevant clearances.

About the University of Sydney

The University of Sydney was founded in 1850 and is a member of the Group of Eight research-intensive universities. The advert describes nine campuses, 16 faculties and about 7,616 full-time staff. The Faculty of Medicine and Health is its largest faculty, and the University also has a Sydney Infectious Diseases Institute (Sydney ID). Look at its people and programs on the University website before you write, because the panel will want to see how you would connect with it.

Sydney is expensive, especially for housing near the inner-city campuses. Ask what relocation covers, and if you are bringing a family, check schools and commuting before you sign.

How to apply for the Bosch Chair of Infectious Diseases

1. Get the documents: open the THE Unijobs listing and download the candidate information brochure and position description.
2. Have a confidential conversation: email Dr Mushtaq Sobhan (mushtaq.sobhan@sydney.edu.au). Ask about the salary range, school placement, renewal terms, start date and selection timetable.
3. Prepare your CV: lead with your research leadership, then grants (your role and the amounts), publications, completed research students, and teaching.
4. Write the cover letter: address every essential criterion and the desirable one, with evidence.
5. Submit through the Apply button: do it before 11:59 pm on 28 November 2026, Sydney time. University staff and contingent workers apply through Workday, under USYD Find Jobs.
6. Request adjustments if needed: the same contact handles reasonable adjustments and alternative formats.

How to write the cover letter for a professorial chair

The cover letter for a named chair should read like a short research vision backed by your record. About three to four pages works for most candidates:

1. Opening: who you are, your field within infectious diseases, and the one result that best shows international standing.
2. Research program: what you have built, the questions you are answering now, and the program you would grow at Sydney. Name the existing groups you would complement.
3. Funding and outputs: a short summary of major grants (as lead investigator, with amounts) and your most important papers, with one line on why each matters.
4. Leadership and mentoring: the size of the team you lead, completed PhD students, and where your former researchers are now.
5. Partnerships and translation: links with hospitals, public health agencies, industry or international networks, and any commercial milestones.
6. Teaching: supervision first, then any course design or student outcome results, which address the desirable criterion.

A sample opening, for illustration only: “I lead a 14-person group studying antimicrobial resistance in hospital pathogens, and our surveillance work now informs prescribing guidance in three countries.” Replace every number with your own.

Researchers from regions with a high infectious disease burden often hold field experience that Australian candidates lack: outbreak response, large cohort studies, work with ministries of health. Spell that out with numbers and outcomes. Avoid vague claims about “global health experience”.

The selection process

The advert does not publish dates. Professorial appointments in Australia usually involve a longlist and shortlist, a panel interview, a seminar or presentation to the school, and confidential references. Background checks come before any offer. Interviews for overseas candidates are often held by video at the first stage, but confirm this with the contact.

Common mistakes

• Writing a letter that lists achievements but gives no plan for the Sydney program.
• Ignoring the teaching criteria. Supervision to completion is essential, so give numbers.
• Leaving out grant roles and amounts, which makes it hard for the panel to judge your funding record.
• Not checking the time zone. 11:59 pm on 28 November in Sydney is about 1 pm the same day in London and 2 pm in Lagos.
• Assuming the role includes clinical work. It doesn’t say so, and clinical registration is a separate process.

Who should apply, and who should not

Apply if you are already a professor or a senior associate professor in infectious diseases with an international reputation, a strong grant record, a team you lead, and research students you have supervised to completion.

This chair is probably not for you if you are an early or mid-career researcher without your own funded program, or if you want a mainly clinical post. For those stages, a lecturer or research fellow role is a better match.

Similar roles to compare

If you want your own PhD students to join you in Sydney, our guides to the University of Sydney International Stipend Scholarship and the Research Training Program scholarship explain how international doctoral students are funded in Australia.

FAQs about the Bosch Chair of Infectious Diseases

What is the salary for the Bosch Chair of Infectious Diseases?

The University has not published a figure. The advert offers an attractive package based on responsibilities, experience and qualifications, at professor Level E.

Does the University of Sydney sponsor visas for professors?

For this role, yes. The advert says visa sponsorship and relocation assistance will be provided if required.

Do I need a medical degree to apply?

No. The essential criteria ask for a PhD in a relevant discipline, an international research reputation and a strong grant and publication record in infectious diseases.

When does the Bosch Chair application close?

At 11:59 pm on 28 November 2026, Sydney time.

Sources and updates

The duties, criteria, contract terms, salary statement, visa statement, contact details and closing date are from the University of Sydney’s advert on Times Higher Education Unijobs (listing 417016), checked on 29 October 2026. Rankings are from QS (reported by Time Out Australia and the University) and the University’s announcement of the THE World University Rankings 2027. Salary context comes from other current University of Sydney adverts on the same jobs board and is not the pay for this chair. I will update this page if the University publishes a salary or changes the deadline.

Jude Chinecherem

I am Jude Chinecherem, a final-year MBBS student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I know what it feels like to want an education your family cannot afford. When my parents could not pay for my schooling, I had to learn how to find scholarships and work the system out on my own, with nobody to guide me. I came out the other side, and now I share everything I learned so the next student does not have to figure it out alone. This is the advice I wish someone had given me back then.