The Archibald McDougall Visiting Professor provides students with an opportunity to discuss cutting-edge global issues in the law with an experienced international or comparative law scholar. Promising scholars with a specific research agenda in international law will also be considered.
The position is made possible thanks to an endowed gift by the estate of Archibald McDougall. The gift was provided to increase students’ exposure to international law. Through the endowment, noted professors and lawyers in international law are brought to campus to provide a series of lectures and short courses for College of Law students and faculty.
Selection Criteria for McDougall Applicants
Applicants wishing to apply for a McDougall Visiting Professorship should possess the following criteria:
- Minimum of Ph.D or other terminal degree (such as a J.D. or J.D. Equivalent).
- Teaching and publication experience.
- English language competency.
- Demonstrated oral presentations skills in English.
- An international or comparative perspective.
- A record in the field of teaching (i.e., practical or academic experience in the area you wish to teach).
Application Procedures
The selected candidate will spend two to five weeks in residence at the West Virginia College of Law in Morgantown, West Virginia during the Fall 2024 or Spring 2025 academic term. The selected Visiting Professor is expected to teach one course to law students during the residency on a topic related to international or comparative law.
The Archibald McDougall Visiting Professorship is intended to provide students with an opportunity to discuss cutting-edge global issues with an experienced international or comparative law scholar. Consequently, the McDougall Selection Committee seeks a candidate who will bring an internationally informed perspective to the classroom. In addition, there is a preference for a candidate who can demonstrate either excellence in teaching international law or a sustained engagement in an area of international law. Applicants should possess a Ph.D. or other terminal degree (such as a J.D. or J.D. equivalent). Classroom instruction is English. English language competency and oral English language presentation skills are required.
The West Virginia University College of Law will provide $10,000 to the selected Archibald McDougall Visiting Professor.
The College of Law will also reimburse the selected candidate for the reasonable cost of roundtrip airfare to the College of Law from the Visiting Professor’s country of residence or home teaching institution.
West Virginia University is located in Morgantown, a dynamic and diverse community surrounded by the beauty of the Appalachian Mountains. Morgantown is consistently ranked one of the top small cities in the United States. The city’s proximity to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (75 miles) and Washington, DC (210 miles) allows faculty and students to enjoy the convenience of a small city with the cultural opportunities of a larger metropolitan area. As a university town, Morgantown also boasts its own vibrant cultural scene, with local and touring musical and theatrical productions, local festivals, nearby cultural and historical destinations, and college sporting events.
Interested applicants should submit a copy of their C.V. as well as a statement of interest. The statement of interest should note the applicant’s preferred period of residency as the McDougall Visiting Professor, the applicant’s area of international law expertise, and any academic courses that the candidate would be interested and capable of teaching during the residency.
Application packages may be emailed to Professor Alison Peck at Alison.Peck@mail.wvu.edu. The Selection Committee expects to review applications for the position in January 2024.
Select List of Previous McDougall Lecturers
- Spring 2020 - Saiful Karim (Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane Australia)
- Spring 2019 - Suzan Lamb (Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, Portugal)
- Fall 2017 - Daniel Añorve Añorve (University of Guanajuato, Mexico)
- Spring 2017 - Jon MacDonald (The Hague, Netherlands)
- Fall 2012 - Gyane Davidyan (Moscow State University, Russia)
- Fall 2011 - Stephen Messmann (Central European University, Hungary)
- Fall 2010 - Nomaan Hanif (University of London)
- Fall 2009 - Myint Zan (Multimedia University School of Law, Malaysia)
- Fall 2009 - Fernando Patrón Sanchez (University of Guanajuato, Mexico)
- 2007 - Patricia Begné (University of Guanajuato, Mexico)
- 2003 - Branimir Zaimov (Bulgaria)
- 2001 - Patricia Begné (University of Guanajuato, Mexico)
- 1999 - Volker Röben (Germany)
- Spring 1998 - Maina Kiai (Human Rights Commission, Nairobi, Kenya)
- 1995 - Derek Smith (University of Seville)
- Fall 1994 - Esa Paasivirta (Finland)
- 1986 - Christopher Greenwood (Cambridge University)
About Archibald McDougall
Archibald McDougall was born in 1903 in Tasmania, Australia. He was the second of six boys. Though his father, D.G. McDougall, was Professor of Law at the University of Tasmania, Archibald was the only son to attend university, becoming a Rhodes scholar and attending Oxford University from 1924–1927. During his illustrious legal career Mr. McDougall served as a delegate to the League of Nations, legal counselor to the British Embassy in Cairo, Egypt, and was a Professor of International Law at the Iraq Law School in Baghdad. [1]
Mr. McDougall eventually settled in the United States (in the 1950s) and died in Martinsburg, West Virginia in 1984. Upon his death, Mr. McDougall bequeathed a portion of his estate to WVU College of Law in honor of McDougall’s “old and revered friends Philip C. Jessup and Francis Desk.”
About Morgantown
West Virginia University is located in Morgantown, a dynamic and diverse community
surrounded by the beauty of the Appalachian Mountains. Morgantown is consistently
ranked one of the top small cities in the United States. Its proximity to Pittsburgh,
PA (75 miles) and Washington, DC (210 miles) allows faculty and students to enjoy
the convenience of a small city with the cultural opportunities of a larger metropolitan
area. As a university town, Morgantown also boasts its own vibrant cultural scene,
with local and touring musical and theatrical productions, local festivals, nearby
cultural and historical destinations, and college sporting events.
1 .Information on Archibald McDougall was taken from the following websites: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=79574671 and http://www.utas.edu.au/law-alumni/stories/stories/the-mcdougall-involvement-with-the-university-of-tasmania
Photo source: University of Tasmania - Australia
