Arden University
Director of Academic Excellence
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Salary: £90,000 - £100,000 per annum Employment type: Permanent Hours per week: 37 Reporting into: Senior Director of Academic Services Department: Academic Affairs
Click here to read the full job description and view our excellent benefits here
This role operates on a hybrid working arrangement that will require regular travel into our UK locations listed below when required. Travel each week will fluctuate in line with business requirements. Our working model arrangements are a non-contractual benefit so please note that an Arden work location is added to our employment contracts.
Travel will be required into the following locations:
- Coventry Head Office
- Birmingham Campus
- Leeds Campus
- Manchester Campus
- Newcastle Campus
- Nottingham Campus
- London area (Ealing, Holborn and Stratford)
About Arden University:
We are an aspirational and multi-award-winning university, delivering rapid growth with ambitious plans to disrupt the HE sector through our passion for innovation and digital education. Our vision is to become the first-choice university for career-focused lifelong learners worldwide, ensuring that everyone, everywhere can access higher education.
There has never been a more exciting time to join Arden University, as we expand into new disciplines, forge worldwide partnerships, and expand our locations.
About our Department:
The Academic Office at Arden University plays an important role in supporting academic governance, quality assurance, and student success. The department oversees key processes such as programme validation and approval, policy development, regulatory compliance, and assessment management.
Working closely with faculties, professional services, and external regulatory bodies, the Academic Office ensures that Arden’s academic standards align with sector benchmarks and accreditation requirements. It is also responsible for enhancing student experience by maintaining fair and transparent academic policies, supporting assessment boards, and facilitating effective learning and teaching practices.
About the Opportunity:
We are seeking an exceptional and forward-thinking Director of Academic Excellence to lead and shape the future of teaching, learning and academic practice across Arden University. This is a high-profile leadership role with responsibility for defining what excellent academic practice looks like and ensuring our academic community has the frameworks, capability and support needed to deliver outstanding student experiences across all modes of study.
Working closely with senior academic leaders, Deans and specialist Directors, you will use evidence and insight to identify opportunities for enhancement and drive institution-wide improvements in teaching quality, academic development and educational innovation. You will lead the Academic Excellence function, creating scalable approaches that strengthen academic capability, promote inclusive and engaging learning experiences, and deliver measurable impact for students.
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This role offers the opportunity to influence academic strategy at the highest level while translating vision into practical, evidence-led interventions that improve teaching practice, student outcomes and academic performance. You will also play a key role in embedding innovation, including the effective use of AI in education, supporting curriculum and assessment enhancement, and fostering a culture where excellent teaching is recognised, shared and continuously developed.
About You:
You will be an experienced academic leader with a strong track record of improving teaching quality, learning and academic practice within a higher education environment. You will bring significant expertise in educational enhancement and the ability to influence and collaborate effectively with senior stakeholders across a complex organisation.
You will have a deep understanding of contemporary pedagogy, curriculum design, assessment, academic development and the UK higher education sector. Equally important is your ability to use data, insight and evidence to identify priorities, develop targeted interventions and demonstrate meaningful impact.
To succeed in this role, you will combine strategic thinking with a practical, delivery-focused approach. You will be comfortable challenging established practices, leading change and building high-performing teams, while maintaining strong relationships with colleagues across faculties, campuses and professional services.
A doctorate or equivalent professional standing is essential, alongside substantial senior leadership experience in higher education. Experience of leading large-scale teaching and learning initiatives, academic development programmes or educational enhancement frameworks will be key, while knowledge of digital pedagogy, AI-enabled learning or technology-enhanced education would be advantageous.
Why Arden:
At Arden, you will become a part of a passionate and dedicated team who are committed to removing unnecessary barriers to learning and making education more accessible. Our people work hard to ensure our students journeys are the best they can possibly be, as such we want to reward our people with fantastic benefits. Employees benefit from:
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- 30 days holiday + bank holidays on-top, and even a Christmas closure!
- A generous Aviva pension plan, company contributions starting from 7%
- BUPA Cash Plan
- Private Medical Insurance
- Access to Perkbox benefits
- Study any Arden course for free, with a discount for all family and friends
- Plus, other excellent benefits
- Our ‘Golden Ticket’ which allows you to gift anyone in your life a free Arden education
Our Values:
Stand out, Progressive, Accessible, Resourceful, Kindness, reflect who we are as an institution, a team and as individuals. If they also reflect you and you are excited by the chance to be the driving, creative force within a growing business, we want to hear from you.
There has never been a more exciting time to join Arden University, as we expand into new disciplines and locations.
Closing Date:
Sunday 11th October
We reserve the right to close this vacancy before the specified closing date should we receive sufficient applications or in order to respond to business needs. In order to avoid missing an opportunity to apply please submit your application as early as possible.
Equity, Diversity & Inclusion:
Arden University is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. This means that if you have a disability, as defined by the Disability Equality Act 2010, you may be guaranteed an interview if you meet the essential criteria for the role.
If you wish to be considered under this scheme, you can indicate via the application form below. By doing so, you are also consenting for this information to be shared with the hiring team. For more details on what qualifies as a disability under the Disability Equality Act 2010, please refer to the guidance here.
As an Equal Opportunity Employer we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. Therefore, we make sure that our recruitment and selection processes never discriminate based upon people's age, disability, gender, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or other personal circumstances, and actively welcome applications from all groups.
Sponsorship statement:
Please be aware that some roles may not meet the points requirement for a sponsored Skilled Worker visa, or fulfil the criteria we have for providing sponsorship. However we welcome applications from candidates who do not currently have the right to work in the UK but may be eligible for a visa through an alternative route.
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