Interim Head of Admissions — Transformation Leader

Practicus; Leeds; Hybrid; GBP 111,000 - 166,000; Part time

Job summary

Practicus is seeking an experienced Interim Head of Admissions for a higher education organisation in West Yorkshire. The role is hybrid, ideally 2–3 days on campus, and will lead an admissions team of about 18 people during a major digital transformation and a SITS‑based system implementation.

You will provide visible leadership, challenge established ways, and deliver practical improvements while coordinating with IT and wider stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Significant experience leading higher education admissions, particularly domestic undergraduate admissions.
• Strong understanding of the end-to-end admissions lifecycle and applicant journey.
• Experience managing and leading admissions teams, ideally within a complex university environment.
• Proven experience delivering change and transformation within an admissions function.
• Hands-on experience working with admissions systems and technology implementations.
• Strong understanding of system testing, process mapping, requirements and operational implementation.
• Experience working with SITS or similar student/admissions systems would be highly advantageous.
• International admissions experience would be beneficial.
• The confidence to challenge established practices and introduce better ways of working.
• Strong prioritisation and decision‑making skills.
• The ability to build relationships and bring people with you while still holding teams accountable.

Responsibilities

• Provide visible, confident leadership to an admissions team of approximately 18 people.
• Maintain effective day‑to‑day domestic admissions operations while driving improvements across the function.
• Lead and support the implementation of a new SITS‑based admissions system, ensuring the transition is effectively managed and embedded.
• Work closely with IT and wider project stakeholders on system testing, process mapping, applicant journeys, offer‑making and operational readiness.
• Identify opportunities to simplify and improve admissions processes, removing unnecessary complexity and historic ways of working.
• Review and implement improvements to admissions policies, processes and operating structures.
• Support the development and implementation of a new offer‑making policy.
• Bring greater clarity around priorities, accountability, performance and ways of working.
• Engage and influence stakeholders across admissions, IT and the wider organisation.
• Support international and partnership admissions activity, alongside the core domestic admissions remit.
• Lead the team through a period of significant change, maintaining engagement while setting clear expectations.
• Ensure the admissions function operates effectively throughout the system implementation and beyond.
• Following implementation, potentially transition into a broader project/change leadership remit as further transformation activity develops.

Skills

Admissions leadership

Change management

System implementation

SITS experience

Stakeholder engagement

Leadership

Tools

SITS

Job description

Practicus is seeking an experienced Interim Head of Admissions for a higher education organisation in West Yorkshire. The role is hybrid, ideally 2–3 days on campus, and will lead an admissions team of about 18 people during a major digital transformation and a SITS‑based system implementation.

You will provide visible leadership, challenge established ways, and deliver practical improvements while coordinating with IT and wider stakeholders.