Assistant Dean for Pre-Major Advising

UWMSN University of Wisconsin Madison; United States; On-site; USD 102,000 - 124,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous vacation

Health insurance

Retirement benefits

Job summary

UW-Madison is seeking an Assistant Dean for Pre-Major Advising to lead CAI admissions strategy and undergraduate experience, overseeing advising teams and cross-campus collaboration. The role shapes admissions, student support, and alignment with academic affairs leadership.

The position requires at least 5–7 years in student affairs or academic administration, with 3+ years leading staff, and a master’s degree preferred. Salary starts at $113,000+ with comprehensive benefits.

Qualifications

• Experience leading and supervising staff with measurable impact.
• Proven ability to advance student success initiatives across diverse populations.
• Experience implementing academic or student affairs policies and procedures.
• Ability to work across departments in a complex university setting.
• Strong organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills.

Responsibilities

• Establishes strategic priorities aligned with college directives.
• Supervise department and program leadership staff and ensure compliance.
• Build collaborative relationships with stakeholders across campus.
• Lead special initiatives and manage grant-funded programs.
• Monitor program assessment and report annual outcomes.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Staff supervision

Stakeholder engagement

Data analysis

Organizational skills

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Student information systems

Job description

Current Employees: If you are currently employed at any of the Universities of Wisconsin, log in to Workday to apply through the internal application process.

Job Category: Limited Employment Type: Regular Job Profile: Assistant Dean (B)

Job Summary: The Assistant Dean for Pre-Major advising will oversee the College of Computing & Artificial Intelligence’s (CAI) support for students starting with high school recruitment, through admissions until they declare a major. This role will provide strategic leadership and operational oversight in support of students in or interested in CAI before they declare a major, including students in other colleges and other majors considering a CAI major. The role is responsible for developing and implementing the CAI admissions strategy and advancing the undergraduate experience. The Assistant Dean for Pre-Major Advising serves as a key member of the Academic Affairs leadership team and will work closely with the Associate Dean, other Assistant Deans, departments, and external partners. The Assistant Dean will supervise academic advisors working with prospective and current undergraduate students. In the first year, the Assistant Dean will design and lead our strategy for admissions, working with partners across campus.

Key Job Responsibilities:

• Establishes priorities that align with the strategic directives of the assigned school or college and ensures units effectively carry out duties in a way that best supports the academic mission of the university
• provides direct supervision of department /program leadership staff and monitors compliance with laws, regulations, university policies, procedures, and relevant contractual obligations
• Facilitates collegial, collaborative working relationships with a broad range of stakeholders, partners with administrative and academic departments to support initiatives, and gathers input from key stakeholders to support recommendations
• Supports special initiatives and/or grant-funded programs that require senior leadership attention with respect to program design, planning, coordination, and interaction with internal and external stakeholders
• Monitors ongoing assessment and continuous improvement of academic programs and services by guiding the establishment of annual goals, ensuring progress towards goals is met, articulating challenges, and reporting on annual outcomes and achievements for programs and services
• Serves on various university review committees, working with a wide range of constituencies including the Faculty Senate, Deans and Associate Deans, General Counsel, and University Leadership Advises and collaborates with the Dean, Associate Dean, and/or Office of the Provost on critical issues, representing the functional area of supervision at appropriate meetings and events as requested; and serves on and/or leads various program and/or university committees as directed
• May exercise supervisory authority, including hiring, transferring, suspending, promoting, managing conduct and performance, discharging, assigning, rewarding, disciplining, and/or approving hours worked of at least 2.0 FTE or equivalent employees

Department: UW-Madison, College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence, Academic Affairs

Compensation:

The minimum salary is $113,000, but may be negotiable depending on qualifications and experience. Employees in this position can expect to receive benefits such as:

• Generous vacation, holidays, and paid time off
• Competitive insurances and savings accounts
• Retirement benefits

More Benefits information can be found here.

Required Qualifications:

• Minimum of 5-7 years of progressively responsible experience in student affairs, academic administration, or a related area
• Minimum of 3 years of experience leading and supervising staff, including managing multiple teams or functional units
• Proven experience advancing student success initiatives that support individuals from a wide variety of backgrounds, with evidence of measurable impact (e.g., retention, engagement, or satisfaction outcomes)
• Experience implementing academic or student affairs policy and procedures
• Experience working collaboratively across departments and administrative units in a complex organizational setting
• Strong organizational, communication, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build relationships across diverse stakeholders
• Experience using data and assessment to inform decision making, program improvement, and strategic planning

Preferred Qualifications:

• Understanding of the computer, data or information curricula and ability to relate to undergraduates and prospective students
• Demonstrated success overseeing student-facing units (e.g., advising, student engagement, student services, recruitment)
• Experience with budget management, resource allocation, and operational oversight
• Familiarity with student information systems, reporting tools, and assessment frameworks
• Experience leading cross-functional initiatives or large-scale student experience improvements

Education:

• Bachelor's degree required
• Master's degree preferred

Conditions of Appointment:

This is a 100% Limited Staff appointment. Salary will be assigned within the appropriate range, commensurate with the candidate's qualifications and experience. An excellent benefits package is also included. Successful applicants are responsible for ensuring their eligibility to work in the United States (i.e. a citizen or national of the United States, a lawful permanent resident, a foreign national authorized to work in the United States without need of employer sponsorship) on or before the effective date of appointment.

Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require your references to answer questions regarding misconduct, including sexual violence and sexual harassment. The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7). The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW-Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department.

Contact Information:

Kayla Weisensel at [e-mail] Relay Access (WTRS): 7-1-1. SeeRELAY_SERVICEfor further information.

Institutional Statement on Diversity:

Diversity is a source of strength, creativity, and innovation for UW-Madison. We value the contributions of each person and respect the profound ways their identity, culture, background, experience, status, abilities, and opinion enrich the university community. We commit ourselves to the pursuit of excellence in teaching, research, outreach, and diversity as inextricably linked goals. The University of Wisconsin-Madison fulfills its public mission by creating a welcoming and inclusive community for people from every background - people who as students, faculty, and staff serve Wisconsin and the world. The University of Wisconsin-Madison is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, including but not limited to, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, or status as a protected veteran and other bases as defined by federal regulations and UW System policies. We promote excellence by acknowledging skills and expertise from all backgrounds and encourage all qualified individuals to apply. For more information regarding applicant and employee rights and to view federal and state required postings, visit the Human Resources Workplace Poster website. To request a disability or pregnancy-related accommodation for any step in the hiring process (e.g., application, interview, pre-employment testing, etc.), please contact the Divisional Disability Representative (DDR) in the division you are applying to. Please make your request as soon as possible to help the university respond most effectively to you. Employment may require a criminal background check. It may also require your references to answer questions regarding misconduct, including sexual violence and sexual harassment. The University of Wisconsin System will not reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing, except that the identity of the successful candidate will be released. See Wis. Stat. sec. 19.36(7). The Annual Security and Fire Safety Report contains current campus safety and disciplinary policies, crime statistics for the previous 3 calendar years, and on-campus student housing fire safety policies and fire statistics for the previous 3 calendar years. UW-Madison will provide a paper copy upon request; please contact the University of Wisconsin Police Department.

Work with purpose, make an impact, and grow your career.

The University of Wisconsin-Madison is committed to equity, inclusion and employee well-being as we proudly work to improve the lives of people in Wisconsin and beyond. UW-Madison offers a wide range of professions that cover various interests and skill levels. We employ everything from accountants to arborists, chefs to custodians, editors to electricians, graphic designers to groundskeepers, HR associates to HVAC technicians, librarians to locksmiths, mechanics to medical assistants, painters to police officers, web designers to welders, and absolutely everything in between! No matter what you are looking for professionally, chances are you will not only find it but will thrive at it while working at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.