Director, Higher Education Administration & Policy

Northwestern University; Evanston (IL); On-site; USD 135,000 - 175,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Disability insurance

Life insurance

Paid medical/sick leave

Parental leave

Tuition benefits for employee and/or+

Pre-tax and flexible spending accounts

Retirement savings options

Wellness programs

Job summary

Northwestern University seeks a program director for the Higher Education Administration and Policy program in the School of Education and Social Policy (SESP) in Evanston. The director will lead intellectual vision, teaching quality, faculty development, assessments, and operations while partnering across admissions, marketing, and staff to ensure program success and sustainability.

The director will hold an instructional non-tenure track role, teach in the program, and pursue scholarly work,

Qualifications

• Earned doctorate in a relevant field.
• At least five years of administrative roles with growing responsibility and people development.
• Five years of teaching higher education topics.
• Knowledge about multiple functional areas of higher education institutions.
• Scholarly work in higher education topics.

Responsibilities

• Provide intellectual and strategic leadership for the program, including curriculum and pedagogy.
• Oversee day-to-day operations and ensure academic standards.
• Lead faculty recruitment, hiring, and evaluation with budget alignment.
• Define admissions criteria and make final admission decisions.
• Build relationships with students and alumni and advocate for them.
• Support student success and career development with staff teamwork.
• Guide program messaging, partnerships, and external representation.
• Develop and manage the program budget.

Skills

Teaching of higher education topics

Knowledge about higher education

Academic leadership

Education

Earned doctorate in a relevant field

Job description

Department: Educ MS in Higher Ed
Northwestern University's School of Education and Social Policy (SESP) seeks a program director of the Higher Education Administration and Policy program. The director will have the opportunity to shape the next chapter of this well-established, nationally respected program.

The director serves as academic and strategic lead for the higher education program. They are responsible for shaping the intellectual vision; ensuring high-quality teaching and learning; managing, training, and evaluating faculty and partnering with staff; engaging in appropriate data collection and program metrics; and maintaining effective program operations. The director serves as the primary ambassador for the program while collaborating across admissions, marketing, and operational teams in the School of Education and Social Policy to ensure program success and sustainability.

The director will hold an instructional non-tenure track faculty role at a rank appropriate to their qualifications. The director works with the SESP dean, the associate dean for master's and professional programs, and program faculty to establish strategic directions and plans for higher education in SESP; oversees the ongoing development and refinement of the curriculum; recruits, hires, and supervises instructors; promotes the program and recruits students with support from the SESP Marketing and Communications Team and the Graduate Admissions Team. The director will teach in the program. Outstanding candidates will also develop and pursue their own research interests and scholarly work, including pursuing external funding.

Key Responsibilities:

• Guide the program to prepare leaders for a new and changing higher education. Given the many changes to the U.S. and global higher education context, the program will position itself as best situated to develop administrators, policy makers, and leaders to navigate ongoing and emerging challenges facing institutions of higher education.
• Provide overall intellectual and strategic leadership for the program, including curriculum, pedagogy, and evolving identity while ensuring academic excellence and alignment with institutional goals. Oversee day-to-day operations and maintain compliance with Northwestern and SESP academic standards.
• Lead faculty recruitment, hiring, placement, and evaluation, and manage instructional resources aligned with budget and strategic priorities.
• Define admissions criteria in partnership with SESP graduate admissions and make final admission decisions.
• Build strong relationships with students and alumni and advocate for them throughout the school, the university and the broader higher education community.
• Work closely with the SESP Graduate Studies Student Services team to support student success, career development, and a vibrant program community.
• Partner with SESP Marketing and Communications to guide program messaging and support recruitment efforts. Represent the program externally, building partnerships with industry, schools, and academic networks.
• Work with the SESP graduate studies business team to develop and manage the program budget, ensuring responsible and strategic use of resources aligned with program goals.

Required qualifications:

• Earned doctorate in a relevant field
• At least five (5) years of experience in administrative roles with increasing responsibility and articulated management and staff development philosophy
• Five (5) years of teaching of higher education topics
• Knowledge about multiple functional areas of higher education institutions
• Scholarly work in higher education topics

Preferred qualifications:

• Active scholarly agenda and externally funded project(s)
• Leadership of other academic program(s)
• Experience in a senior leadership role in a higher education setting
• Well-networked in higher education

Targeted hiring salary range: $135,000-$175,000

Northwestern University has provided a pay range representing its good faith estimate of what the university reasonably expects to pay for the position. The pay offered to the selected candidate will be determined based on factors including (but not limited to) the experience and qualifications of the selected candidate including years since terminal degree, training, and field or discipline; departmental budget availability; internal comparators; and external market pay for comparable jobs.

Review of materials will begin on November 15, 2026 and applicants are strongly encouraged to submittheir materials before that date.

Northwestern University is located in Evanston adjacent to Chicago.For more information about the School of Education and Social Policy, please visit http://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/

Benefits

At Northwestern, we are proud to provide meaningful and competitive benefits. The available benefits package for this position will include health, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance; paid medical/sick and parental leave; tuition benefits for the employee and dependents; pre-tax and flex spending accounts for commuting and dependent care; generous retirement savings options; and wellness programs. For a comprehensive overview of available benefits, including eligibility details, visit us at Northwestern Benefits to learn more.

• health, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance
• paid medical/sick and parental leave
• tuition benefits for the employee and dependents
• pre-tax and flex spending accounts for commuting and dependent care
• generous retirement savings options
• and wellness programs

Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected characteristics, including disability and veteran status. View Northwestern's non-discrimination statement. Job applicants who wish to request an accommodation in the application or hiring process should contact the Office of Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance. View additional information on the accommodations process.