Director of Data-Driven Institutional Research

Aurora University; Aurora (IL); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Aurora University is seeking a Director of Institutional Research and Analytics to lead the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Decision Support. You will translate priorities into a research and reporting plan, supervise staff, and conduct analyses to drive student success and institutional improvement.

Reporting to the Chief Data Officer, you will collaborate with campus partners, ensure data quality and timely reporting, and guide evidence-based decision making while upholding

Qualifications

• Master’s degree required; doctoral degree preferred.
• Strong knowledge of quantitative research methods and statistics.
• Experience with IPEDS, accreditation reporting, and data governance.
• Proficiency in SQL and analytics tools; ability to translate needs into specs.
• Excellent written, verbal, and visual communication; strong project management.

Responsibilities

• Manage institutional research and reporting operations and calendar.
• Supervise professional staff and support development.
• Oversee external reports (IPEDS, CDS, NCAA) and maintain documentation.
• Monitor reporting changes and communicate impacts.
• Lead research on enrollment, student outcomes, and program effectiveness.
• Ensure quality assurance of statistics, analyses, and reports.
• Develop dashboards and institutional profiles with campus partners.
• Coordinate analytics with IT/Data teams and external consultants.
• Apply data governance, privacy, and access standards.
• Provide data documentation for accreditation and strategic planning.
• Consult with partners to define questions and deliver accessible summaries.
• Improve efficiency and reproducibility of research with approved tools.

Skills

Quantitative research methods

Statistical analysis

Data quality assurance

Data visualization

SQL

R

Python

SAS

SPSS

Data dashboards

Excel advanced

Communication (oral & written)

Project management

Education

Master’s degree in research methods/analytics

Doctoral degree preferred

Tools

Ellucian Colleague

Colleague Insights

EAB Edify

Job description

Aurora University is seeking a Director of Institutional Research and Analytics to lead the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Decision Support. You will translate priorities into a research and reporting plan, supervise staff, and conduct analyses to drive student success and institutional improvement.

Reporting to the Chief Data Officer, you will collaborate with campus partners, ensure data quality and timely reporting, and guide evidence-based decision making while upholding