Academic Governance, Quality and Compliance Specialist

Lyceum College; Randburg; On-site; ZAR 300 000 - 400 000; Full time

Job summary

A higher education institution in Randburg is seeking an Academic Governance, Quality and Compliance Specialist. This role entails providing editorial, documentary, and regulatory-readiness support while ensuring documentation aligns with higher education standards. The ideal candidate holds a Bachelor's degree and has 2-4 years of relevant experience in administration and quality assurance. Key responsibilities include coordinating document preparation for regulatory engagement and maintaining compliance documentation. Strong editing skills and proficiency in Microsoft Office are essential.

Qualifications

• 2 to 4 years’ experience in higher education administration, quality assurance support, governance coordination, compliance support, or a regulated environment.
• Demonstrated experience in document editing, policy review, regulatory reporting, or audit preparation.
• Exposure to CHE accreditation processes.

Responsibilities

• Provide coordinated editorial, documentary, and regulatory-readiness support.
• Ensure institutional documentation reflects current regulatory requirements.
• Coordinate and compile documentary evidence for Self-Evaluation Reports.
• Act as a custodian of academic governance, quality assurance, and compliance documentation.

Skills

Advanced editing and document quality assurance skills

Strong understanding of higher education regulatory frameworks

Excellent written communication and organisational ability

High attention to detail and disciplined version control

Ability to work collaboratively across institutional units

Strong planning and coordination skills

Professional discretion and confidentiality

Proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Word and Outlook

Research ability and willingness to learn new systems and processes

Education

Bachelor’s degree at NQF Level 7 in Education, Law, Public Administration, Governance, Political Studies, International Relations, or a related field

Postgraduate qualification

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Overview

The Academic Governance, Quality and Compliance Specialist provides coordinated editorial, documentary, and regulatory-readiness support to the institution’s academic governance, quality assurance, and compliance functions. The role is responsible for ensuring that institutional documentation, policies, and regulatory submissions are accurate, consistent, audit-ready, and aligned with applicable higher education frameworks, under the oversight of designated senior role-players.

The role focuses on document quality assurance, compliance alignment, evidence compilation, and general regulatory preparation and readiness while acting as a custodian of institutional academic documentation and quality records.

Key Performance Areas (KPAs)

• Regulatory Readiness and Site Visits – 10%
• Quality Assurance Documentation – 35%
• Academic Governance Support – 20%
• Policy Custodianship – 15%
• Accreditation and Audit Support – 15%
• Coordination, Risk, and Improvement – 5%

1. Institutional Documentation Editing and Quality Assurance

• Edit, review, and quality-assure institutional policies, procedures, guidelines, strategic documents, and academic governance materials to ensure clarity, accuracy, and alignment with CHE, DHET, HEQSF, SAQA, and other applicable frameworks.
• Ensure consistency in language, tone, structure, and formatting across institutional documentation in line with approved standards and institutional identity.
• Support academic and administrative units by providing editorial and quality assurance input to strengthen the quality and coherence of documentation.
• Maintain version control and document histories to ensure traceability and audit readiness.

2. Quality Assurance and Policy Development Support

• Provide structured support to policy development and review processes by assisting with drafting, editing, and alignment of academic and governance policies.
• Support Quality Assurance, Academic Governance, and Regulatory Risk teams in ensuring policy and procedural documents align with institutional strategy and regulatory requirements.
• Assist committees and working groups with policy-related documentation and supporting materials.
• Ensure approved policies and procedures are correctly consolidated, archived, and disseminated.

3. Compliance Alignment and Regulatory Framework Monitoring

• Support compliance alignment by ensuring institutional documentation reflects current regulatory requirements and approved institutional positions.
• Monitor updates to higher education regulatory frameworks and flag implications for institutional documentation to senior role-players.
• Support the integration of approved regulatory or legislative changes into institutional documents in collaboration with the Legal Office and Quality Assurance Lead.

4. Regulatory Reporting, Accreditation, and Audit Support

• Assist with the preparation, editing, and quality assurance of documentation required for accreditation processes, institutional reviews, regulatory audits, and monitoring exercises.
• Coordinate and compile documentary evidence for Self-Evaluation Reports, improvement plans, and follow-up submissions.
• Support the preparation of briefing packs, evidence schedules, and document repositories for CHE and DHET engagements.
• Ensure regulatory submissions are internally consistent, complete, and aligned with approved institutional documentation.

5. Regulatory Readiness and Site Visit Preparation

• Coordinate institutional preparation activities for external site visits, audits, and monitoring reviews under senior oversight.
• Compile, organise, and quality-check evidence required for site visits, including policies, procedures, reports, minutes, and supporting records.
• Maintain a centralised, structured evidence repository to support regulatory engagement and post-visit follow-up.
• Support mock site visit preparations and internal readiness checks.

6. Institutional Documentation Custodianship

• Act as a custodian of academic governance, quality assurance, and compliance documentation.
• Ensure documentation is accurately stored, accessible, and maintained in accordance with institutional record-keeping standards.
• Support records management processes linked to audits, disciplinary matters, appeals, and academic reviews.
• Assist with ensuring that approved documentation is published, communicated, and archived appropriately.

7. Workflow Coordination and Editorial Project Support

• Coordinate editorial workflows for governance, compliance, and quality-related documentation.
• Track document development timelines and follow up with contributors to ensure timely completion.
• Support the controlled publication and dissemination of approved policies and institutional documents.

8. Risk Identification and Continuous Improvement Support

• Assist in identifying documentation gaps, inconsistencies, or compliance risks through review and audit feedback.
• Support the tracking of corrective actions and improvement plans arising from internal and external reviews.
• Prepare summaries, trackers, and briefing notes to support management oversight.

Requirements

Minimum Requirements

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree at NQF Level 7 in Education, Law, Public Administration, Governance, Political Studies, International Relations, or a related field.
• A postgraduate qualification will be an advantage.

Experience

• 2 to 4 years’ experience in higher education administration, quality assurance support, governance coordination, compliance support, or a regulated environment.
• Demonstrated experience in document editing, policy review, regulatory reporting, or audit preparation.
• Exposure to CHE accreditation processes will be an advantage.

Key Skills and Competencies

• Advanced editing and document quality assurance skills
• Strong understanding of higher education regulatory frameworks
• Excellent written communication and organisational ability
• High attention to detail and disciplined version control
• Ability to work collaboratively across institutional units
• Strong planning and coordination skills
• Professional discretion and confidentiality
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Word and Outlook.
• Research ability and willingness to learn new systems and processes.

Attributes

• High ethical standards and professionalism.
• Strong attention to detail.
• Ability to work well under supervision and independently.
• Integrity, confidentiality, and respect for institutional processes.
• Commitment to deadlines and continuous learning.

Relationships

Works in close collaboration with:

• Quality Assurance and Compliance Lead
• Legal, Governance and Compliance Specialist
• Academic Governance and Compliance Project roles
• Faculties, Broader Academic Services, and Support Units