Academic Affairs Manager

About the role

The undergraduate program of Fulbright University Vietnam has been designed to foster connections across the boundaries found in the silos of traditional universities. This includes establishing and supporting cross-disciplinary, cross-departmental, and cross-functional roles, interactions, and processes. The administrative support required by this model is notably different; whereas most universities have a variety of departments and offices equipped with staff (particularly redundant), at Fulbright, the administration is done via a singular team.

For the undergraduate program, the academic affairs management requires acting across a range of tasks and responsibilities. The advantage of this approach is efficiency and alignment; a singular person working across the offices of enrollment management, student life, assessment, and faculty support can support the student learning experience in a unique way. Moreover, as Fulbright is a start-up institution, the inherent flexibility of a cross-cutting position like this provides numerous benefits as the institution grows. This is the fundamental raison d’etre behind the creation of the Undergraduate Program Academic Affairs Manager at Fulbright University Vietnam. We now describe this position in detail.

The Undergraduate Program Academic Affairs Manager reports to the Dean of Undergraduate Program, although works particularly closely with the Student Affairs and Services department, Registrar, Faculty, and other academic leadership and their teams. The position is a manager-level position, requiring a master’s degree in higher education administration or a related field, and previous academic affairs experience.

Roles and Responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities of the Undergraduate Program Academic Affairs Manager (UPAAM) are organized across four primary areas:

1. Course Scheduling and Enrollment Management

• Establish and maintain the undergraduate academic calendar and semester timetables with input from the Dean of Undergraduate Studies and faculty members. Supervise the processing of schedule-change requests and updates, and systematize these procedures in coordination with the Office of the Dean.

• Supervise registrars and academic officers to ensure effective course scheduling, execution of enrollment plans, management of enrollment records, and communication with faculty. Ensure enrollment data is captured effectively and is retrievable by the University’s information technology platforms. Support the implementation of academic policies and graduation procedures in coordination with the Registrar’s Office.

2. Budget Management

• Assist the Dean of the Undergraduate Program in proposing and managing the department's budget for each fiscal year.

• Collaborate with the Finance team to track departmental expenses.

3. Operational Program Management

• Manage the information systems and documents, including:

o Curriculum documents and Course Catalogue –– coordinating updates and changes

o Academic and program-related policies and procedures

• Serve as the primary contact for faculty inquiries concerning academic affairs.

• Assist the Dean’s Office with the faculty hiring plan and tracking visiting faculty.

• Provide reports and data from the Undergraduate Program to relevant stakeholders, ensuring accuracy and timeliness.

• Oversee the Academic Affairs and Registrar staff in other areas, including but not limited to mobility initiatives, scholarship, accreditation, quality assurance and compliance support, teaching, and learning assistance.

4. Student Affairs & Services Liaison

• Act as a Faculty Business Partner to the Student Affairs & Services team. Ensure Student Affairs & Services is made aware of relevant Faculty and academic program delivery information, and vice versa.

• Support the development and delivery of extra-curriculum programming, in particular workshops and special events involving Faculty, e.g. New Student Orientation.

5. General

• Work on special programs as assigned, attend trainings which enhance her/his expertise in job areas, serve on departmental and campus-wide committees as appropriate, and participate in activities that enhance the campus community and/or larger community to further University services.

• Support the Office of the Dean with tasks and assignments from time to time, as appropriate.

Other duties:

Contributing to team effort by welcoming new and different work requirements; exploring new opportunities to enhance the services of the department; helping others accomplish related job results as and where needed; and perform other duties as assigned.

• Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree, preferably in education.

• Experience:

• Minimum of 4-5 years of experience working in the education field with high-level administrative and educational management capacity, or in a similar position.

• Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Strong knowledge of the higher education landscape and regulations in Vietnam. An understanding of the liberal arts approach and the U.S. higher education system is preferred.

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills for identifying needs, conducting research, and developing innovative proposals, solutions, and programs.

• Demonstrate experience in managing complex administrative processes.

• Excellent oral and written communication skills.

• Proven experience representing an institution with external accrediting bodies and education quality frameworks.

• Flexibility and ability to collaborate effectively with internal and external stakeholders, including faculty, students, staff, the Executive committee, the Board of trustees, the Ministry of Education and Training, etc.

• High level of attention to detail and accuracy.

• Demonstrate ability to lead and thrive in a community of diverse perspectives and cultures in an inclusive environment.