Programme Leader

Reporting to : Chief Academic Officer

Unit: Academic

About Oxford Business College

Since 1985, Oxford Business College (OBC) has spearheaded transformative education, carving a unique path for overlooked individuals, especially mature students facing barriers in traditional education. Operating seven days a week for our students, OBC's pioneering approach adapts to the diverse lifestyles and commitments of non-traditional learners. Across campuses in West London, Oxford, and Nottingham, OBC's ultra-flexible scheduling ensures inclusivity, reinforced by a robust digital infrastructure. Actively fostering a sense of belonging for students from all backgrounds, we provide comprehensive support services. Emphasising practical skills for employability through industry placements, OBC stands as a dynamic catalyst for change, reshaping higher education with an unwavering commitment to accessibility, flexibility, and inclusivity. With over 7500 students and 300 colleagues, join OBC in shaping the future of education and unlocking opportunities for a diverse range of students.

The role

The Programme Leader occupies a central role in maintaining the integrity, delivery, evaluation, and development of the academic programme, ensuring its alignment with the college's strategic plan, core values, strategic priorities, policies, and regulations, as well as the requirements of external agencies such as the Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), Office for Students (OfS), partner universities, and discipline-specific bodies. This position is instrumental in providing academic leadership and maintaining good collaboration with the partner university, offering direction and communication to module leaders to guarantee the quality of learning, teaching, and assessment across modules. Such leadership ensures that students receive a stimulating learning experience, which is vital for their academic and personal development. The Programme Leader is also responsible for the creation and updating of key documents, including timetables and programme handbooks, which support and clarify the programme structures for students, thereby enhancing their educational journey. Furthermore, the role involves working closely with module leaders and academics to ensure a consistent and coherent virtual learning environment across all modules within the programme. This includes the effective coordination and coherence of the programme itself, collaborating with students, staff, and external stakeholders to lead curriculum development and review. This process not only involves the innovation and enhancement of learning, teaching, and assessment practices but also the development of opportunities to enhance graduate attributes and employability skills. Engaging in scholarly activity within their subject specialist area, the Programme Leader uses this expertise to promote the integration of research-teaching linkages, supporting students through various academic processes and enhancing the programme's pedagogic practices. This comprehensive approach ensures the programme not only meets but exceeds the expectations of internal and external audits, maintaining high academic quality and performance standards.

The ideal candidate should be available during busy periods and weekends as needed, particularly during intake times. Please note that annual leave is generally not permitted during these periods. Some restrictions on annual leave also exist during other peak times, e.g., January/February, April/May, and September/October.

Key Responsibilities

1. Providing academic leadership for programme(s) in line with the college’s strategic plan, core values, strategic priorities, policies, and regulations and the requirements of external agencies such as the QAA, OfS, partner university and discipline specific bodies.
2. Maintaining good collaboration with partner university and provide leadership, direction, and communication to module leaders to ensure the quality of learning, teaching and assessment within the modules provides a stimulating learning experience for the students.
3. Develop and update documents, like timetables, programme handbooks etc., that support and illuminate programme structures for the student.
4. Work with module leaders and academics to ensure a consistent and coherent virtual learning presence for all modules within programme.
5. Communicate and work with module leaders and academics to ensure the effective coordination and coherence of the programme.
6. Collaborating with students, staff from within and beyond the college, and external stakeholders to support programme curriculum development and review, including the innovation and enhancement of learning, teaching, and assessment.
7. Prepare for, coordinate, and manage induction activities for programme.
8. Develop opportunities for enhancement of graduate attributes and employability skills, connect with associated professional bodies, employers, and alumni to build external reputation and promote extra-curricular activities.
9. Engage with scholarly activity within subject specialist area and use this to promote the integration of research-teaching linkages.
10. Engage and support students with applications for mitigating circumstances, suspending their studies, academic appeals etc.
11. Provide information for students to guide programme route choice e.g. option choices, module choice and allocation to modules, where appropriate.
12. Utilise a range of evidence and feedback to integrate learning and teaching enhancements within the programme.
13. Engaging in an initiative-taking approach to promote coordinated and innovative pedagogic practices across the programme and ensure a coordinated programme-wide assessment and feedback practice in line with the adopted assessment and feedback approach.
14. Ensuring that module leaders and academics correctly and accurately set up individual module Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) sites according to the respective principles and regulations, and that they are appropriately maintained, and that the programme and assessment landscape are correct.
15. Communicate with and respond to, partner, moderator(s) and external examiner issues and reports and respond to required programme enhancements.
16. Taking a pro-active role in the monitoring of academic quality and KPIs of the programme and complete routine monitoring through the required annual returns. Assuming accountability for programme performance in internal and external audits.
17. Support student engagement with student surveys and respond to survey results.
18. Represent the college at partner’ examination and progression boards.
19. Attend and chair relevant committee(s) and report regularly to the relevant board.
20. Provide academic leadership and support to colleagues within the programme team.
21. Line manage a team of programme coordinators, student success officers and academics.
22. Ensure smooth running of academic operations for the related University partner.
23. Undertake any other duties reasonably required by the Chief Academic Officer, Executive Principal, or Managing Director.

Person Specifications

TRAINING and EDUCATIONS

Essential

• A postgraduate degree in a relevant field, or equivalent experience.
• Holding a fellowship from Advance HE (formerly known as HEA) or in the process of achieving one.

Desirable

• Demonstrated membership and engagement with a relevant professional body (e.g. CMI, CABS etc).
• Holding Senior (SFHEA) or Principal (PFHEA) fellowship of Advance HE (formerly known as HEA).

Experience

Essential

• Experience in higher education administration and/ or leadership, with a proven track record of managing and overseeing academic programmes.
• Good level of understanding of B3 statistics and NSS results for an HEI.
• Experience in leading and delivering strategic and operational change.
• Good understanding of the Higher Education landscape in the UK, including comprehensive knowledge of relevant policies, regulations and compliance standards.

Desirable

• Hands-on experience of emerging technical and digital innovation (e.g. AI).

SKILLS and KNOWELDGE

Essential

• Academic leadership skills and experience in motivating, empowering, and inspiring teams to achieve common goals.
• Ability to develop and implement strategic plans that align with the college's overall mission, vision, and values.
• Good problem-solving and analytical skills to identify and resolve complex issues related to academic programs, teaching and learning, and student development.
• Good verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to present complex information clearly and effectively.
• Understanding of external regulatory bodies such as the Office for Students (OfS) and OIA.

Behavoural Skills

Essential

• Commitment to a student-centred approach to education, emphasising holistic student development and personalised learning support.
• Strong leadership qualities to effectively manage a team of professionals, including the ability to inspire and motivate.
• Capacity to adapt to changing circumstances and priorities in a fast-paced academic environment.
• High ethical standards and a commitment to maintaining the integrity of academic records and processes.
• Resilience and adaptability to manage the demands of a busy and challenging role.
• A leader role model for college’s core values, which underpin our vision, mission and strategy.

To apply, please click on the ‘Apply’ button above.