Associate Director - School of Science & Technology

Overview

Are you interested in joining a dynamic and international team of professionals to transform education? IE University's School of Science & Technology is looking for an Associate Director - Operations to join its team! 

IE University (IEU) is a private university with campuses located in Segovia and Madrid (Spain). IEU programs are taught in English and Spanish and fully comply with the terms of the Bologna Accords for the European Higher Education Area.

The Associate Director (AD) will be a key point of contact for faculty, students and the program team. The position combines the standard responsibilities of an Associate Director for undergraduate program operations with a stronger focus on faculty operations, faculty data management, teaching quality assurance and the continuous improvement of academic delivery. The primary responsibility is to guarantee the efficient flow of day-to-day operations while ensuring that faculty-facing processes, academic information and quality controls are reliable, timely and consistently applied.

The Associate Director will report to the Senior Associate Director and will supervise and coordinate the work of Program Coordinators and Program Assistants. In addition, the Associate Director will work closely with the Assistant Vice Dean on projects and initiatives related to faculty, while maintaining the direct reporting and accountability line to the Senior Associate Director. The position will interact regularly with faculty, students, academic leadership, other IE departments and external agencies whose involvement is required to run the programs and support academic quality.

The position will be based in our Madrid Campus, though it will eventually be required to travel to the Segovia Campus, on a same-day-return to Madrid basis, in case any coordination meetings with internal or external stakeholders may take place there.

 

Why IE University?

Every story begins with a purpose, and ours has always been about people. Founded in 1973, IE University has continuously raised the bar to drive positive change through education. We believe education is more than a path to professional success; it is a catalyst for personal transformation and meaningful impact. 

At IE University, we place people and their potential at the center of everything we do, empowering individuals to become extraordinary. We encourage bold thinking and foster a culture where innovation, curiosity, and courage lead to real-world impact. Together, we create an environment where talent thrives, and ideas shape the future. 

Our mission 

We support students in developing impact skills to live and lead with positive impact. This ignites a ripple effect: We transform people, who then transform others, systems, society, and, ultimately, our world.  

Our Purpose

To foster positive change.  

Values  

Cultivate the humanistic approach.  

Empower your entrepreneurial spirit 

Cherish the diversity of people, mind, and experience 

Drive innovation with a proactive mindset

We are looking for a person to join a full-time position in Madrid - IE Tower.

Responsibilities

Your role as an Associate Director will involve:

Faculty operations, faculty interaction and data integrity

• Maintain, update and optimize a comprehensive faculty database, ensuring the accuracy, consistency, confidentiality and traceability of information on academic credentials, accreditation status where applicable, contractual details, course assignments, teaching loads, availability and relevant historical records.
• Act as a regular and reliable point of coordination for faculty, providing clear guidance, facilitating requests, gathering feedback and ensuring appropriate follow-up across the School and relevant IE departments.
• Oversee faculty-facing workflows, including onboarding, course allocation, academic calendars, teaching documentation, grade submission and the resolution of operational matters escalated by the program team.
• Identify data gaps, inconsistencies or risks and coordinate their timely resolution. Provide academic leadership with decision-ready faculty information to support planning, recruitment, teaching allocation, continuity and retention discussions.

Teaching quality assurance and academic compliance

• Design and execute evidence-based reviews of teaching delivery using end-of-term student feedback, mid-semester evaluations, course documentation and other approved indicators of classroom and program outcomes.
• Monitor adherence to core academic responsibilities, including timely submission of grades, complete and up-to-date syllabi, appropriate organization of course materials in the Learning Management System (LMS) and compliance with academic policies and deadlines.
• Analyze student feedback and teaching delivery trends to identify strengths, recurring issues, data gaps and areas requiring support or improvement, distinguishing isolated events from sustained patterns.
• Collaborate with the Senior Associate Director, the Assistant Vice Dean, Program Directors and other academic leaders to define proportionate follow-up actions, faculty support measures, professional development recommendations and improvement plans.
• Ensure that quality assurance processes and conclusions are evidence-based, documented, consistently applied and handled with due confidentiality and professional judgement.

Reporting, insight and continuous improvement

• Prepare clear and actionable reports on faculty data quality, teaching delivery, academic compliance, student feedback trends, operational risks and progress against agreed actions for academic and School leadership, as appropriate.
• Use analytical and data visualization tools to convert complex information into decision-ready insights, clearly documenting definitions, data sources, assumptions and limitations.
• Identify opportunities to streamline faculty-related processes, improve data collection, strengthen controls and reduce operational friction. Update academic guides, templates and tools used with faculty and students.
• Support internal and external quality assurance, accreditation, audit and reporting exercises by providing accurate, complete and traceable evidence within required deadlines.

Undergraduate program operations and student experience

• Guarantee the efficient flow of daily operations across the bachelor’s degrees and proactively improve operational processes and student satisfaction.
• Meet with students to solve issues, offer advice and provide appropriate support when relevant matters are escalated or require Associate Director involvement.
• Co-manage interactions with class representatives together with the Program Managers, support effective student communications and assist students facing academic or other program-related challenges.
• Identify and implement ways to improve the student experience, ensuring coherence between faculty-facing and student-facing processes.

School projects and cross-functional coordination

• Assist the Academic Director, Executive Director, Senior Associate Director, Assistant Vice Dean and relevant Program Directors in curricular and extracurricular activities, innovation initiatives and faculty-related projects.
• Take responsibility for specific program or School projects, including components of program design, curriculum review, revamp projects, academic process redesign or faculty operations initiatives.
• Collaborate with other IE departments and coordinate with external agencies or partners when their participation is required for program operations, quality assurance or academic compliance.

Team coordination and capability building

• Supervise and coordinate the work of Program Coordinators and Program Assistants with professionalism, clear priorities, appropriate workload allocation and accountability for agreed service standards.
• Coach and train team members in faculty operations, data management, quality assurance routines, new processes and the consistent application of School and IE policies.
• Promote effective documentation, knowledge sharing and business continuity, enabling routine matters to be resolved independently and material risks to be escalated promptly.

Qualifications

To thrive in this role, you should possess the following qualifications:

• A Master’s degree, preferably from a top university, in Higher Education Administration, Data Analytics, Operations Management, Education, Business or a related discipline.
• A minimum of five years’ professional experience in academic administration, quality assurance, faculty affairs, program operations or a comparable field, preferably in a fast-paced or international university environment.
• Advanced written and oral proficiency in English is required. Professional fluency in Spanish is highly advantageous.
• Advanced database management skills and experience with CRM platforms and Learning Management Systems such as Blackboard or Canvas. Familiarity with Power BI or Tableau is highly desirable.
• Exceptional attention to detail and a proven ability to maintain complex datasets with a consistently high level of accuracy.
• Strong analytical judgement, project management capabilities, stakeholder management skills, ability to work under pressure and a high level of accountability.
• High emotional intelligence, discretion and tact, with the confidence to discuss evidence, expectations and constructive feedback with senior academic professionals.
• Experience in global management education or within a technology-focused higher education school will be considered a plus.
• A positive and proactive attitude, combining a faculty partnership mindset with a strong commitment to student experience, academic standards and confidentiality.
• Candidates must be in possession of a valid EU work permit.

Unleash your full potential and make an impact. The next move is yours!  If you want to be part of this educational revolution, we invite you to apply and be part of our dynamic team at IE University.   At IE University, we actively promote equal opportunities in recruitment processes and access to employment, always ensuring the absence of gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, ethnic origin, or disability bias throughout the entire selection process.