JOB DESCRIPTION

Employment status and working hours

Permanent, full time.

Full time hours at the University are 35 per week with the standard working pattern Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 17:00.

Organisation structure

Education and Students, School of the Built Environment.

Your line manager will be Head of School, School of Real Estate and Innovation.

Place of work flexibility

You will normally spend your total working time at home*, which must be within the UK. You may, on occasions, be expected to attend the Horizons, Reading office to attend meetings or training events, as well as occasional travel to our Hong Kong office. *Working from home is only possible if your environment is suitable.

High level summary of job role

As a Programme Lead, you will undertake a key academic position within the School, supporting the development, delivery, and monitoring of the programme and modules within the Master of Business Administration (MBA).

You will provide academic leadership in the subject core areas of finance, organisational leadership, strategic management, innovation, enterprise, and knowledge management. This is in the context of the built environment both in the UK and internationally.

The purpose of the role is to:

• Be an active part of the academic community at the University of the Built Environment, taking on an academic leadership role, sitting on deliberative committees and mentoring staff.
• Provide high quality learning, teaching and assessment within a subject discipline of Business Administration education.
• Support the development and delivery of modules within a subject discipline of Business Administration education.
• Support the research ambitions of the University of the Built Environment through contributing to scholarship and research activities as well as engaging with industry and associated professional bodies.

Specific job role accountabilities and responsibilities

• Lead and co-ordinate the Master of Business Administration programme.
• Be involved in some or all the following: Programme leadership, Module Leader management & liaison, module leadership (including module delivery and tutoring), marking assignments, and module development.
• Work with the programme team to design and maintain programmes to enhance teaching quality and student satisfaction, ensuring active student engagement in learning.
• Ensure that the MBA programme is up-to-date and reflective of global standards, and provide students with the knowledge and skills needed for both academic and professional success.
• Ensure the subject pedagogic approach is both innovative and sector leading.
• Provide academic leadership, management, and support to the academic staff on the MBA programme.
• Oversee quality assurance processes, including course evaluations, peer reviews, and teaching effectiveness assessments, to maintain high standards across programmes.
• Ensure compliance with the academic standards and policies of UK education systems, aligning with accreditation requirements and regulatory guidelines.
• Provide leadership to programme validation and professional accreditation events, programme monitoring and periodic review.
• Work with the Head of School and other University teams to champion initiatives that enhance the overall student experience, with a focus on academic support, engagement, and inclusivity.
• Work with academic and support staff to address student needs, monitor academic performance, and improve retention and success rates on the MBA programme.
• Promote global perspectives in teaching content and methods, encouraging cross-cultural understanding and exchange.
• Promote authentic learning and assessments to support the development of resilient, agile, and adaptable students.
• Foster a transdisciplinary approach to learning that develops sector specific employability knowledge and skills.
• Develop and promote research, including bids and publications, associated with business administration in the context of the built environment.
• Contribute to the University’s aspirations around Research Excellence Framework (REF) submission, including impact cases and journal paper publications.
• Support the Dean, where required, in the development of new programmes to expand the portfolio of the School and increase student numbers.
• Aid in the marketing and market awareness of the programme, and build networks and relationships within the industry to support student recruitment and research activities.
• Develop and promote professional training within the same subject discipline.
• Undertake other relevant duties, responsibilities, and committee memberships appropriate to the post.

Other important features of the job role

Line management responsibilities: Yes, and the number of direct reports is likely to be three to four.

Budget responsibility: None.

In this role you will liaise with the following: Academic colleagues across the academic specialisms, Academic Operations team, Digital Education team, Professional Services, Apprenticeships team, Admissions team, Business Development team, Marketing team, External Examiners and Professional Practitioners, and Professional Bodies.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

E = Essential person requirement; D = Desirable person requirement

How the person requirement will be assessed:

A = Application; I = Interview; T = Test or other assessment

Please be aware that as part of onboarding processes, we will seek original documentary evidence of the relevant academic and/or professional qualifications which you include within your job application. This is all part of our comprehensive pre-employment screening which also includes checking your identity, right to work, criminal record history (basic disclosure), and three years employment history.

Qualifications and training

First degree in a business administration or a built environment discipline or cognate subject (E, A).

An MBA or Doctoral level qualification in a relevant subject or equivalent, such as professional level experience, or membership of a relevant professional body (E, A).

Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching in Higher Education (or equivalent, such as HEA recognition) or demonstrably working towards such a qualification within 12 months of appointment (D, A).

Previous experience

In a similar leadership role (E, A, I).

Within the education sector (E, A, I).

In the delivery of programmes and management of modules, including familiarity with the experience of administering relevant quality assurance procedures and practice (E, A, I).

Teaching experience and a proven ability to effectively communicate and deliver teaching in a variety of modes through the ongoing development of rigorous and innovative teaching methods (E, A, I).

Technology Enhanced Learning/online teaching in Higher Education (D, A, I).

Research experience or CPD in a similar area, and ability to attract external funding (D, A, I).

Skills, knowledge, and aptitudes

Familiarity with the requirements of professional bodies, practice, and potential employers (E, A, I).

Digital skills confidence: We use MS Office which includes Teams, Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and several other systems/technology (E, I, T).

Ability to produce innovative module material to enthuse students and to integrate your specialist subject area holistically within the teaching of the wider discipline (E, A, I).

Ability to work effectively as part of a team, both communicating and collaborating with colleagues (E, A, I).

Strong and effective all-round communication skills, including presentation skills, with an ability to communicate with people of all ages and levels (E, A, I).

Self-motivated and proactive in approach to challenges and opportunities (E, A, I).

Creative and innovative with a strong grounding in practical solutions and achieving results (E, A, I).

Other requirements or special requirements

Alignment to the University’s core values of Passion, Integrity, Excellence and Support; all employees are expected to demonstrate our values at work (E, I).

Commitment to delivering positive outcomes for our students; we want our students to be successful (E, I).

You must be prepared to undertake mandatory online training should you be appointed including Data Protection, Health and Safety, Safeguarding, Prevent, and EDI (E, I).

PAY AND BENEFITS

Salary: Salary up to £65,000 per annum.

Holiday: 26 days paid holiday (rising to 28 with service) plus paid bank/public holidays plus up to five paid closure days (typically between Christmas and New Year); all per holiday year Full Time Equivalent. Our holiday year runs from 1 August to 31 July. We also have a holiday buy and sell scheme in place. Sometimes the University does not need to close for five days per year and any balance (for example one day), can be used as a paid Wellbeing Day to take time out for your own physical or mental health.

Pension and life assurance: Pensions auto-enrolment to the Universities Superannuation Scheme which is a default salary sacrifice scheme. You may opt out of salary sacrifice but remain in the scheme, or you may choose to opt out altogether. 

Family-friendly policies: Policies in place for all types of family-friendly statutory leave with enhanced pay available from day one of employment for some leave types. Access to Tax-Free Childcare (Government scheme).

Wellbeing: Full access to the Employee Assistance Programme as well as the Thrive Mental Wellbeing app. Several employees are trained Mental Health First Aiders and can support staff. We have a wellbeing policy and we focus on five pillars of wellbeing.

Sustainable travel: Cycle to Work and Electric Vehicle salary sacrifice schemes.

Parking: We have locked sheds for bicycles. For cars, for Horizons based roles, we may in the future be able to offer parking on site however you must not assume this will be possible. Every now and then we may have a spare parking space become available and you can ask to join the waiting list. The University is keen wherever possible, to encourage staff to commute as sustainably as possible.

Other health related benefits: Employer-funded Health Cash Plan (Simplyhealth) and voluntary dental insurance (Unum).

Other valuable benefits:

• Charity giving options available including one voluntary paid day, per annum.
• You will have access to Microsoft Office 365 applications for personal use.
• You will have access to range of lifestyle discounts and everyday savings.
• We offer learning platforms including LinkedIn learning.

On the Join the team page of our website, you will find the full list of employee benefits.

APPLICATIONS - THINGS TO CONSIDER

For an informal discussion about the role please contact Alison Andrews on 0118 467 2461 or email a.andrews@ube.ac.uk. For any other enquiries please contact HR on 0118 467 2454 / 2433 or email recruitment@ube.ac.uk.

Did one of our employees recommend you? If you apply on the recommendation of an existing employee, please make sure to mention their name within your application.

We're passionate about sustainability and we have a five-year strategic plan: We expect job seekers to be curious about who we are and what we do. We point you towards a couple of resources about who we are and sustainability.

Closing date and next steps

We will receive applications until the advert closes on Wednesday 12 November 2025 at 17:00. We will not consider late applications. Our ATS does not screen applications, we humans do. Applications may be reviewed prior to the closing date and occasionally, you may be invited to interview ahead of the closing date.

Interview details

Dates for interview will be advised to you later in the process. We'll ask you to tell us about any dates you cannot make, up to 4 weeks from the closing date; this helps us to plan interviews should you be shortlisted, prior to contacting you.

Interviews are normally carried out over Microsoft Teams or Zoom. Depending on the job role and place of work, your interview may be at our Reading or London office. Please be prepared for a two-stage interview process, held on different dates. As part of the interview process, you will likely meet a member of the Senior Leadership Team.

Note for internal candidates

If you are an existing employee, we request you inform your current line manager of your intention to apply for this role.