Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for University Dean

🎯 Role Definition

The University Dean provides visionary academic and operational leadership for a college, school, or large academic unit, driving strategic planning, faculty excellence, student success, research growth, and external partnerships. The Dean is accountable for academic quality, accreditation compliance, financial stewardship, fundraising, and fostering an inclusive culture that advances the institution’s mission and reputation.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

Department Chair with demonstrated leadership in curriculum, faculty development, and budget management.
Associate Dean or Assistant Dean with responsibility for academic programs, assessment, or research administration.
Senior Faculty Member or Endowed Chair with significant administrative experience and external funding record.

Advancement To:

Provost / Vice President for Academic Affairs
University President / Chancellor
Senior Vice President for Strategy, Research, or External Relations

Lateral Moves:

Director of Institutional Research or Enrollment Management
Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer
Vice President for Advancement / Chief Development Officer

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

Lead the development, articulation, and execution of a multi-year strategic plan for the college/school that aligns with the university’s mission, driving measurable improvements in academic quality, research output, student outcomes, and reputation.
Oversee academic program development and curricular innovation, ensuring programs are market-relevant, academically rigorous, aligned with workforce needs, and meet regional and programmatic accreditation standards.
Provide visionary faculty leadership by recruiting, mentoring, evaluating, and retaining high-caliber tenure-track, clinical, and adjunct faculty, including establishing promotion and tenure standards and supporting faculty development.
Manage the college/school budget and financial operations, including budgeting, forecasting, reallocation of resources, cost management, and working with central administration to secure funding for strategic priorities.
Drive enrollment strategy in collaboration with admissions and enrollment management teams to meet undergraduate and graduate recruitment goals, optimize retention, and improve yield and diversity of the student body.
Lead accreditation activities and continuous quality improvement processes, preparing self-studies, coordinating evidence collection, responding to accreditor recommendations, and ensuring timely reporting and compliance.
Build and sustain a robust research environment by supporting faculty grant development, interdisciplinary research initiatives, contract and grant administration, research compliance, and scaling sponsored research revenue.
Cultivate relationships with alumni, donors, industry partners, employers, and community stakeholders to expand philanthropic support, experiential learning opportunities, internships, and collaborative research partnerships.
Champion student success initiatives across advising, career services, academic support, experiential learning, and student engagement to improve persistence, time-to-degree, and post-graduate outcomes.
Lead fundraising and advancement activities for the unit, partnering with the university’s development office to identify donors, steward major gifts, support capital campaigns, and secure endowed chairs, scholarships, and programmatic funding.
Ensure compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and university policies including Title IX, FERPA, export control, research integrity, human subjects protection, and labor relations; proactively manage institutional risk.
Implement evidence-based assessment and program review to measure student learning outcomes, demonstrate program impact, and use data to inform continuous improvement and resource allocation decisions.
Foster an inclusive, diverse, and equitable academic culture by setting hiring goals, supporting multicultural programming, addressing systemic barriers, and integrating diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) into strategic planning and curricula.
Oversee academic unit operations including scheduling, facility utilization, space planning, IT and classroom technology integration, and coordination with central services to ensure operational efficiency and high-quality student and faculty experiences.
Serve as the primary advocate and spokesperson for the college/school internally and externally, representing the unit to university leadership, trustees, accrediting bodies, media, industry partners, and community organizations.
Lead interdisciplinary program creation and partnerships across campus and with external institutions to expand academic offerings, joint degrees, online education, and global engagement opportunities.
Set and monitor performance metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) for academic quality, fiscal health, enrollment, research productivity, fundraising, and student outcomes; present regular reports to central administration and stakeholders.
Oversee the development and delivery of continuing education, executive education, and professional development programs to extend the unit’s reach, generate non‑tuition revenue, and strengthen employer relationships.
Direct human resources activities for the unit, including faculty and staff recruitment, onboarding, performance management, conflict resolution, tenure/promotion processes, and labor relation matters in coordination with campus HR.
Manage crisis response and academic continuity planning for the unit, including emergency communications, continuity of instruction, health and safety protocols, and business continuity planning.
Lead the design and implementation of online, hybrid, and blended learning programs, ensuring pedagogical quality, scalability, and alignment with learning technology best practices.
Champion student, faculty, and staff wellbeing initiatives by partnering with student affairs, counseling services, and HR to create supportive policies and programs that enhance retention and productivity.
Coordinate efforts to increase external visibility and rankings performance through targeted communications, program marketing, thought leadership, and metrics-driven improvement initiatives.
Negotiate and manage contracts, MOUs, and formal agreements with partners, vendors, clinical sites, and external entities that support teaching, research, and service missions.

Secondary Functions

Support development and use of data dashboards and institutional research to inform strategic decisions, accreditation reporting, and faculty/staff performance evaluation.
Coordinate with central operations on space requests, classroom upgrades, and technology refresh cycles to support modern teaching and research needs.
Participate in university-wide committees and task forces, contributing academic unit perspectives to policy development, budgeting, and strategic initiatives.
Facilitate cross-departmental task forces to address retention, diversity hiring, curricular alignment, and graduate student success.
Champion and advise on marketing and enrollment campaigns for key programs in partnership with university marketing and communications.
Oversee annual program reviews, catalog updates, and academic calendar alignment to ensure program currency and compliance.
Mentor emerging academic leaders within the college/school to build succession pipelines and leadership capacity.
Advise and support faculty on grant budgeting, indirect cost recovery, and compliance requirements for sponsored projects.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

Strategic planning and execution for higher education units, including experience developing measurable strategic goals and implementation roadmaps.
Budgeting, financial management, and resource allocation for academic units, including experience with fund accounting, operating reserves, and fiscal forecasting.
Accreditation and assessment expertise, including knowledge of regional and programmatic accrediting processes, self-study preparation, and outcomes assessment.
Fundraising, major gifts cultivation, donor stewardship, and campaign experience with demonstrated success in securing philanthropic support.
Research administration and grant management, including pre-award/post-award processes, compliance, indirect cost recovery, and support for faculty research development.
Curriculum design and program development, including experience with new program approvals, accreditation documentation, and alignment with workforce demands.
Enrollment management strategies and use of CRM/Encompass/Slate systems or comparable enrollment platforms to drive recruitment and retention.
Higher education law and compliance knowledge (Title IX, FERPA, ADA, export controls) and risk mitigation practices.
Data literacy and institutional research tools (e.g., Banner, PeopleSoft, Tableau, Power BI) for monitoring KPIs and evidence-based decision-making.
Learning management systems and educational technology experience (Canvas, Blackboard, Moodle) to support high-quality online and hybrid instruction.
Human resources processes for faculty/staff hiring, promotion and tenure systems, collective bargaining awareness, and performance management.
Contract negotiation and management for partnerships, industry engagements, clinical placements, and sponsored projects.

Soft Skills

Transformational leadership with an ability to inspire faculty, staff, students, and external partners toward shared goals.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills for representing the unit to internal and external audiences, presenting to boards, and media engagement.
Collaborative stakeholder management and relationship-building across academic units, administration, government, industry, and community partners.
Political savvy, diplomacy, and conflict resolution skills for navigating complex academic governance, shared governance, and faculty relations.
Change management and organizational development skills to implement cultural shifts, restructure units, and introduce new academic models.
Strategic influence and negotiation skills for fundraising, partnerships, and cross-unit resource allocation.
Strong analytical and problem-solving capabilities with a focus on data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement.
High emotional intelligence, cultural competency, and commitment to equity and inclusion in recruitment, retention, and curriculum design.
Project management proficiency for leading multi-stakeholder initiatives, accreditation timelines, capital projects, and curriculum rollouts.
Student-centered orientation with demonstrated commitment to improving access, affordability, and student success outcomes.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

Terminal degree (Ph.D., Ed.D., or equivalent) in a relevant academic discipline; in some professional schools, a terminal professional degree (e.g., JD, MD, DNP) may be acceptable.

Preferred Education:

Terminal degree with additional training or credentials in higher education leadership, business administration, public policy, or a related field; executive education in fundraising/advancement is a plus.

Relevant Fields of Study:

Education Administration, Academic Leadership
Discipline-specific doctoral degree aligned with the college/school (e.g., Engineering, Business, Nursing)
Public Policy, Higher Education Management
Research Administration, Organizational Leadership

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

Minimum 8–12 years of progressive academic experience with substantial administrative responsibilities; at least 3–5 years in senior leadership roles such as Department Chair or Associate/Assistant Dean.

Preferred:

Prior experience as a Dean or equivalent academic executive with demonstrated success in strategic planning, budgeting, fundraising (major gifts), accreditation leadership, and measurable improvements in enrollment, retention, or research productivity.
Proven track record of leading interdisciplinary initiatives, external partnerships, and community engagement; experience managing significant budgets and staff.
Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and experience implementing DEI initiatives that produced measurable outcomes.