Position: Program Director, Product Design, BFA and MDes
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Website: University of the Arts
Position Type: full-time
Job Description:
This position is responsible for providing leadership for the faculty, students and staff in both the undergraduate BFA and graduate MDes Product Design programs. The program director establishes a vision for the program that is in alignment with the overall goals of the School and advances it by ensuring relevant curriculum and objectives that evolve remain current with the art forms and fields to which it aligns. Fosters inclusivity throughout the program and department.
The Product Design program director is a renowned, forward-thinking designer-educator who continues to build on our uniqueness, amplify our voice in the national discourse in design and design education and grow our international visibility and prestige as a premier educational institution for product design. They have the foresight, desire and experience to transform our existing graduate and new undergraduate programs in Product Design into those that prepare students in a variety of practices to meet the design challenges of the future.
The program director will show innovation regarding the wide range of opportunities available across a constantly changing field and inspire students and faculty in learning communities to further develop the shared design culture that is the School of Design at UArts.
Program directors receive compensation and course release for their administrative work as articulated in their administrative appointment letters.
Responsibilities:
• Provide academic leadership for the program and sit on/attend relevant committees within the School and across the University; lead meetings of the program faculty.
• Have the background to shape the new undergraduate program’s educational vision – while base curriculum is developed, the program director is expected to edit and refine the curriculum as each year of the degree evolves.
• Teach a course load that includes a wide range of product-related subjects from beginning to advanced levels (in both the undergraduate and graduate programs), lecture engagingly and teach their courses as an ensemble with other instructors to create learning communities.
Faculty and Staff Oversight
• Hire new full- and part-time faculty, and staff; serve on search committees for new faculty.
• Appoint curriculum coordinators.
• Supervise and mentor faculty (and staff where applicable), maintaining strong and effective leadership, relationships and communication; resolve issues.
• Provide on-going review and assessment of faculty and provide classroom observations, annual conversations, biennial evaluations and reappointment and promotion reviews.
Curriculum
• Maintain and supervise adherence to curriculum standards; review all course syllabi.
• Work with faculty on course development, assessment and improvement.
• Develop courses and revise program as appropriate, in consultation with the dean, to maintain program relevance with industry standards and practices.
• Work with program directors and deans across the University to provide curricular and interdisciplinary paths for students.
• Create all course schedules.
• Participate in strategic planning, and curricular and accreditation studies and reviews; author all materials, responses, self-studies and curriculum proposals.
• Organize and participate in student advising and mentoring; coordinate advising activities with the Advising Center.
• Coordinate student events including, but not limited to, thesis reviews, juries, exhibitions, performances, awards, external competitions and events.
• Partner/coordinate/oversee external initiatives for students such as internships and community partnerships.
• Maintain support and upkeep for all program facilities, in collaboration with OTIS as needed/required.
Budget
• Develop annual budgets and prepare all fiscal year budget materials.
• Manage and oversee departmental expenditures, including material and supplies and restricted account for scholarships, programming and awards.
Recruitment and Marketing
• Support/coordinate/participate in School/Admissions recruitment efforts, e.g. open houses, accepted student programs and other initiatives.
• Assist University Marketing by providing up-to-date material such as student work, descriptive copy and testimonials concerning the program and/or discipline.
• Promote the program and manage its social media postings.
• Supervise all program orientation presentations.
• Support/participate in university development efforts, e.g. award recipient/donor luncheons, UArtist Day of Giving.
• Work with the dean and Office of Advancement on corporate or foundation grants.
• Foster mentorship relationships between alumni and recent graduates.
• Seek creative partnerships with other regional universities and colleges.
The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by the incumbent; they do not claim to describe all functions. Incumbent may be assigned other duties, and the essential functions may change from time to time as necessary.
Qualifications:
• The college is seeking candidates with professional experience, preferably with an MFA degree, although a BFA degree coupled with extensive professional experience would also be considered.
Experience:
• Commensurate with that of an associate professor or full professor.
• A demonstrated capacity for managing resources and personnel, and other management experience related to the above responsibilities.
Competencies, Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:
• A leader in the field and a demonstrated record of excellence and professional achievement in the industry, with a broad range of professional accomplishments, knowledge, awareness and experience in product design; commitment to professional engagement with their own artistry.
• Strong connections to the product/industrial design community as evidenced through conference presentations, invited lectures and professional networks.
• Ability to create visions for the programs, develop new courses and contribute ideas for the evolution of existing courses; a commitment to teaching and advancing the discipline.
• Understands user experience design, product conceptualization and development, prototyping, and construction; advanced visualization and sketching abilities are essential; a keen eye for developing memorable solutions and product aesthetics is a must, as is a thorough understanding of the design process.
• Experience and interest in teaching methods of digital and physical modeling, and/or identifying appropriate scale of production, both manual and robotic; be able to adeptly respond to complex local and global production and fabrication contexts and engage students with a diversity of skills, backgrounds and interests.
• Demonstrates innovative pedagogical approaches in one or more the following areas: product development, sustainable design, engineering, systems, smart and emerging technologies, healthcare and/or human factors.
• Commitment to advancing Product Design through the innovative use of evolving technologies, methodologies, traditional and new media.
• Ability to inform creative practice with practical application.
• Familiar with professional fields adjacent to product design, and exhibit an interest in exploring how the fields can effectively interact with each other.
• Ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in writing.
• Effective leadership skills with a commitment to building an inclusive culture that fuels creativity and encourages, supports and celebrates diverse voices.
Supervisory Responsibility:
• Supervises all full- and part-time faculty, and staff.
To apply:
Interested, qualified applicants should submit letters of application and resumes to the Human Resources Department via email to jobs@uarts.edu. Please ensure job title is in the Subject line.
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