المنتدى

The Women’s College, Sharjah (WCS) seeks an outstanding leader to serve as the College’s founding president. This newly formed institution is the United Arab Emirates’ first private, women’s-only college operating in the tradition of an American liberal arts college with high aspirations for quality and international recognition for academic and leadership excellence. The founding president will have an exceptional opportunity to influence the future direction of this newly-formed distinctive institution as it enters service to the United Arab Emirates and the Gulf region, as well as the wider MENASA (Middle East, North Africa and South Asia) region. It is anticipated that the president will assume duties by January 2016, if not earlier.

The special mission of WCS, its location in the UAE, its status as a newly formed institution, its mandate to serve the needs of the region, and the leadership opportunities it presents, demand a particular skillset for this critical position. The president must have enjoyed success in a major administrative and leadership role in an American or American-style university, as well as possess a strong commitment to the development and ongoing transformation of the role of women through higher education. The successful candidate must have:

 

 

Preferred qualifications and experiences are available in the presidential search profile, which can be found at http://academic-search.com/data/files/ WCSPresidentProfile.pdf.

 

WCS will prioritize its search to focus on academic professionals who are prepared to assume office as early as possible, but no later than January 1, 2016. All nominations, inquiries and applications will be confidential until an appointment is made.

 

Application Deadline

Applications will be received until the position is filled, but to assure full consideration, applicants should have all required materials on file by August 30, 2015. The review of applications will begin upon receipt and given the short timeline for the search, candidates are urged to submit applications as early as possible. Candidates will be kept apprised of their status in the search. Finalists can anticipate invitations for campus visits in October 2015.

 

Application Requirements

Required application materials include a substantive letter of interest addressing key leadership issues outlined in the prospectus; a curriculum vitae that highlights relevant credentials, experiences and accomplishments; and the names, addresses, telephone numbers and email addresses of at least five professional references (these will be called later at the semi-finalist stage with the candidate’s foreknowledge). Nominations or pre-application letters of reference are not required for a person to become a candidate, but nominations of promising prospects are encouraged and welcomed.

 

All application materials and nominations must be electronically submitted in MS Word or PDF format to WCSpres@academic-search.com.

 

To arrange a confidential conversation about this opportunity and receive application guidelines, please contact:

 

Maya Ranchod Kirkhope
Senior Consultant
Academic Search, Inc.
mrk@academic-search.com
703-380-9195 (U.S. central time)

 

or

 

Michelle Sarver
Associate Consultant
Academic Search, Inc.
mrs@academic-search.com
202-263-7478 (U.S. eastern time)