Director of Quality and Compliance in Coventry

This role operates a hybrid working arrangement that will require at minimum one day per week in our Coventry head office with occasional travel to our other UK sites.

About Arden University

We are an aspirational and multi‑award‑winning university, delivering rapid growth with ambitious plans to disrupt the HE sector through our passion for innovation and digital education. Our vision is to become the first‑choice university for career‑focused lifelong learners worldwide, ensuring that everyone, everywhere can access higher education.

About our Department

The Director of Quality and Compliance will sit within our Academic Registrar’s team which is the University’s administrative and quality centre managing the end to end student academic record. The department is responsible for a wide range of functions and governance oversight relating to the student journey from admissions through to graduation. The team have responsibility for the processing of all grades and results for students, management of award boards, quality assurance processes to include validation and continuous monitoring of the University portfolio and that working in partnership with other organisations.

About the Opportunity

As Director of Quality & Compliance, you’ll provide strategic leadership for Arden University’s academic quality assurance, regulatory compliance and governance functions, ensuring we continue to deliver an outstanding student experience while meeting the highest sector standards. Reporting to the Academic Registrar, you’ll lead the development of our quality framework, overseeing academic policies, quality assurance processes, governance arrangements and compliance with UK and international regulatory requirements, including the Office for Students, QIA, PSRBs and UKVI. Working collaboratively with colleagues across the University, you’ll drive a culture of continuous improvement, using data, insight and emerging technologies, including AI, to enhance decision‑making, strengthen academic standards and improve outcomes for students. You’ll play a key role in shaping curriculum quality, supporting validations and reviews, leading institutional reporting, and building strong relationships with academic schools, professional services, students and external partners to ensure quality and compliance remain at the heart of everything we do. This is a highly influential leadership role, offering the opportunity to shape the University’s quality strategy and lead a talented team through an exciting period of growth and innovation. You’ll combine strategic thinking with operational excellence, championing best practice, leading complex projects and ensuring our academic provision continues to meet the evolving needs of students, regulators and the wider higher education sector.

About You

You’ll be an experienced leader in academic quality, compliance or registry services, with a strong understanding of the UK higher education landscape and a passion for maintaining high academic standards. Equally comfortable shaping strategy and leading operational delivery, you’ll be an excellent communicator who can build trusted relationships with senior stakeholders, regulators and colleagues across the University. With a collaborative and solutions‑focused approach, you’ll inspire your team, drive continuous improvement and use data and insight to enhance quality, compliance and the student experience.

Essential requirements

• Significant leadership experience within higher education or a similarly complex, regulated environment.
• Extensive knowledge of UK higher education quality assurance, enhancement and regulatory frameworks.
• Experience working with external bodies including the Office for Students (OfS), Quality Assurance Agency (QAA), UKVI, OIA and other relevant regulators.
• Proven experience developing and implementing academic policies, procedures and academic governance.
• Strong understanding of quality assurance frameworks, programme approval, validation, review and continuous improvements processes.
• Experience leading institutional quality assurance and regulatory activities to ensure institutional compliance with all national indicators, conditions of OfS registration and Teaching Excellence Framework.
• Experience of, or a strong understanding of UKVI compliance requirements.
• Ability to build effective relationships and influence senior leaders, regulatory bodies and a wide range of stakeholders.
• Excellent written communication skills, with experience producing policies, reports, committee papers and guidance documents.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret complex data, identify trends and develop evidence‑based action plans.
• Experience using student lifecycle and performance data to inform decision‑making and continuous improvement.
• Understanding of OfS metrics, continuation, completion and student outcomes.
• Experience managing complex projects and driving organisational change.
• Proven people management experience, including leading, developing and motivating high‑performing teams.
• Experience managing budgets and resources effectively.
• Ability to prioritise competing demands, exercise sound judgement and make informed decisions in a fast‑paced environment.
• Experience designing and delivering training to support quality assurance and regulatory compliance.
• A collaborative, proactive and student‑focused approach, with a commitment to continuous improvement and inclusive working practices.

Why Arden

At Arden, you will become a part of a passionate and dedicated team who are committed to removing unnecessary barriers to learning and making education more accessible. Our people work hard to ensure our students journeys are the best they can possibly be, as such we want to reward our people with fantastic benefits.

• 30 days holiday + bank holidays on‑top, and even a Christmas closure!
• A generous Aviva pension plan, company contributions starting from 7%
• BUPA Cash Plan Private Medical Insurance coverage (applies to certain job roles)
• Access to Perkbox benefits
• Study any Arden course for free, with a discount for all family and friends
• Plus, other excellent benefits
• Our ‘Golden Ticket’ which allows you to gift anyone in your life a free Arden education

Our Values Stand out, Progressive, Accessible, Resourceful, Kindness, reflect who we are as an institution, a team and as individuals. If they also reflect you and you are excited by the chance to be the driving, creative force within a growing business, we want to hear from you.

Closing Date 4th August

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion

Arden University is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. This means that if you have a disability, as defined by the Disability Equality Act 2010, you may be guaranteed an interview if you meet the essential criteria for the role. If you wish to be considered under this scheme, you can indicate via the application form below. By doing so, you are also consenting for this information to be shared with the hiring team. For more details on what qualifies as a disability under the Disability Equality Act 2010, please refer to the guidance here.

As an Equal Opportunity Employer we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. Therefore, we make sure that our recruitment and selection processes never discriminate based upon people's age, disability, gender, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or other personal circumstances, and actively welcome applications from all groups.

Sponsorship statement

Please be aware that some roles may not meet the points requirement for a sponsored Skilled Worker visa, or fulfil the criteria we have for providing sponsorship. However we welcome applications from candidates who do not currently have the right to work in the UK but may be eligible for a visa through an alternative route.