Executive Director, Career Exploration, Arts & Sciences

The University of Virginia (UVA), one of the nation’s most iconic public institutions, invites nominations and applications for the inaugural Executive Director of Career Exploration in the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences (A&S). 

A&S is UVA’s largest and most academically diverse school, educating 75% of undergraduates and conferring 2,500 degrees each year. With more than 50 undergraduate degrees and 29 graduate programs, 850 faculty, and a $500M annual budget, A&S is central to the University’s mission to educate future leaders and advance knowledge through research, innovation, and collaboration. 

Position Details 

The College is investing in a bold initiative to ensure that career exploration and experiential learning are central components of undergraduate students’ journeys. The inaugural Executive Director of Career Exploration will design and lead a comprehensive strategy that integrates career advising, experiential learning, and alumni engagement across A&S’s expansive academic programs. 

This initiative builds on the College’s launch and scale of a redesigned, high-impact first-year advising program – bringing these efforts into alignment and making these opportunities visible and accessible to all students. This office and its leader will be a critical catalyst for integrating career exploration and experiential learning with academic advising, career preparation, and alumni engagement. To that end, the College is developing a robust philanthropic campaign to ensure the leader has the resources to build, grow, and succeed. 

The Executive Director has a singular opportunity to position A&S as a national model for linking liberal arts education with purpose and opportunity at scale. To that end, this visionary leader will champion the liberal arts as a foundation for lifelong success, elevate experiential learning opportunities such as internships, research, study abroad, and community engagement, and build collaborative partnerships across UVA and beyond.  

The ideal candidate will bring proven experience in career exploration, experiential education, and/or student development, along with visionary and entrepreneurial leadership that demonstrates the ability to launch and sustain new initiatives. They will possess superior communication and stakeholder engagement skills and will be effective at forging strong partnerships with students, faculty, alumni, and external partners. Finally, the successful candidate will demonstrate a deep appreciation for the value of a liberal arts education and will be able to articulate its relevance in preparing students for meaningful and successful careers. 

Initial screening of applicants will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled. The University of Virginia will be assisted by Meghan Ashbrock, Ellen Brown Landers, and Sulli Cressler of Heidrick & Struggles, Inc.  

Nominations and applications should be directed to: UVACollegeCareers@heidrick.com   

We encourage you to learn more about Arts & Sciences and the University of Virginia and the many ways in which we pursue excellence for a purpose. 

The University of Virginia is an equal opportunity employer. All interested persons are encouraged to apply, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Click here to read more about UVA’s commitment to non-discrimination and equal opportunity employment.