Dear Candidate,
Thank you for your interest in the position of Vice Chancellor at University of the Built Environment.
This is a vitally important role at an exciting point in our further development as a university and as the centre of excellence for built environment education. We are delighted that you are considering applying to join and lead our distinctive institution.
Central to the University’s vision, both now and in the future, is its core purpose: ‘To provide accessible, relevant and cost-effective education, enabling students to enhance their careers, increase professionalism and contribute to a sustainable built environment’. Our vision is to be the centre of excellence for built environment education, maximising our impact and influence across both education and industry. This means delivering greater impact through excellent student outcomes and satisfaction, expanding access, opportunity and reach, while increasing our influence by broadening our provision and strengthening engagement with education and industry.
The new Vice Chancellor will be instrumental in leading the institution and its Executive Team in delivering this ambition, while raising the University’s profile and reputation across higher education and throughout the built environment sector and its industries.
University of the Built Environment occupies a unique position within higher education as a Royal Charter registered charity and specialist university focused on the built environment, with a predominantly online model of delivery through our digital campus. The majority of our students earn while they learn, many through apprenticeships, allowing them to apply their education directly within the workplace. Our head office is in central Reading, Berkshire, and our colleagues work flexibly both from the office and remotely. While predominantly a UK provider, we serve students based around the world and have a small staff team in Hong Kong. We also enjoy strong relationships with employers and professional bodies, providing a strong platform to grow and diversify our portfolio over the coming years, responding to evolving industry needs and critical skills shortages.
The University has four core values – passion, excellence, integrity and support – and we pride ourselves on living these values as a team every day. Our people make this a great institution: a fabulous place to work and one that consistently punches above its weight, delivers on high levels of ambition and enables students to succeed. The institution is thriving at a particularly challenging time for the higher education sector. We want to appoint a Vice Chancellor of the highest calibre who is student-focused, shares our values and can lead us confidently towards the achievement of our vision. The successful candidate will drive forward our ambition, uphold our standards of excellence, act as a compelling advocate for the University, increase its standing and influence, inspire our committed people and build on the strong foundations already in place to secure a resilient and successful future.
We welcome applications from exceptional and visionary leaders from higher education, the built environment or adjacent sectors and industries. We seek an inspirational leader who shares our values and can lead and energise our staff through the next phase of our institutional development; someone firmly committed to ensuring that we continue to deliver an outstanding student experience; and someone who can extend the University’s impact and influence, ensuring that we continue to provide relevant, accessible and industry-focused education for generations to come.
This microsite provides further insight into our University, our ambitions and the contribution the next Vice Chancellor can make to their achievement. We look forward to learning more about your aspirations to lead us and to meeting you through the selection process.
Ros Kerslake CBE - Chair of the Board of Trustees