Job description

Online Education Services (OES) is a leader in online education. We partner with the world’s leading universities to enhance the student experience for the digital era. At OES, we are passionate about student success and the future of education.

In 2024, we are launching a strategic partnership with a transformational UK university and looking for talented, ambitious individuals to grow our team. You will be joining OES at an exciting time with significant opportunities for professional growth, creativity, and impact.

The Programme Lead is responsible for ensuring the effective delivery of a suite of programmes through quality assurance, teaching delivery and driving a student-centric culture.

They undertake a range of planning, scheduling resource management tasks and coordination roles to ensure academic support is executed. This includes providing administrative support to the Academic Director, collating reports and schedules, organising data and collating documentation across academic projects.

The role ensures that academic policy and student progress, processes and procedures are consistently documented and implemented for transparency of process and includes the management of academic and general misconduct and complaint processes.

The Programme lead will:

• Allocate, coordinate, and monitor the work of online tutors.
• Manage the student assessment process and contribute to the University Board of Examiners.
• Liaise with key staff from Awarding Bodies and External Examiners.
• Maintain standards by regularly reviewing and improving processes and procedures in relation to Academic Quality.

This position is a hybrid role based in OES’ Birmingham office (2-3 days per week).

Key responsibilities:

Liaison with partner university and relationship management :

• Develop relationships with key stakeholders at the University partner, including senior managers, to foster a strong, positive partnership.
• Work with the partner university to improve academic and administrative functions and processes.
• Manage escalations with partner academics.
• Rolling out quality assurance and regulatory updates
• Support OES UKs registration with the Office for Students and ongoing monitoring and reporting requirements – including the self-assessment, access and participation plan and student protection plan.
• Ensure the integrity of assessment procedures; maintain the confidentiality of student data; and manage the quality assurance of all academic programmes.

Programme Management, course oversight and planning :
• Provide oversight of a programme of modules under the direction of the Academic Director.
• Arrange the implementation of student learning success and retention initiatives.
• Act as escalation point for learning design and delivery issues.
• Resolve module anomalies and queries raised by students and online tutors.

Quality assurance :

• Oversee alignment of programmes with external accreditation requirements
• Ensure that QA processes are carried out for all modules within portfolio.
• Ensure results are submitted in a timely manner enabling student results to be released according to agreed timelines.
• Review and respond to issues in programmes raised by surveys and key stakeholders.
• Undertake project-based work to progress and improve quality provision.  This could be in relation to regulatory updates, technological advances, or awarding body requirements.
• Provide ongoing support to the Academic Lead and online tutors with issues regarding curriculum and university partner policy.
• Manage academic misconduct/plagiarism processes.
• Collation of information for quality reports.
• Represent allocated programmes at Exam Boards

People management and leadership:

• Responsible for online tutor recruitment, training, and contracts.
• Escalation point for online tutor performance management issues.

Online tutor support and coordination:

• Coordinate a team of enthusiastic online tutors to deliver a supportive and enriching learning experience for students.
• Assist online tutors with problem solving and student queries.
• Set deadlines and schedules for online tutors to facilitate the smooth running of the module and to provide guidance where necessary.
• Manage assessment marking across the module, including moderation, cross-marking, review marking and release of marks on all assessments.

Planning, Scheduling and Academic Support:

• Coordinate meetings between OES and partner university
• Maintain oversight and review the results process, including storage of result reports.
• Coordinate survey documentation and communications across partner university.
• Ad hoc administration and support to the Academic Director as required.
• Coordinate any ‘live’ tutor sessions as appropriate

Online Tutor Allocations, Misconduct, Complaints, Student Surveys:

• Coordinate online tutor module and cohort allocations.
• Coordinate online tutor feedback processes.
• Coordinate and process student misconduct incidents; including academic integrity issues.
• Develop process maps and guidelines for various academic policies and procedures.
• Document complex processes and support materials.
• Manage student complaints processes.

Essential Skills, Experience and Qualifications:

• Demonstrated people management and skills.
• Ability to focus on key improvements to benefit the student experience.
• Excellent written and verbal communications skills.
• Customer care – ability to analyse situations appropriately and sensitively.
• Imaginative, intelligent approach to solving problems.
• High attention to detail and consistent follow-through.
• Time management, organisational skills
• Prioritising, planning, problem solving skills.
• Ability to work as part of a close team.
• Good IT and administration skills.
• Flexible attitude to work, including the ability to take up new tasks when required and without supervision.
• Highly motivated.
• 25 days of annual leave + Bank holidays
• Engaging & vibrant organisational culture
• Flexible working environment
• OES Culture Club – calendar of events
• OES values driven recruitment principles
• Career-life fit – health & wellbeing focus
• OES strategy reflects respect, honesty & diversity
• Continuous improvement through challenging & meaningful work
• High growth industry & strong partner/shareholder backing
• Genuine focus on students
• Mentoring program
• Leadership & emerging leaders development program
• We are proud to support the Living the Wage movement