Creating a brighter future for all
Griffith University is a progressive, values-led university dedicated to learning, leadership, and innovation. This is your chance to help us achieve our vision to transform lives and add to human knowledge and understanding in a way that creates a future that benefits all.

Since opening in 1975, Griffith has grown from one campus and 451 students to become a comprehensive, multi-campus institution, with 50,000 students and more than 200,000 graduates.

About the Group

The Arts, Education and Law Group is the largest academic group at Griffith University and is privileged to host the creative and visual arts programs. In addition to the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University houses the Queensland College of Art, which is an iconic Queensland institution and the oldest arts institution in Australia.   Programs in design, fine art, digital media, and photography and related areas ensure that the College provides a comprehensive suite of educational experiences for students.

The Queensland College of Art includes an engaged community of educators, researchers, artists, and alumni as well as key stakeholders across the visual arts professions.  The College represents a vibrant community housed at Griffith’s South Bank campus as well as at the Gold Coast Campus.

The Director, Queensland College of Art, is a key leadership role within the University and is responsible for the performance of the College in research, learning and teaching, external engagement, and for planning and aligning financial and staff resources with the University’s strategic objectives.

The Director works collaboratively with colleagues inside and outside the Queensland College of Art (QCA) to achieve high quality outcomes in all its activities.  The role calls for leadership as well as management capabilities, to ensure widespread support for advancing QCA’s vision and direction, especially its commitment to quality and distinctiveness.  This will include appropriate strategies to enable all academic and administrative staff to achieve to the best of their capacity, and strategies to enable transparent and efficient governance.  As QCA is based at both the South Bank and Gold Coast campuses, the Director will provide leadership in maintaining and enhancing the College as a unified academic element, as well as sound management in ensuring the most efficient delivery of its activities across the two campuses.

The Director represents QCA not only within the University, but also externally, and a key part of the role is to promote the College in the wider community, both locally and more widely.  This includes working with Griffith’s Office of Marketing & Communications and Advancement to build relationships with external groups and individuals and secure external funding and other support to help QCA achieve its objectives.

The Director role is full-time and is available for a 5-year term based at the Griffith University South Bank campus. Griffith is a multi-campus university and therefore it is understood that this position will work across campuses as required.

About you

The appointee will have exceptional interpersonal skills and the ability to build strong relationships with all stakeholders to ensure the continuing development of national and international success, recognition and relevance for the College, its staff and students.

To be successful in this role you will possess strong visionary, strategic and collegial leadership and management skills. You will bring either a record of quality research and scholarship in a discipline relevant to the College or a comparable body of work as a practitioner of eminence or significant national or international standing. In addition, you will embody the principles and values that the University stand for and reflect fairness, ethics and professionalism at all times in the work that you do.

Why join Griffith?

As a values-led organisation, at Griffith University, we’ve worked hard to create a dynamic and strong organisational culture. We support the professional and personal development of all our employees and invest in the skills of our people. We offer:

• mix of on campus and work from home options available and a supportive work environment.
• salary packaging options and corporate health discounts.
• generous leave entitlements including paid parental leave and leave loading.

Griffith University values diversity, inclusion and flexibility and we encourage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, and people of all backgrounds to apply. For more information please visit our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion page.

Salary range

An attractive salary package will be offered to the successful candidate.

How to apply

Please submit your application online and ensure your application includes the following:

• A covering letter outlining your suitability for the role, in particular addressing the key criteria as listed in the ‘About you’ section (above)
• Current curriculum vitae/resume which should include:
  • Full name, address, telephone number and email address;
  • Details of education, professional training and qualifications;
  • Employment history, including present position and details of relevant professional, consulting or industry experience;
  • Research interests and list of publications;
  • Research grants awarded and any other relevant information, such as offices held in professional bodies, community services etc.

Click here to view the Position Description.

Applicants must have unrestricted work rights for the duration of this appointment. Visa sponsorship is not available.

Further information

For further information specifically about this role, please contact Professor Scott Harrison, Pro Vice Chancellor (Arts, Education and Law Group) on +61 (0) 7 3735 5710 or at pvcael@griffith.edu.au

For further application and recruitment advice, please contact Theresa Burke, Talent Acquisition Partner on t.burke@griffith.edu.au

Closing date: Friday, 30 June 2023 at 5pm AEST. All applications must be submitted online.