Director, Office of Assessment & Institutional Research
University of Wisconsin Milwaukee
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Position Title:
Director, Office of Assessment & Institutional ResearchJob Category:
LimitedEmployment Type:
RegularJob Profile:
Assistant Vice Provost (Inst)Job Duties:
The OAIR Director provides strategic leadership for the design, implementation, and communication of analytical work that supports both internal and external stakeholders. The Director oversees institutional research, assessment, accreditation support, data governance, and data visualization functions. This role requires strong technical competency, exceptional communication skills, a commitment to equity and student success, and the ability to guide the institution toward greater analytical maturity—including improved data quality, automation, business intelligence, and the responsible use of AI.
Leadership & Strategic Direction
Provide vision and direction for OAIR’s institutional research, assessment, and data governance work.
Lead the transition from static reporting toward modern, interactive, automated, and self-service data solutions.
Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leadership on data-informed planning, policy, and institutional effectiveness.
Advance a culture of assessment and continuous improvement across academic and administrative units.
Represent UWM with UW System Administration and external agencies regarding official reporting and data policy.
External Reporting & Compliance
Oversee timely, complete, and accurate submissions for all state, federal, UW System, and accreditation reporting.
Coordinate institutional responses to external data requests, surveys, and public accountability requirements.
Ensure data integrity and adopt QA/QC processes to reduce errors and improve repeatability.
Internal Decision Support
Lead the development and interpretation of analytical studies on:
enrollment, retention, and graduation
student learning and success
academic program review and assessment
resource planning and instructional capacity analysis
strategic initiatives and university-level KPIs
Partner with academic and administrative units to design analyses that inform decision-making.
Provide oversight and analytical support for unit budget preparation, monitoring, and resource planning in collaboration with Academic Affairs and campus partners.
Data Infrastructure, Governance & Quality
Oversee the development and maintenance of institutional dashboards and collaborate with data custodians and technical teams to shape and document institutional data definitions and semantic-layer structures.
Collaborate with data custodians to improve data quality and reduce inconsistencies.
Implement best practices in metadata, lineage, documentation, and data governance.
Champion automation, reproducibility, and modernization of IR workflows.
Business Intelligence, Data Visualization & Communication
Provide leadership for campus-facing dashboards, reporting tools, and data portals.
Ensure analytical products are accessible, visually clear, equity-aware, and designed for non-technical users.
Improve data literacy across campus through trainings, workshops, and consultative support.
Assessment & Accreditation
Lead campus assessment operations, program review data support, and institutional learning outcomes work.
Manage data collection and reporting to support regional accreditation (HLC) and discipline-specific accreditors.
Partner with academic affairs leadership to embed assessment and continuous improvement practices.
Team Leadership & Professional Development
Supervise OAIR staff, fostering a collaborative, supportive, and growth-oriented work environment.
Develop staff expertise in analytics, BI tools, assessment practices, and emerging technologies (e.g., AI).
Lead change management and cross-unit coordination to reduce institutional silos.
Key Job Responsibilities:
- Sets priorities that align with the strategic directives of the Office of the Provost; ensures units effectively carry out duties in a way that best supports the strategic direction of the university and the academic mission. Provides direct supervision of department/division leadership staff, and monitors compliance with laws/regulations, university policies and procedures, and relevant contractual obligations
- Advises and collaborates with the Provost, Vice Provost, and/or Associate Vice Provosts on critical issues, representing the functional area of supervision at appropriate meetings and events as requested; and serves on and/or leads various program and/or university committees as directed
- Monitors on-going assessment and continuous improvement of programs/services by guiding the establishment of annual goals, ensuring progress towards goals is met, articulating challenges, and reporting on annual outcomes and achievements for programs/services
- Supports special initiatives and/or grant-funded programs that require the Provost or Vice Provost's attention with respect to program design, planning, coordination, and interaction with internal and external stakeholders
- Facilitates collegial, collaborative working relationships with a broad range of stakeholders, partners with administrative and academic departments to support initiatives, and gathers input from key stakeholders to support recommendations
- May exercise supervisory authority, including hiring, transferring, suspending, promoting, managing conduct and performance, discharging, assigning, rewarding, disciplining, and/or approving hours worked of at least 2.0 FTE or equivalent employees
- Serves on various university review committees, working with a wide range of constituencies including the Faculty Senate, Deans and Associate Deans, General Counsel, and University Leadership
UWM Description: The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) is Wisconsin’s second-largest university, with a unique dual mission of access and research to provide high-quality education for students from all backgrounds. UWM is one of 146 top research universities recognized as “R1” by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Along with its main campus in Milwaukee, UWM has branch campuses in Waukesha and Washington County.
UWM celebrates, values and promotes the diverse voices and experiences of its students and employees and our community partners. We believe diversity enriches and strengthens our institution. UWM is committed to providing equitable access to opportunities for students and employees from every background. We aspire to create a campus climate that is welcoming to all. Learn more here: https://uwm.edu/diversity-equity-inclusion/about-dei/
School/College/Division Description:
The Office of Assessment & Institutional Research (OAIR) advances UWM’s mission by transforming complex institutional data into timely, accurate, and actionable insight that supports student success, strategic planning, resource allocation, accreditation, and evidence-based decision-making. Housed in the Division of Academic Affairs, OAIR is the official source for institutional data, reporting, and assessment, serving as a key campus partner in promoting a culture of inquiry, continuous improvement, and data-informed action. This role helps shape UWM’s future by driving evidence-based decisions that directly impact student success and institutional sustainability.
In this role, OAIR delivers enrollment projections, maintains official enrollment and academic data, develops interactive dashboards and analytical reports, administers course evaluations, and supports accreditation and external reporting efforts. The office collaborates with partners across the university, contributes to institutional data governance initiatives, and supplies required data to the UW System. Guided by the Association for Institutional Research’s ethical principles, OAIR plays a central role in advancing UWM’s mission through evidence-based planning and continuous improvement.
Compensation:
$115,000 – $130,000/annually. Salary will be determined by finalist's experience, training, education, and equity-based factors.
Required Qualifications:
Master’s degree (or equivalent combination of education and relevant experience).
At least six years of progressive experience in institutional research, analytics, policy analysis, assessment, or related fields.
Demonstrated experience extracting, analyzing, and interpreting data from large, complex datasets to inform evidence-based decision-making.
Experience supervising professional staff.
Experience developing data visualizations or dashboards using tools such as Power BI, Tableau, or similar.
Experience communicating analytical findings to non-technical audiences, including senior leadership, to support strategic planning and student success.
Experience working in institutional research or higher education assessment setting, contributing to initiatives that shape the future of the institution through data-driven insights and continuous improvement.
Preferred Qualifications:
Deep knowledge of issues facing public urban research universities.
Experience with student success research, enrollment modeling, and academic program assessment.
Advanced expertise with SQL, Python, R, SAS, or data-manipulation tools.
Proficiency designing and deploying dashboards in Power BI and/or similar BI platforms.
Demonstrated success improving data governance, quality, or cross-unit data alignment.
Experience with data warehousing concepts, semantic modeling, and automation of data workflows.
Strong understanding of accreditation processes, assessment of student learning, and program review.
Ability to lead collaborative processes and foster shared ownership in decentralized environments.
Experience leveraging modern technologies—including automation, API pipelines, and responsible AI applications—to enhance efficiency, data quality, and institutional insight.
Experience working within a R1 research university environment.
Familiarity with QS and other international ranking methodologies and their implications for institutional strategy.
Evidence of excellent organizational, communication, and change-management skills.
How to Apply:
Applicants will be expected to provide:
A cover letter that addresses the candidate’s professional level work experience as relates to all required and preferred qualifications.
A Resume
Finalist candidate(s) being considered for hire will be required to provide three professional/supervisor references through an external reference checking tool. References will not be contacted prior to candidates being notified.
Note: Applicants must complete all required fields and attach all required documents prior to submitting the online application to ensure full consideration. Additional documents submitted aside from a cover letter and resume/CV will not be considered.
In instances where the Search and Screen Committee is unable to ascertain from the candidates’ application materials whether they meet any of the qualifications, they may be evaluated as not meeting such qualifications.
Apply electronically by the application deadline date of February 19, 2026. Questions about this position should be directed to Jackson Prowse at prowse@uwm.edu.
Reasonable Accommodations
Pursuant to university policy, UWM provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities who are employees or applicants for employment. Employment opportunities will not be denied because of the need to make reasonable accommodations for a qualified individual with a disability. If you need assistance or accommodation in applying because of a disability, please contact uwm-jobs@uwm.edu or 414-229-4463. This job announcement and other material on this site will be made available in alternate formats upon request to an individual with a disability.
Confidentiality of Applicant Materials
UWM is a State agency and subject to Wisconsin’s Open Records Law. UWM will not, however, reveal the identities of applicants who request confidentiality in writing except as may be required by Wisconsin’s Open Records law. In certain circumstances, the identities of “final candidates” and/or the identity of the appointed applicant must be revealed upon request.
CBC and Reference Check Policy
Employment will require a criminal background check. UWM takes the prevention of sexual misconduct seriously. As such, you and your references will be required to answer questions regarding any past findings of sexual violence and sexual harassment or any pending allegations of sexual violence or sexual harassment.
Annual Security and Fire Safety Report (Clery Act)
For the UWM Annual Security and Fire Safety Reports (i.e., Clery Report), which includes statistics about reported crimes and information about campus security policies, see http://www.cleryact.uwm.edu/, or call UWM’s Dean of Students Office, Student Union 345 at (414) 229-4632 for a paper copy.
Employment Authorization
In compliance with federal law, all persons at the time of their start date will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.
UW is an Equal Opportunity Employer
Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, pregnancy, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other bases protected by applicable federal or State law and UW System policies. We are committed to building a workforce that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills, and encourage all qualified individuals to apply.