Vice Principal - Education, Skills & Learner Success
Edinburgh
Permanent: 35 hours per week
Salary: £102,844 - £130,542
www.aspenpeople.co.uk/microsite/sruc-vp/
About Us
SRUC is a specialist higher education institution delivering tertiary education, research and consultancy. With five main campuses across Scotland and a wider network of farms, consulting offices, research centres and veterinary surveillance centres, we connect education, science, skills and industry to support rural and land-based sectors. Our purpose is to advance education, research and environmental protection and improvement, in Scotland and internationally. We are working towards becoming Scotland’s Enterprise University — bringing research, skills and business together to create new opportunities and support a fair, sustainable economy.
About the Role
As SRUC’s senior education leader and a member of the Executive Leadership Team, you will shape and deliver our education, skills and student experience agenda. You will lead a future-focused tertiary portfolio, drive organisational, cultural and technological transformation, and champion educational quality, innovation and continuous improvement. Putting students at the centre, you will strengthen engagement, belonging and wellbeing, and improve retention, progression and outcomes while ensuring equitable opportunities for every learner. Working across SRUC and with employers, universities, government, funding bodies and sector partners, you will connect education with research and innovation, influence policy and workforce priorities, and raise SRUC’s profile and impact nationally and internationally.
About You
You are an inclusive, inspirational senior academic leader with a strong record of leading education and academic strategy in a large, complex tertiary, higher or further education environment. Educated to PhD level in a related field, with experience operating at senior professorial level and a recognised record of academic achievement, you bring significant experience of educational quality, learner success, portfolio development and organisational change. You can turn strategy into measurable outcomes, use evidence to drive improvement, and build influential partnerships across academic, industry and public-sector communities. You will bring the credibility to represent an institution at senior level, experience of influencing policy, funding or sector developments, and knowledge of further and higher education funding systems. Collaborative, resilient and strategic, you are committed to inclusion, academic excellence and helping learners thrive.
Application process
For a confidential discussion, please contact the following at Aspen People: Donogh O’Brien - 07795 812 574 Katharine Price -07899 791 508 or Gillian Blackadder - 07475 035 621. The office number is 0141 212 7555
To apply, please visit www.aspenpeople.co.uk/microsite/sruc-vp/ for full information and to upload your CV and cover letter (as one document).
Closing date for applications: Monday 16th November 2026
First stage virtual interviews Thursday 3rd December (full day) and Friday 4th December (afternoon only).
Final in person interviews Wednesday 9th and Thursday 10th December 2026.
Please can you note any annual leave or prior commitments you have planned during this time, on your application.