Head of Department – Pre-Admissions (SmartApply)

Global University Systems is an international education group that empowers students to transform their lives through education. We believe education drives careers, lives, and society forward, enabling a brighter future for all. Our network of 30 institutions offers the broadest range of industry-relevant skills through inclusive, accessible, and digital-first learning. We currently educate around 122,000 students on campuses worldwide and have 20M+ unique subscribers to our courses. Our global ecosystem powers accessible digital learning and academic achievement.

Position:

The Head of Department – Pre-Admissions (SmartApply) leads the global SmartApply function that supports multiple universities within the GUS network. The role ensures that all student applications undergo accurate validation in line with institution-specific SOPs before submission to university admissions teams.

This position oversees a multi-country, multi-institution operation responsible for managing large volumes of applications, ensuring compliance with institutional and regulatory requirements, and maintaining high levels of accuracy and turnaround time.

The HOD serves as a strategic link between University Admissions Teams, Business Development, Technology, and Compliance, ensuring seamless coordination, transparent reporting, and continuous improvement of the SmartApply process.

Job Purpose

To lead, standardize, and continuously enhance the Pre-Admissions (SmartApply) function across multiple institutions and markets (UK, Canada, Germany, and US). The role ensures adherence to admission SOPs, effective stakeholder communication, issue resolution, and technology-enabled efficiency.

The HOD is accountable for process governance, operational delivery, reporting, people leadership, and institutional relationship management, while championing transparency and data-driven decision-making.

Key Responsibilities:

Operational Leadership:

Oversee SmartApply operations across all supported institutions; ensure adherence to SOPs and process SLAs; establish performance metrics and review mechanisms for accuracy, TAT, and quality.

Stakeholder Management

Maintain regular engagement with University Admissions, Business Development, and Partner Support teams; facilitate periodic performance reviews and process updates; act as the escalation point for complex cases and technology dependencies.

Admissions Expertise

Ensure SmartApply teams possess up-to-date knowledge of UK, Canada, Germany, and US admission requirements; facilitate training and standardization of institutional rules across geographies.

Technology Monitoring & Reporting

Coordinate with Product and Tech teams to identify, report, and track SmartApply system issues; provide functional feedback to improve user experience and data integrity.

Process Improvement

Identify process gaps and inefficiencies; lead initiatives to optimize workflows, documentation, and inter-team collaboration; propose automation and analytics enhancements.

University Onboarding

Lead onboarding of new universities to the SmartApply ecosystem; define validation rules, setup workflows, train teams, and ensure alignment with institutional SLAs.

People Leadership

Manage and mentor large, cross-functional teams across jurisdictions; drive engagement, accountability, and continuous skill development within the department.

Compliance & Transparency

Ensure adherence to institutional guidelines, data privacy, and internal QA standards; promote transparency through structured reporting and dashboards.

Reporting & Analytics

Build and maintain Power BI or CRM-based reports covering productivity, quality, and institution-level insights; present periodic updates to leadership and university stakeholders.

Requirements:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Business Administration, Education Management, or related field.
• 10+ years in pre-admissions or higher education operations, with at least 5 years in a leadership capacity managing multi-institution or cross-country teams.
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  Experience in process governance, stakeholder communication, and system implementation within education or ITES sectors.
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  Exposure to large-scale university onboarding and change management initiatives preferred.
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  Certifications in Operations Management, Business Process Management, or Project Leadership are desirable.
• Strong command of international higher education admission systems and documentation requirements (UK, US, Canada, Germany).
• Excellent understanding of SOP design, workflow management, and technology-enabled operations.
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  Strategic communication and stakeholder management across multiple time zones.
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  Analytical mindset with proficiency in MS Office, Power BI, Salesforce CRM, and data visualization tools.
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  Proven ability to manage large, multi-tiered teams and deliver against aggressive SLAs.

Other information:

Please note this position is only available on our Consultancy agreement.

We acknowledge receipt of your resume for a position at Global University Systems and sincerely appreciate your interest in our company.

We will screen all applicant CVs and select the candidates whose qualifications and experience meet our requirements. Please note due to the high volume of applications we will only contact you if you are selected to continue for the next stage of the recruitment process. We wish you every success.

GUS is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, or religion or belief.