Associate Dean for Strategic Enrollment Management and Analytics (JMU Only)

James Madison University•Harrisonburg, VA

About The Position

James Madison University invites applications for the Associate Dean for Strategic Enrollment Management and Analytics in The Graduate School. This is a 12-month, full-time, tenure-track instructional faculty appointment at the rank of Associate Professor. The Associate Dean reports to the Dean of The Graduate School and serves on its senior leadership team, advancing data-informed graduate education strategy and leading key graduate enrollment functions. The position provides strategic and operational leadership in graduate enrollment management, institutional analytics, graduate marketing and recruitment, and academic program portfolio analysis and development. It supervises professional staff and functions related to recruitment, admissions, digital marketing, matriculation, and domicile determinations. The Associate Dean collaborates with academic colleges, graduate program directors, faculty, and university partners to improve enrollment outcomes, strengthen program quality and sustainability, and support evidence-based decision-making. The successful candidate will contribute to The Graduate School’s strategic priorities and relevant components of JMU’s strategic plan through institutional analysis, identification of opportunities, strategic planning, and assessment of outcomes. The role combines strategic analysis and innovation with direct responsibility for assigned enrollment operations and professional staff.

Requirements

Earned Ph.D. or equivalent research doctorate from an accredited institution.
Significant leadership experience in graduate education, graduate enrollment management, or related academic administration.
Demonstrated experience developing, launching, evaluating, or substantially redesigning graduate academic programs, and familiarity with curriculum development and approval processes.
Demonstrated expertise in quantitative analysis, enrollment forecasting, and institutional analytics, including analysis of complex datasets and application of findings to strategic decision-making.
Demonstrated knowledge of graduate enrollment management, including recruitment, admissions, matriculation, and yield across campus-based and online programs.
Demonstrated experience supervising professional staff and managing administrative functions, including performance management and accountability.
Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively across academic and administrative units in complex institutional environments.
Excellent written, oral, analytical, and interpersonal communication skills, including ability to communicate complex analytical findings to varied audiences.
Ability to evaluate complex graduate education challenges analytically, manage enrollment functions effectively, and translate findings into enrollment strategies, program development opportunities, and informed institutional decisions.
Applicants must be current JMU employees because this is a JMU-only recruitment.

Nice To Haves

Experience with graduate enrollment management in higher education, including international recruitment, admissions operations, and domicile or residency determinations.
Experience with CRM systems, digital marketing platforms, graduate recruitment technologies, and enrollment analytics.
Advanced experience with predictive analytics, statistical modeling, institutional research, data visualization, or decision-support systems, including proficiency with R, STATA, Python, SQL, Tableau, Power BI, or comparable platforms.
Experience developing graduate enrollment financial models, including tuition revenue projections, enrollment scenarios, program capacity, and financial sustainability analyses.
Experience conducting graduate program market assessments, feasibility studies, competitor analyses, and academic program portfolio reviews.
Experience developing innovative graduate academic programs, including interdisciplinary, cross-college, online, hybrid, accelerated, or externally partnered programs.
Knowledge of emerging trends and practices in graduate education, including enrollment management, digital recruitment, international education, online learning, and workforce demand.
Demonstrated experience using institutional data and market intelligence to inform graduate enrollment growth, academic program innovation, and strategic decision-making.

Responsibilities

Collaborate with the Dean to advance Graduate School strategic priorities, including relevant elements of the GRAD Promise, and conduct environmental scans, benchmarking, and strategic analyses to identify opportunities and challenges.
Lead graduate enrollment planning and develop data-informed strategies for domestic and international recruitment, admissions, matriculation, yield, and enrollment forecasting.
Oversee assigned enrollment functions to ensure effective, consistent, and student-centered practices.
Direct graduate marketing and recruitment strategies using market research, digital analytics, enrollment funnel analysis, and campaign effectiveness and return-on-investment measures.
Apply quantitative methods, predictive modeling, and institutional data analysis to evaluate enrollment trends, program performance, institutional capacity, and strategic opportunities.
Collaborate with Institutional Research and other partners to develop dashboards, forecasts, and decision-support tools.
Analyze market demand, institutional strengths, competitive positioning, and program sustainability to identify opportunities for new or redesigned graduate degrees and certificates.
Collaborate with academic units on graduate program feasibility, development, approval, implementation, and evaluation across online, hybrid, and campus-based formats.
Direct and supervise Graduate School recruitment, marketing, admissions, transcript review, matriculation, and domicile functions, including assigned professional staff.
Establish operational priorities, performance expectations, and accountability measures; support staff development; and ensure compliance with university policies and Commonwealth requirements.
Work with academic colleges, graduate program directors, faculty, and university administrative partners to strengthen graduate education planning, communicate analytical findings, and support informed decision-making.