Associate Director, Research Development Services

Texas A&M University System • College Station, TX

10d • Onsite

About The Position

Texas A&M University’s Research Development Services (RDS), within the Division of Research, advances research capacity and competitiveness across the university. RDS partners with faculty, researchers, and stakeholders to support strategic research initiatives, secure external funding, and develop high-impact proposals through collaborative expertise, professional development, proposal support, and innovative research services.

The Associate Director is a leadership role responsible for advancing the university’s research mission through faculty training and proposal development programs, strategic guidance on funding opportunities, campus outreach and engagement, and oversight of RDS programs and staff. The role partners with faculty, academic leaders, and research stakeholders to strengthen grant competitiveness, foster interdisciplinary collaborations, support professional development, and advance institutional research success.

The position organizes training and proposal-development services, contributes to departmental strategy, oversees programs and operational activities, manages support services and staff, and ensures compliance with applicable standards and policies. The position is based in College Station, Texas, and salary is commensurate with experience.

Requirements

• Master’s degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Eight years of related experience in research development, professional development, grant writing, or research administration in higher education.
• Ability to multitask and work cooperatively with others.

Nice To Haves

• Certified Research Administrator (CRA) credential or active involvement in NORDP.
• Direct experience establishing faculty development programs and team science facilitation initiatives.
• Experience using research intelligence and analytics tools such as Academic Analytics, Elsevier SciVal, or Clarivate Web of Science.
• Demonstrated track record of designing, delivering, and evaluating long-term faculty grant-writing cohort programs, such as NSF CAREER or NIH Early-Stage Investigator initiatives.
• Active participation in national research development organizations, such as NORDP committee leadership, conference presentations, or formal mentoring programs.

Responsibilities

• Organize and host professional and proposal development training programs for faculty and other users.
• Guide and support researchers in proposal development.
• Develop and coordinate documentation provided to customers.
• Participate in leadership training and professional development.
• Serve on the departmental leadership team and assist in developing research development strategies.
• Develop strategic plans and set goals for assigned programs in collaboration with administration.
• Establish performance goals and measures to evaluate areas of responsibility.
• Assist in formulating and implementing policies and procedures.
• Provide departmental leadership in specific areas of expertise.
• Monitor national trends and seek information relevant to faculty professional development.
• Participate in planning, directing, and coordinating program operations.
• Develop, implement, and oversee programming for various services.
• Manage and direct HelpDesk and user support services.
• Collect and analyze data for reporting and progress tracking.
• Maintain program activity records and provide progress reports to leadership.
• Oversee personnel issues for supervised employees.
• Develop program budgets based on needs and funding availability.
• Supervise and direct staff and project-team activities.
• Develop and execute a proactive, campus-wide outreach strategy, including presentations, digital toolkits, and targeted communications.
• Cultivate partnerships with Deans, department chairs, and faculty leaders to support equitable access to proposal development resources.
• Facilitate interdisciplinary networking and ideation sessions for large-scale, multi-investigator funding opportunities.
• Integrate RDS resources into new faculty onboarding and establish feedback mechanisms to adapt services to campus research needs.
• Ensure compliance with unit, department, and government standards, policies, and procedures.
• Enforce ethical, regulatory, and performance standards.

Benefits

• Medical, prescription drug, dental, vision, life and AD&D, and long-term disability insurance; Texas A&M contributes to employee health and basic life premiums.
• Flexible spending accounts.
• 12–15 days of annual paid holidays.
• Up to eight hours of paid sick leave and at least eight hours of paid vacation each month.
• Automatic enrollment in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.
• Free exercise programs and release time for health and wellness.
• Free LinkedIn Learning training, webinars, and limited financial support for conferences, workshops, and other professional development.
• Educational release time and tuition assistance for completing a degree while employed by Texas A&M.
• Living Well employee wellness program.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Director