UF College of Nursing and UF Health Nurse Administrative Executive Fellowship

University of Florida•Gainesville, FL

About The Position

The Nurse Administrative Executive Fellowship is a two-year immersive experience for a doctorally prepared nurse seeking leadership roles across academic nursing and health system administration. The Fellow will receive direct mentorship and shadowing opportunities with Dr. Shakira Henderson, Dean of the University of Florida College of Nursing and System Chief Nurse Executive of UF Health. The experience provides exposure to executive strategy, academic innovation, workforce development, and healthcare innovation across an academic health system. The fellowship combines executive mentorship, structured rotational learning, project leadership, and participation in enterprise-level initiatives across the College of Nursing and UF Health. Learning areas include academic operations, student and faculty success, clinical operations, finance, workforce strategy, research administration, operational excellence, and strategic program implementation. The Fellow will participate in executive leadership meetings, governance activities, strategic planning, and interdisciplinary collaborations, while leading projects aligned with College of Nursing strategic priorities. The fellowship culminates in completing enterprise-level initiatives intended to improve organizational outcomes, advance nursing leadership, and strengthen academic-practice partnerships. The Fellow will gain leadership experience through executive shadowing, work with senior nursing leaders and administrative stakeholders, and contribute to strategic discussions, policy development, organizational planning, and change management. Rotational learning includes assessing operations, analyzing workflow efficiency, supporting resource allocation and staffing-model evaluation, and identifying improvements to patient care and academic services. Project work may address quality improvement, patient safety, workforce management, accreditation readiness, or academic program support. The Fellow will also gain exposure to budgeting, financial performance, compliance, accreditation, and policy development, and collaborate with departments across the university and health system. Professional development includes structured leadership programming, executive mentoring, training, workshops, seminars, leadership retreats, and networking opportunities. The position may also involve professional organizations, conferences, research, or administrative scholarship activities.

Requirements

Master's degree in an appropriate area, earned before starting the program, except where a residency or fellowship requires otherwise.
Demonstrated leadership skills and a strong interest in academic healthcare administration.
Excellent communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
Ability to work collaboratively in a fast-paced environment.

Nice To Haves

Preferred master's degree such as an MSN, MHA, MPH, or MBA with a healthcare focus.
Doctoral degree in nursing.
One to two years of clinical nursing experience preferred.
Previous involvement in healthcare administration, academia, quality improvement, or leadership initiatives.
Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and healthcare management software.

Responsibilities

Participate in executive leadership experiences, mentorship, and shadowing with the Dean of the College of Nursing and System Chief Nurse Executive.
Work with senior nursing leadership, executive teams, and administrative stakeholders to develop an understanding of healthcare and academic leadership functions.
Participate in leadership meetings and strategic discussions concerning hospital administration and College of Nursing initiatives.
Assist with developing and evaluating policies and support organizational planning and change management efforts.
Participate in rotational learning across College of Nursing and UF Health operational areas.
Assess and help optimize daily operations in clinical and academic settings, including workflow efficiency, resource allocation, staffing models, patient care delivery, and academic services.
Collaborate with department directors, clinical managers, and administrative units to streamline processes, improve service quality, and align operations with institutional priorities.
Participate in rounding, review throughput metrics, map workflows, and support operational readiness activities as needed.
Lead and support high-priority strategic projects aligned with institutional goals, potentially involving quality improvement, patient safety, workforce management, accreditation readiness, or academic program support.
Develop project scopes, timelines, and deliverables; coordinate stakeholders; facilitate meetings; and monitor progress.
Prepare reports, dashboards, and presentations summarizing project outcomes and recommendations.
Participate in budget planning cycles, analyze financial performance metrics, review expense reports, and learn cost-containment and revenue-optimization techniques.
Assist leaders in evaluating the financial impact of operational changes, program development, or workflow redesign.
Support nursing and academic leadership in meeting state, federal, accreditation, and institutional requirements.
Review policies and procedures, support audit preparation, assist with accreditation documentation, and participate in compliance training and internal assessments.
Contribute to drafting or revising policies to reflect updated standards or organizational changes.
Collaborate with departments across the institution through shadowing, meetings, and cross-departmental projects.
Participate in leadership development programming, workshops, seminars, retreats, networking, and mentoring activities.
Engage in professional organizations, conferences, research, or administrative scholarship activities as opportunities arise.