King's College London

THIS ROLE IS OPEN TO INTERNAL APPLICANTS ONLY

About us:

The King's Sanctuary Programme is a sector-leading initiative that embeds and delivers the university’s Vision 2029 by bringing together education, research and impact to tackle the pressing global challenge of forced displacement, which affects more than 100 million people worldwide. The programme seeks to develop positive opportunities for forcibly displaced students and academics in the UK and elsewhere; enhance understanding of forced displacement among the King’s community; and collaborate across the Higher Education sector to create systemic change.

In recognition of its ongoing work to ensure that the University is a place of safety, solidarity and empowerment for people who have been forcibly displaced from their home countries, King’s was awarded status as a University of Sanctuary in 2024.

King’s Sanctuary Programme is based within International, Engagement & Service (IES), the King’s Directorate that brings together the expertise of teams engaging with communities and partners locally, nationally and globally. It provides strategic leadership for the university’s engagement at home and abroad with IES teams leading a portfolio of innovative programmes that generate and measure impact and serve the communities we work with and for. King’ Sanctuary Programme includes the Sanctuary Hub, which focuses on developing research and impact on forced displacement and Higher Education.

About the Role:

​​King’s Sanctuary Programme is seeking a new Academic Director to provide academic and strategic leadership for the Sanctuary Programme. The Academic Director will be an established academic leader with expertise on forced displacement, borders and/or sanctuary. Through this role, the Academic Director will take a One King’s Impact approach - integrating education, research and service, facilitating the development of multi-disciplinary approaches, and enabling large-scale impact delivery in collaboration with external communities and partners.

We are seeking a dynamic leader to help develop a research and impact strategy for King’s Sanctuary Programme, working with colleagues across King’s, and with well-established experience in developing partnerships with a variety of stakeholders and organisations. Current partners include the UNHCR, UK government, Council for At-Risk Academics, Refugee Education UK, and the Higher Education Humanitarian Group. The post holder will develop and oversee the Sanctuary Programme, including strategy and research, in to developing the Sanctuary Hub, a hub for researchers on forced migration across King’s.

If you have any questions, please contact Dr Leonie Ansems de Vries (Director of the Sanctuary Programme): leonie.ansemsdevries@kcl.ac.uk and Jim Collins (Director of Strategy & Operations, International, Engagement and Service).

This appointment will be subject to approval from the relevant Head of Department.

This post is available as a 40% buyout for a fixed term of three years. This is a part time post (14 hours per week), and you will be offered a fixed term contract until 31/08/2028.

About you:

To be successful in this role, we are looking for candidates to have the following skills and experience:

Essential criteria

1. ​PHD qualification in relevant discipline
2. Proven track record of interdisciplinary research on forced displacement, borders and/or sanctuary.
3. Significant experience in leadership in academic administration.
4. Experience of nurturing, building and maintaining effective internal and external partnerships.
5. Experience in developing and leading multidisciplinary research projects comprising academic and professional service members, including supervision of PhD students and postdoctoral fellows.
6. Experience in securing research grant income and/or philanthropic funding.
7. Demonstrable commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.
8. Demonstrable capability to develop a research and impact strategy working with colleagues across King’s, and in collaboration with our partners.

Downloading a copy of our Job Description

Full details of the role and the skills, knowledge and experience required can be found in the Job Description document, provided at the bottom of the next page after you click “Apply Now”. This document will provide information of what criteria will be assessed at each stage of the recruitment process.

Further Information:

We pride ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming. We embrace diversity and want everyone to feel that they belong and are connected to others in our community.

We are committed to working with our staff and unions on these and other issues, to continue to support our people and to develop a diverse and inclusive culture at King's.

We ask all candidates to submit a copy of their CV, and a supporting statement, detailing how they meet the essential criteria listed in the advert. If we receive a strong field of candidates, we may use the desirable criteria to choose our final shortlist, so please include your evidence against these where possible.

To find out how our managers will review your application, please take a look at our ‘How we Recruit’  pages.

We are able to offer sponsorship for candidates who do not currently possess the right to work in the UK.