Associate Professor (V000201)(Re-Advert) at North West University

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Research and Community involvement

• Curriculum Development Research
• Conduct ongoing research on industry trends, technological advancements, and global business needs to inform curriculum updates and module design.
• Explore and integrate innovative teaching methodologies, such as gamification, simulation-based learning, and adaptive learning systems, into commerce education.
• Collaborate with professional and statutory bodies to ensure compliance with industry standards and academic excellence.

Interdisciplinary Collaboration

• Partner with other NWU faculties, such as Health Sciences and Engineering, to align strategies for education innovation and share best practices.
• Foster international research collaborations, focusing on global trends in commerce education and cross-cultural business education.

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)

• Promote and contribute to the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning by publishing research on innovative pedagogies, curriculum transformation, and student success in commerce education.
• Support lecturers in conducting action research to improve their teaching practices and student outcomes.

 Industry Partnerships

• Establish and maintain relationships with industry partners to ensure curricula reflect current and future workforce needs.
• Organise collaborative community-based learning projects and real-world case studies for students enhancing their practical skills and societal impact.

Professional Development

• Work with the Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL) and other stakeholders to design professional development programs for lecturers, ensuring they remain current with industry trends and teaching innovations.
• Facilitate workshops and training sessions focusing on the development of essential soft skills like leadership, communication, and teamwork for both staff and students.

Student-Centric Initiatives

• Support community outreach initiatives to involve students in real-world problem-solving scenarios, particularly in underrepresented and underserved communities.
• Develop programs that promote entrepreneurship, innovation, and ethical business practices through partnerships with local businesses and organisations.

Global and Ethical Perspectives

• Promote awareness and understanding of global and ethical business practices within the community, preparing students for international career opportunities.
• Integrate community voices and local industry input into the development of curricula to reflect both global standards and local relevance.
• Develop and maintain strategic and productive partnerships, connections, and relationships with other academics
• in the faculty, as well as people, groups, and divisions in the NWU, and on local, national, and international levels.
• Actively initiate and participate in Scholarship of Teaching and Learning research (SoTL), and other T&L research opportunities available through e.g., CTL including interdisciplinary, cross-faculty and cross-university opportunities.
• Work effectively with colleagues in the CPCE post-graduate programme and projects to enhance the quantity and quality of research outputs.

Leadership, management and service to the University

• Participate in opportunities to serve the faculty and the university by serving on CPCE committees, faculty committees and task teams, and where needed, represent the F-EMS on NWU committees and task teams.
• Actively participate in academic organisations relevant to Higher Education and Economic and Management Science Education to expand the academic network and serve the larger community in these fields.
• Demonstrate excellent project management skills in implementing NWU and F-EMS strategic priority projects.
• Build capacity in F-EMs to enlarge the SoTL footprint in all schools.

Social responsiveness

• Maintain involvement in community service as a scholarly practice through which general higher education knowledge and skills are applied to consequential problems of teaching and learning in South Africa and the world beyond the University.
• Communicate appropriately and effectively with internal and external (community) role players.
• Embrace engaged scholarship involving academic staff, civic engagement and professional engagement involving staff using their professional expertise.
• Execute activities by which commerce education skills and knowledge are made relevant to the community.

Minimum requirements

• A relevant PhD (NQF Level 10).
• At least five (5) years of teaching and learning experience within an academic and research environment at a Higher Education Institution (HEI).
• A minimum of five (5) years of lecturing experience in higher education, covering both theoretical and practical components, delivered via face-to-face, blended/hybrid, and online modalities.
• A minimum of five (5) years of experience in the use, development, and management of Learning Management Systems (LMS), online platforms, and digital assessment technologies.
• Demonstrated commitment to continuous professional development, reflecting a clear trajectory of growth and improvement as an effective higher education lecturer.

ADDED ADVANTAGES AND PREFERENCES: 

• A minimum of three (3) years experience in service delivery in the field of faculty development.
• A minimum of three (3) years experience engaging with academics’ development and welfare as university lectures.
• A track record of research activity, including refereed publications and postgraduate student supervision.
• Ability to write comprehensive high-level reports on T-L & Assessment and Commerce Education.
• Membership with societies/councils in the relevant fields of higher education and education research (for example HELTASA, SAAHE, ICDE).