The Dean's Office within the Faculty of Graduate Studies is currently seeking a Full-time Limited Term Graduate Educational Development Specialist for approximately 15 months.

The Faculty of Graduate Studies (FGS) is the home Faculty for approximately 8000 graduate students registered in over 80 graduate programs across the University of Calgary and is a key service and resource hub for all aspects of the graduate student experience from application to convocation. FGS works in close partnership with graduate education leaders, faculty, and staff from the teaching faculties and central student service units to deliver world-class graduate education and a positive well-rounded student experience. This position will support the development of a new required course for all incoming graduate students.

In support of UCalgary¿s vision to enhance the student experience, the Faculty of Graduate Studies offers online learning modules on topics, including but not limited to Orientation, Academic Integrity and Research Ethics, to help graduate students with onboarding to graduate life as they begin their graduate journey, and beyond. This position will support the development, delivery and assessment of a new required course for all graduate students. Initial modules of the course are in development (Indigenous Engagement, Graduate School at UCalgary, Professional Skills, and Academic Integrity and Ethics) and will be piloted in January 2026. This position will finalize the development of existing modules and lead the development of additional modules (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Accessibility, and Health & Wellbeing). They will also support the delivery and assessment of the course, including addition of any new topics as deemed necessary for graduate student success and alignment with institutional priorities.

This position reports to the Senior Manager, Graduate Student Journey, Faculty of Graduate Studies, and will work collaboratively with multiple members of the campus community. It requires an experienced and dynamic person who understands the complexities of the graduate student journey experienced by various groups (e.g. course-based, thesis-based, international, etc.) across all graduate programs.

Most work is conducted during business hours of 8:30 am - 4:30 pm, however some availability outside of these hours is anticipated due to the role accountabilities.

Summary of Key Responsibilities (job functions include but are not limited to):

Develop an approved plan, and subsequently design, develop and pilot a required graduate onboarding course to support all incoming graduate students each term. This position will work collaboratively to:

• Understand and analyze the needs of UCalgary¿s diverse cohort of graduate students (e.g. course-based/thesis-based, domestic/permanent resident/international, Masters/PhD) across all graduate programs.
• Conduct national and local, environmental scans, reviewing national graduate onboarding supports and courses, incorporating learnings into proposed course content and design.
• Coordinate input and feedback on course topics and materials from the Faculty of Graduate Studies team, various Campus Partners (e.g. Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning, Office of Indigenous Engagement, International Student Services, Sexual and Gender Based Violence Prevention and Support Office, Life Design Hub, etc.) and the Graduate Education Community including graduate program staff, academic staff, and campus leaders.
• Coordinate input and feedback at strategic points in the course development cycle from a diverse cross-section of graduate students.
• Connect with people and campus groups (e.g. Taylor Institute for Teaching and Learning, International Student Services) to learn and assess University of Calgary best practices in program design and delivery.
• Develop a proposal and, upon approval, design a high quality, evidence-informed online course to cover essential foundations for the UCalgary graduate student experience.
• Incorporate the inclusion of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and EDIA best practices to the development of the required course and any associate learning modules.
• Ensure coordination with other projects that are supporting graduate student onboarding (e.g. START STRONG Modules) and the graduate journey (GRADHub).
• Lead the implementation and delivery of the pilot course (estimated, Winter 2026).
• Lead focus groups and consultation processes to support development and refinement of the full graduate course before and during pilot launch.
• Lead the process to obtain approvals for this to be a required, calendarized graduate course.
• Evaluate the impact and success of the course and associated materials, with a focus on continuous improvement, using appropriate evaluative methods.
• Develop online and digital/print-based resources and communications plans to support the onboarding course.
• As opportunity allows, search out local and national opportunities to promote learning and sharing of best practices within higher education (e.g. Graduate and Postdoctoral Development Network, GPDN, Community of Practice).

Qualifications / Requirements:

• Master¿s degree is required, PhD is preferred.
• In depth knowledge of University of Calgary culture, context, and strategic plans and priorities.
• Demonstrated understanding of the graduate student journey both as a student, and through work, volunteer, and/or teaching and learning, including lived experiences with graduate students from a wide variety of programs at different stages of the journey.
• Understanding of the policies and processes around structure and approvals for a graduate course at UCalgary.
• Understanding of the nature and content of onboarding and academic citizenship offerings for graduate students across Canada¿s U15 universities is required, including previous research into trends and development in this area.
• Knowledge of professional skills training within the graduate student context.
• Experience teaching in online contexts with demonstrated scholarly expertise in online learning and learning technology platforms (e.g. D2L, Zoom, TopHat).
• Experience in designing, developing and leading educational programs and courses.
• Experience producing and evaluating materials and providing curriculum support for online learning that includes attention to pedagogical theories, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (EDIA), universal design for learning (UDL), evidence-informed learning and instructional design practices in an interdisciplinary university context.
• Teaching and/or coaching experience; teaching experience in higher education is strongly valued.
• Demonstration of strong research skills.
• Demonstrated skills in project facilitation with multiple stakeholders and short timelines, focus groups, and surveys.
• Strong written and oral communication and presentation skills, including an ability to summarize technical information to a non-technical and/or diverse audience.
• Demonstrated commitment to research-informed approaches to teaching and learning.
• Demonstrated excellence in quickly understanding a project, extrapolating its needs, and proposing solutions and evaluating effectiveness.
• Proven record of success in working in a fast-paced environment managing multiple priorities and meeting deadlines.
• Results oriented, showing initiative and creativity to identify areas for improvement and to implement potential solutions.
• High level of personal effectiveness and strong organizational skills, together with the ability to work to deadlines while managing multiple tasks.