Deputy Director of Residential Life / Head of Boarding (Campus)

UWCSEA is seeking Deputy Directors of Residential Life to join us in April 2025. Candidates who are available from August 2025 will also be considered.

We are currently seeking two Deputy Directors of Residential Life - one for each of our campuses, Dover Campus and East Campus. The Deputy Director of Residential Life (Campus) oversees operational and pastoral matters for the campus boarding community, reporting to the Director of Residential Life (College) and Head of Campus on each campus. They will maintain and enhance our strong and supportive residential culture of 190 students (Dover) / 170 students (East) from grades 8 to 12, leading a campus team of residential houseparents, non-residential assistant houseparents and boarding support staff. The Deputy Director of Residential Life will work with other pastoral, academic and support teams across the College to ensure high standards of care for our residential students. The Deputy Director of Residential Life will be a member of the extended Campus Leadership Team as well as act as one of the Designated Safeguarding Leads for the boarding students.

This is an exciting time to join the residential communities on Dover and East campuses as they build on strong foundations and innovate in the areas of best practice in duty of care, pastoral care and transitions care for our boarding communities. The initial contract is for a three-year period, subject to review of the College residential life structure and organisation. This is a non-teaching role.

Main Responsibilities

• Work with the Director of Residential Life (College) and the Head of Campus to promote and implement the UWC Mission and Values across the boarding community through the residential life programme
• Work with the Director of Residential Life (College) and the Deputy Director of Residential Life on the other campus to develop and implement boarding policies, protocols and a residential life programme to ensure the highest standards of safeguarding, pastoral care and duty of care in a Singapore and UWC context within the strategy and policies of the College
• Oversee the day-to-day operations of the boarding houses and the interactions with the wider College community
• Oversee the pastoral support programmes in place for boarding students and their families
• Lead and mentor a team of boarding staff, fostering a collaborative culture based on trust and respect
• Foster a positive community culture for boarding students, staff and their families
• Ensure the highest standards of food provision, medical provision, safety and safeguarding for the boarding community, working with the relevant College Departments and service providers in this regard
• Work with the academic teams in the College to provide an integrated and supportive academic and pastoral experience for students resident on campus
• Carry out supervisory and pastoral duties according to the duty roster as appropriate
• Assist with any other duties, tasks or jobs with similar levels of responsibility and complexity to the assigned job grade as may be reasonably requested by the line manager and/or the College

This list of responsibilities is not intended to be exhaustive but to highlight a number of the major responsibilities of the post.

Person Specifications

Qualifications

• A tertiary qualification in a field related to Boarding, Education or Counselling is required. If a candidate has a tertiary qualification in another area, s/he should have worked in Boarding in a position of leadership for at least three years.
• All candidates should have a valid first aid certificate and a boarding “Duty of Care” certification; however, these can be obtained within the first three months of employment.

Experience

• All candidates should have worked in Boarding / residential communities for at least 5 years with at least 3 years experience of leading teams in a residential or educational setting
• Demonstrated staff and student leadership and a record of success in leading young people and colleagues
• Demonstrated success in providing pastoral care for students in a residential environment
• Demonstrated success in working with adolescents and their families
• Demonstrated success in working in a diverse community, including students from African, Central/South American and Asia Pacific backgrounds
• Demonstrated success in meeting deadlines and following procedures
• Demonstrated success in project management and working with teams to effectively manage projects
• Demonstrated success in mentoring colleagues and creating a collaborative culture

Skills

• A clear commitment to the UWCSEA values in both personal and professional life
• Personal qualities of integrity, kindness, compassion and warmth
• Demonstrated understanding of and commitment to the capacity required for the demands of a 24-hour residential community
• Demonstrated understanding of the organisational and operational practices appropriate to the position
• Strong evidence of a collaborative and communicative approach with colleagues and teams with the ability to inspire and mentor others
• Strong evidence of the understanding of the developmental and support needs of adolescents and young adults in transition
• Strong evidence of cultural competence in a diverse international setting
• Strong evidence of effective written and spoken communication skills, with the ability to communicate in languages other than English an advantage
• Strong evidence of the ability to uphold legal and safeguarding requirements for residential communities

Application

Apply via our job portal by Thursday, 16January202511:59pm Singapore Time

The UWC Mission is to make education a force to unite people, nations and culture for peace and a sustainable future.We are committed to creating a community in which all members feel safe and secure, and know that their authentic selves and individual differences are accepted with respect and care. At UWCSEA, we acknowledge that diversity, equity, inclusion and justice (DEIJ) is an ongoing and evolving process and strive to create and sustain a sense of belonging for all members of our community, past, present and future. All qualified applicants, including those who identify as a part of marginalized group(s) and individuals with (dis)abilities are all encouraged to apply. Our school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all the students in our care and expects all applicants to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices and all appointments are subject to interview, satisfactory references, identity and criminal record checks.