Head of Student Success and Experience (Online Campus) Full Time NEW

Grade and Salary: Grade 9 – £58,225 to £69,488

FTE and working pattern: Full Time (1FTE), Open ended

Location: This role can be based on our Edinburgh or Dubai campuses – minimum 3 days per week on campus, up to 2 days per week home working

About our School/Directorate and Team

:Heriot-Watt University has a proud 25-year legacy of delivering world-class online and distance learning. Today, over 7,000 students from 160 countries study with through our Online Campus – making up more than 25% of our total student body.

We are now entering an ambitious phase of investment and growth for Heriot-Watt Online, with a bold 10-year strategy to expand our reach and impact. In a world where the nature of work is evolving rapidly, we are committed to delivering flexible, accessible and career-focused education at scale – empowering individuals and organisations to thrive in times of transformation.

The Head of Student Success and Experience will be a key leader in realising this vision. Joining a dynamic and collaborative team, this role will shape and execute strategies that drive sustainable growth, harness our global reputation and position Heriot-Watt as a leader in digital education worldwide.

This role can be based on our Edinburgh or Dubai campuses – minimum 3 days per week on campus, up to 2 days per week home working.

Purpose of Role

The Head of Student Success and Experience (Heriot-Watt Online) will set the vision, strategy, and execution plan for the Online Campus student success and experience function, ensuring a best-in-class experience that enhances student engagement, retention, and progression, and positions Heriot-Watt as a leader in flexible, global learning. You will lead, expand, and oversee the Student Success team dedicated to Online students, Graduate Apprentices and Corporate Partners, driving initiatives that directly contribute to higher retention, completion, and graduation rates, as well as improved student satisfaction, community and belonging.

This senior leadership role demands expert knowledge of global best practices in online student retention, pastoral care and success. You will play a critical role in shaping the future of the online campus student experience, ensuring we meet the evolving needs of learners, employers, and partners worldwide. You will play an important role in representing the voice of our learners, putting the student at the heart of our decision making.

Main duties include, but are not limited to –

Key Responsibilities

Strategic leadership

• Develop and execute a student success strategy, aligned with the Online Campus objectives.
• Drive initiatives to enhance student satisfaction, retention, and progression across all programmes and portfolios.
• Establish KPIs for student success, measuring and improving student outcomes through data-driven decision-making.
• Contribute to annual student number planning and financial planning, updating forecasting based on data insights
• Advocate for student experience excellence within the Online Campus Leadership Team and across Heriot-Watt University.

Student experience, engagement & retention

• Lead the Student Success team, ensuring learners receive high-quality support at scale.
• Create and oversee a proactive, data-informed student support model, ensuring effective interventions that drive engagement and retention.
• Develop and implement strategies for onboarding, induction, and digital skills development for learners.
• Develop a community-building strategy and champion initiatives that foster belonging, peer-to-peer engagement, and student-led networks.
• Collaborate with marketing, academic, and operational teams to enhance student communications and engagement touchpoints.

Operations and continuous improvement

• Own and refine key student success processes, from enrolment through to graduation, ensuring seamless coordination across teams (e.g. academic, technical, operations, finance, etc.).
• Develop a strong, collaborative working relationship with the Head of Marketing and Recruitment (Online Campus) and Head of Registry (Online Campus), jointly reviewing and optimizing the end-to-end student lifecycle processes to ensure a consistent, efficient and seamless student experience, ensuring excellent student experience and retention.
• Work with the Head of Off-Campus Students to ensure complaint management and escalation pathways support positive student experiences and timely resolution.
• Use data analytics to monitor student engagement patterns, identifying and addressing potential risk factors for retention.
• Drive continuous improvement in student support interventions, faculty-student interactions, and pastoral care models.
• Contribute to and hold an awareness of student policies related to assessment, curriculum, progression and student support, ensuring students are given accurate, up to date guidance.
• Use CRM and student records tools, as well as the VLE and other platforms, to monitor and enhance student engagement and communications.

CRM and systems

• Establish ownership and manage the ideal Student Success tech-stack (CRM, SRS, emailing platform, etc.) to ensure the scale and quality of the student success offering.
• Draw up business cases and get buy-in for systems and tech developments or enhancements needed to deliver on Student Success initiatives and KPIs.
• Ensure the team are properly trained in the use of relevant systems and platforms.
• Draw up process documentation and monitor use of relevant systems and platforms to ensure correct and optimal use.
• Work in partnership with the Head of Registry (Online Campus) to ensure CRM, student records and other systems align with academic operations requirements.

Teamwork and collaboration

• Work closely with Recruitment, Marketing, Digital Education and Registry & Academic Services (RAS) teams to align student success efforts with strategies aimed at improving student recruitment and learning experiences.
• Ensure alignment between Student Recruitment, Registry & Academic Services (RAS) and Student Success processes, including onboarding, enrolment, progression and graduation work flows.
• Provide insights into student behaviour and success metrics to inform marketing, programme design and institutional strategy.
• Support key institutional initiatives, including B2B/Employer partnerships and scholarship programmes.
• Lead the approach to tracking and reporting on student progression and satisfaction metrics.

People management and team leadership

• Recruit, develop, and lead a high-performing Student Success team, ensuring they are equipped with the necessary skills and resources to support students effectively.
• Foster a student-first culture and ensure best practices in online student support are continuously adopted.
• Set and manage the Student Success budget, optimising resources while achieving strategic objectives.

Key Skills & Experience

Essential

1. Knowledge of best practices in student lifecycle and experience management.
2. Knowledge of or experience in a higher education setting, preferably in an online learning environment.
3. Proven ability to drive measurable improvements in student retention, engagement, belonging and satisfaction.
4. Expertise in data-driven decision-making, using data to inform decision-making.
5. Strong team leadership experience, with a track record of managing and growing successful teams.
6. Demonstrated success in cross-functional collaboration, working with academic, operational, and marketing teams to enhance student outcomes.
7. Exceptional communication, stakeholder management, problem-solving and influencing skills.
8. Demonstrable experience of managing resources, workloads and changing priorities for self and others.
9. Demonstrable ability to work within a fast-changing environment.
10. Project management skills including resource management, project reporting and budgeting.

Desirable

1. Demonstrable experience of leading and managing change.
2. Track record of achieving results in a high growth environment with a commercial focus.
3. Experience with CRM tools and student success platforms to monitor and enhance student engagement.
4. Understanding of global online education trends and the challenges facing diverse, international student populations.
5. Familiarity with B2B student engagement and employer-sponsored learning models.