Director

The Pennsylvania State University (the “University” or “Penn State”), a major, world-renowned, public, Research 1 university, seeks an exceptional leader to serve as the next Director of the School of International Affairs (“SIA” or the “School”). The SIA is housed within a state-of-the-art facility in University Park, the University’s largest campus with 45,000 graduate and undergraduate students in the community of State College, Pennsylvania. Penn State, with an annual operating budget of nearly $8 billion and a student population of 98,000, is the land-grant university of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, composed of the University Park campus and 23 other campuses throughout the state. The SIA currently enrolls between 130-140 MIA (Master of International Affairs) students and has an annual budget of approximately $5 million. The SIA curriculum leverages the depth and breadth of the University by integrating a practical and theoretical international affairs curriculum with interdisciplinary studies in Penn State’s leading graduate programs. The next Director will have the exciting opportunity of further driving the School’s institutional mission to lead the next generation of global leaders. 

The Director serves as the principal academic and administrative officer of the SIA. The position provides an outstanding opportunity for a talented and visionary leader who will champion the tight-knit SIA community and motivate the interdisciplinary passions of its students, staff, and faculty within a top-tiered research university. The School is looking for (1) an experienced, innovative leader with a successful history of building vision and identity at the institutional level; (2) a respected authority in international relations as a scholar with substantial academic credentials and with comparable achievements as a leader in the field of global affairs; (3) an engaging, trustworthy executive who would enthusiastically lead the School’s fundraising efforts and curriculum expansion; and (4) a strategic and collaborative leader with a commitment to diversity and high quality interdisciplinary education.

Applications, which should include a resume or curriculum vitae and cover letter, should be submitted below. Electronic submission of materials is strongly preferred. 

Tim McFeeley and Sean Farrell are leading this search with Miguel Santiago.