Assistant Director, Research Programme Development, ORS
Assistant Director, Research Programme Development, ORS
Operation
Full Time
Employment Type
Manager
Experience Level
Master's or equivalent
Education Level
Singapore | Closing On 04 Jul 2026
Country
Hybrid
Working Arrangement
About Us
Singapore Management University is a place where high-level professionalism blends together with a healthy informality. The 'family-like' atmosphere among the SMU community fosters a culture where employees work, plan, organise and play together - building a strong collegiality and morale within the university.
Our commitment to attract and retain talent is ongoing. We offer attractive benefits and welfare, competitive compensation packages, and generous professional development opportunities - all to meet the work-life needs of our staff. No wonder, then, that SMU continues to be given numerous awards and recognition for its human resource excellence.
Job Description
This position is for Office of Research Strategy (ORS).
- Conduct systematic reviews of investigator-led research activities, including Ministry of Education (MOE) Academic Research Fund (AcRF) Tier-1 and Tier-2 grants, completed projects, and high-quality unsuccessful proposals.
- Identify research initiatives with potential to evolve into programme-scale research agendas aligned with major national and international funding opportunities.
- Work with faculty investigators, Schools, and research clusters to strengthen early-stage research concepts and programme design.
- Support the repositioning of research proposals toward alternative funding opportunities including philanthropic foundations, corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes, multilateral research initiatives, and international collaborative research programmes.
- Translate emerging research opportunities into structured programme-level initiatives suitable for major funding schemes.
- Work with Schools, Institutes, and research clusters to co-develop programme-scale research concepts and multi-investigator research initiatives.
- Coordinate the development of large research proposals targeting funding opportunities such as:
- MOE AcRF Tier-3 programmes
- Social Science & Humanities Research Thematic Grant (SSHR-TG)
- Large philanthropic foundation grants
- Multilateral research programmes
- International collaborative funding schemes such as Horizon Europe
- Multi-institution consortium grants
- Manage the institutional pipeline of programme-scale research initiatives, including tracking proposal development and coordinating internal stage-gates for major grant submissions.
- Facilitate collaboration between SMU investigators and external partners including universities, research institutes, international organisations, and philanthropic foundations.
- Coordinate consortium formation and partnership development for multi-institution research proposals and collaborative research initiatives.
- Support the preparation and submission of large grant proposals, including programme design coordination, concept refinement, and integration of partner contributions.
- Engage with external stakeholders including philanthropic foundations, multilateral development institutions, bilateral development agencies, and international research programmes to support proposal development and programme positioning.
- Work closely with ORS leadership to prioritise programme initiatives aligned with institutional research strategy and global funding opportunities.
- Other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
- Master's degree or equivalent professional experience in public policy, international development, economics, social sciences, business, or related disciplines, with 8 to 12 years of relevant professional experience in research programme development, international development initiatives, research funding strategy, or large grant coordination.
- Prior experience working with international research funding ecosystems including philanthropic foundations, multilateral development banks, bilateral development agencies, and international research funding programmes.
- Strong understanding of global research funding ecosystems including philanthropic foundations, multilateral development institutions, development finance organisations, and bilateral development agencies such as the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, Green Climate Fund, United Nations Development Programme, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development initiatives, United States Agency for International Development, and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office.
- Familiarity with international research funding mechanisms including Horizon Europe, large foundation grants, collaborative research programmes, consortium funding initiatives, and multilateral research partnerships.
- Demonstrated experience conceptualising programme-scale research or development initiatives aligned with major international funding opportunities.
- Experience coordinating large research proposals or programme-level grant submissions involving multiple investigators and institutional partners.
- Ability to translate investigator-led research into programme-level initiatives aligned with major funding priorities.
- Experience managing multi-institution or multi-country collaborations involving universities, research institutes, international organisations, government agencies, or philanthropic foundations.
- Strong project management capability to track research proposal pipelines and coordinate complex multi-partner programme submissions.
- Excellent written communication skills, particularly in developing programme concepts, research funding proposals, and strategic concept notes.
- Experience working within or alongside international development organisations, multilateral institutions, global foundations, or international research programmes will be highly advantageous.
Other Information
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Candidates who do not possess the stipulated qualifications but have relevant work experience may still apply. Remuneration and appointment terms shall commensurate with qualifications and experience. SMU reserves the right to modify the appointment terms where necessary.
Posted On 04 Jun 2026
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