Assistant Vice President and Chief Careers and Industry Partnership Officer

POSITION DETAILS

In CUNY Lifting NY, the University set out a bold goal - boost student career outcomes of all undergraduate students at time of graduation and one year out by 2030. Meeting this ambitious objective requires integrating career connections across the academic enterprise to reach all students - regardless of discipline, campus, or other commitments. This effort will require scaling proven interventions, growing relationships with employer partners in the public and private sector and establishing accountability for coordination and integration of career information across all units of a campus.

In 2025, CUNY launched CUNY Beyond, a university-wide transformation initiative designed to embed career readiness into every aspect of the undergraduate experience. The initiative ensures that all CUNY students gain the knowledge, skills, applied experiences, and employer connections needed to successfully transition into fulfilling, well-paying careers. Through comprehensive career exploration, skills development, and direct industry engagement, CUNY Beyond aims to elevate student success and expand economic mobility across all undergraduate campuses.

Reporting directly to the Provost, the Assistant Vice President will serve as the institution’s Chief Careers and Industry Partnership Officer. This senior leader will drive a campus-wide student career success strategy that increases paid internship participation, strengthens post-graduate employment outcomes, and integrates career-connected learning across academic programs. The AVP will oversee major initiatives that enhance student engagement, academic innovation, and workforce preparation, including but not limited to, CUNY Beyond.

CUNY is an equal opportunity employer, is committed to increasing the diversity of its workforce and is dedicated to recruiting and retaining professionals who share the College’s commitment to equity. It welcomes nominations of, and applications from members of protected groups including minorities, women, veterans and individuals with disabilities, as well as others who would bring additional perspectives to the university’s mission. Candidates with demonstrated commitment to diversity and inclusiveness through their research, teaching and/or service are also encouraged to apply. One of Queensborough Community College’s greatest strengths, and a necessary element of excellence, is the diversity of our community. We strive to attract and nurture a talented and diverse faculty and staff that proudly reflect the unique character of the local Queens community, the most diverse county in the United States.

This position is funded for a three-year term. Continuation beyond this period is contingent upon available program funding.

Key Responsibilities

Career Outcomes Leadership

Lead the development and execution of campus-wide strategies that significantly increase paid internships and post-graduate employment rates. This includes overseeing the rollout and ongoing implementation of Career and Industry Partnership programming at the campus level.

Academic Innovation

Advance career-connected learning across all undergraduate academic pathways by collaborating with academic units and faculty to embed career connected learning and work-based learning opportunities into curricula and pedagogy, consistent with faculty governance processes.

Employer & Industry Partnerships

Develop and sustain high-impact partnerships with employers and industry leaders that create consistent, equitable pipelines for internships, apprenticeships, and full-time employment. Leverage labor-market intelligence to align advising, curricula, and employer engagement with high-demand fields.

Staff, Resource Development, & Budget Management

Provide strategic oversight for career-readiness programs, including supervision of staff teams, budget administration, resource allocation, and operational planning. Participate in resource development activities including grant writing, pitching, and other forms of fundraising.

Data Strategy, Collection & Analysis

Direct data collection and evaluation efforts related to internships, career readiness milestones, and post-graduate outcomes. Ensure alignment and data harmonization with the CUNY Central Office.

Event Planning & Coordination

Oversee signature events-including faculty workshops, student career-readiness sessions, career fairs, and employer/industry panels-to strengthen career awareness and engagement across campus.

Strategic Planning & Execution

Guide multi-year planning efforts aligned with institutional goals for academic innovation, student success, and workforce preparation. Ensure cross-campus coordination and accountability.

Leadership & Collaboration

The Assistant Vice President will serve as a strategic thought leader, collaborating closely with multiple departments-such as the Office of the President, Career Center, Advising, Faculty Affairs, Continuing Education, Industry Engagement, and CUNY Inclusive Economy-to ensure cohesive, campus-wide execution of the CUNY Beyond strategy. The AVP will also engage internal and external stakeholders, including industry partners, to shape program design, implementation, partnerships, and evaluation efforts that advance student career success.

Perform other duties related to academic innovation, employer engagement, and student success as assigned by the President or Provost

QUALIFICATIONS

This position is in CUNY's Executive Compensation Plan. All executive positions require a minimum of a Bachelor's degree and eight years' related experience.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in higher education administration, public administration, business, workforce development, or related field.
• Seven to ten years of progressively responsible leadership experience in higher education, workforce development, industry partnerships, university relations, strategic partnerships, career services, academic affairs, or related area.
• Demonstrated success in designing and implementing large-scale employer engagement, student success, career readiness, workforce development, or academic innovation initiatives.
• Proven experience fostering university-employer partnerships that result in internships, apprenticeships, or employment pipelines for students.
• Track record of managing professional staff, overseeing budgets, and leading cross-functional teams.
• Experience with grant writing, fundraising, or securing external funding to support programmatic growth.
• Strong data literacy, including experience with outcomes reporting, program evaluation, and data-informed decision-making, and common tools (e.g. Excel).
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and relationship-building skills with the ability to engage faculty, staff, students, and external stakeholders.
• Demonstrated ability to operate effectively in complex, multi-unit ]institutional environments and manage multiple high-priority initiatives simultaneously.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in higher education administration, public administration, business, workforce development, or a related field
• Experience in change management, organizational transformation, or launching new cross-departmental initiatives.
• Established relationships with New York City-area employers, industry sectors, workforce agencies, or economic development organizations.
• Familiarity with career success technologies, career platforms, and data systems (e.g., CRM tools, internship tracking platforms, institutional research dashboards).
• Experience working with or within the CUNY system, a large public university, or a similarly complex higher education setting.
• Familiarity with curriculum innovation, experiential learning design, or integrating career connections and experiences into academic programs.
• Demonstrated success leading initiatives that advance equity, access, and economic mobility for diverse populations.
• Experience working with publicly or privately funded workforce or education grants, including reporting and compliance.

CUNY TITLE

Assistant Vice President

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

$183,504 - $194,670
Salary commensurate with education and experience.
CUNY's benefits contribute significantly to total compensation, supporting health and wellness, financial well-being, and professional development. We offer a range of health plans, competitive retirement/pension benefits and savings plans, tuition waivers for CUNY graduate study and generous paid time off. Our staff also benefits from the extensive academic, arts, and athletic programs on our campuses and the opportunity to participate in a lively, diverse academic community in one of the greatest cities in the world.