Quality Assurance Officer

Position Summary

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and implement the university's quality assurance framework, policies, and procedures in alignment with ETEC (Education and Training Evaluation Commission) and NCAAA standards.
• Prepare and maintain institutional and programmatic accreditation documentation, self-study reports, and evidence portfolios for both Saudi and U.S. accreditation bodies.
• Serve as the institutional expert on the intersection of Saudi accreditation (ETEC/NCAAA) and U.S. regional accreditation requirements.
• Coordinate with American universities on maintaining compliance with U.S. regional accreditation standards (HLC) and programmatic accreditation requirements (AACSB for business, ABET for engineering and IT).
• Build a KPI architecture with evidence library, internal audit schedule, and corrective action tracking across all institutional functions.
• Coordinate cross-functional process documentation: admissions, registrar, student services, facilities, procurement, finance, IT.
• Design and manage internal quality audits ('health checks') for high-risk processes (admissions file integrity, student record accuracy, vendor SLAs, procurement approvals).
• Support the development of course and program learning outcomes in alignment with the Saudi National Qualifications Framework (NQF).
• Train faculty and staff on quality assurance expectations, accreditation requirements (Saudi and U.S.), and continuous improvement methodologies.
• Serve as the institutional liaison with ETEC, NCAAA, MOE, and MOHE on accreditation matters and regulatory submissions; track compliance with licensed scope/title as a risk item.

Year-One Launch Priorities

Required Qualifications

• Master's degree in Quality Management, Institutional Effectiveness, Higher Education Administration, or a closely related field.
• Minimum 5 years of experience in quality assurance, accreditation, or institutional effectiveness in a higher education setting.
• Demonstrated experience leading or significantly contributing to programmatic accreditation processes with Saudi accrediting bodies (ETEC, NCAAA, or MOE).
• In-depth knowledge of ETEC and NCAAA standards, the Saudi National Qualifications Framework (NQF), and MOHE quality requirements.
• Professional proficiency in Arabic and English.
• Strong analytical, report-writing, and data management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Doctoral degree (PhD or EdD) in a relevant field.
• Direct experience with U.S. regional accreditation processes (e.g., HLC, SACSCOC, MSCHE, or equivalent).
• Experience with international programmatic accreditation bodies, particularly AACSB (business) and/or ABET (engineering/IT).
• Experience establishing QA infrastructure at a newly licensed or startup university in Saudi Arabia.
• Prior work coordinating accreditation alignment between a Saudi institution and a U.S. partner university.
• Knowledge of survey tools, institutional research methodologies, and data analysis software.
• Familiarity with Cintana Education's quality assurance frameworks and international best practices.

Key Competencies & Skills

• Systematic and detail-oriented approach to documentation and compliance across multiple accreditation frameworks.
• Strong project management skills for managing concurrent Saudi and U.S. accreditation timelines.
• Ability to navigate and translate between different accreditation systems, standards, and terminology.
• Ability to collaborate and influence across academic and administrative units without direct authority.
• Critical thinking and continuous improvement mindset.
• Excellent presentation, training facilitation, and stakeholder communication skills.

Special Considerations & Compliance