Higher Education Executive Search
Our Education Practice at Diversified Search Group draws on expertise from leading almost 200 searches for executive positions like president and chancellor. We understand the challenges in higher education and the leadership necessary to build collaboration, trust, and positive change. Our consultants from Storbeck Search have strong industry knowledge and established relationships with educational institutions, bringing forth a breadth of expertise that facilitates a successful search.
Leaders in higher education today face complex environments, with various groups like boards and campus communities seeking different goals. Students fight for advocacy and change in education while governing bodies focus on cultivating the institution. With this divide, capable leaders must be able to bridge these gaps, drawing a college or university toward common goals like shaping the minds of tomorrow.
Providing Expertise in Your Higher Education Executive Search
With help from the expert consultants at our executive search firm for higher education, you can find the leaders your college or university needs to meet advancement objectives and promote positive change. We provide a tailored experience for each placement, learning your unique operations and goals to find the leaders that best suit your organization.
We identify qualified leaders — including presidents, senior administrators, directors, and deans — for every type of educational institution, including:
- Liberal arts colleges
- Research universities
- Academic medical centers
- Faith-based schools
- Public universities
- Private institutions
- International campuses
- Small colleges
- Large universities
Storbeck Search became a part of Diversified Search Group in 2020, giving us specialized knowledge in the educational sector. Our consultants and researchers have backgrounds in higher education and other related fields, yielding inside knowledge we can use to drive your search forward and construct diverse candidate pools from various sources. Our candidate slates comprise professionals within your industry and individuals outside of educational fields that might suit your needs.
Executive Search for Universities and Colleges
Higher education is changing rapidly as a result of historically significant events like the COVID-19 pandemic and societal changes that impact student and leadership priorities. Education leaders must have the expertise to address situations like the following:
- The growing popularity and utilization of online learning
- Student concerns for campus safety
- Societally engaged students who fight for advocacy
- Complex board dynamics that shape leadership
- Financial constraints faced by the university
In our placement process, our college executive search firm accounts for these industrywide challenges while also getting to know your institution’s mission and goals. We provide individualized attention to each client, learning your institution’s distinct personality before we begin the search for your future leaders.
After getting to know you, we establish incredibly inclusive candidate slates. Our selections account for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) while locating the most qualified individuals to fill your role. Once we have created a pool of qualified candidates, we will interview and screen each one to help you narrow the field and find the ideal individual for the job.
Higher Education Executive Positions
We hire executives for many college and university leadership positions, including presidents, provosts, senior vice presidents, chief diversity officers, chief financial officers, chief advancement officers, and deans. These leaders, especially those in student-facing positions like the university president, must be able to act as the face of the school. They must also hold the skills needed to work behind the scenes and understand the numbers and internal operations.
Leaders in any higher education position need the capacity to build community among the student body and various school governing bodies. At Diversified Search, we account for all these factors while striving to find leaders that strengthen your college or university and prepare it to face the future. Our strength is identifying leaders from historically underrepresented backgrounds by working with you to build a search committee and draft position descriptions using inclusive language.
Helping You Find Higher Education Executives
Whether you are a small, private university or an international campus, we can help you find leaders that will shape your tomorrow. Our university executive search firm brings together a team of consultants that suit your organization and the position you intend to hire for. Our organization and hiring process affords several benefits for your school:
- Unique perspectives: As a business founded and run by women, we utilize a deliberately different approach focused on promoting unheard perspectives and fostering belonging.
- Industry experience: With over 48 years of experience placing executives, we know what it takes to locate ideal candidates and narrow your pool to find the best person for your position.
- Personalized approach: We know that your college or university has unique goals and faces particular challenges, and we consider these factors in our search process.
Browse College Executive Positions
Our Higher Education Practice has over 100 active searches for leadership positions, from presidents to deans and executive directors. We seek to unite leadership and students by selecting candidates who bridge the gap and guide the organization forward. Browse our ongoing searches to learn more about our partnerships or read about current higher education executive positions that may fit your expertise and goals.