Chief Academic Officer
A Chief Academic Officer (CAO) serves as the primary academic leader of a college, overseeing all academic programs and initiatives while advancing academic excellence, faculty development, and student success. This is a sample job description from Excelon Associates that you can adapt as a template for your own hire.
What does a Chief Academic Officer do?
The Chief Academic Officer (CAO) serves as the primary academic leader for the institution, overseeing all academic programs and initiatives to foster a dynamic and engaging learning environment. The role is pivotal in advancing the institution's mission by promoting academic excellence, supporting faculty development, and enhancing student success across diverse programs.
It is a senior academic leadership role within the higher education sector, sitting at the top of the academic organization and partnering with senior leadership on institution-wide strategy.
A Chief Academic Officer (CAO) is the senior executive responsible for an institution's academic mission, a role closely related to Provost. Accreditation is the formal review confirming the institution meets its accreditor's standards, and student learning outcomes are the measurable results used to assess whether programs are working.
What does the Chief Academic Officer oversee?
Key responsibilities of a Chief Academic Officer
- Provide visionary leadership to all academic departments, ensuring alignment with the institution's mission and strategic goals.
- Oversee curriculum planning, implementation, and assessment, collaborating with faculty to create innovative, interdisciplinary programs that respond to current trends and student needs.
- Support and advocate for faculty through professional development, performance evaluations, and resource allocation, fostering an environment of academic excellence.
- Ensure compliance with accreditation standards and regulatory requirements, including program reviews and assessment of student learning outcomes.
- Develop and manage the academic affairs budget, ensuring responsible resource allocation to support academic priorities.
- Collaborate with senior leadership on strategic planning, particularly academic growth, student retention, and the integration of new technologies.
- Work closely with student affairs to promote student engagement, retention, and achievement, enhancing support services and initiatives.
- Serve as a representative of the institution within the academic community and with external stakeholders, building partnerships that advance its reputation and offerings.
What qualifications does the role require?
- Doctorate in an academic discipline from a regionally accredited institution.
- At least ten years of progressive experience in academic leadership roles, with a track record of successful program development and faculty support.
- Proven ability to foster a collaborative and inclusive academic environment, with strong analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
- Experience with accreditation processes and strategic planning, and the ability to inspire faculty, staff, and students toward a shared vision of academic success.
- A demonstrated commitment to academic excellence and innovation in curriculum and instructional delivery.
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Download the TemplateWhy is the Chief Academic Officer role important?
The Chief Academic Officer sets the academic direction of the entire institution. Leadership over curriculum, faculty, accreditation, and budgets directly shapes academic quality, student success, and the institution's reputation, which is why the role reports into the top of the organization.
Because the position spans academic vision and operational reality, the strongest CAOs can champion faculty and students while making the resource and policy decisions institutional health requires. At a smaller college, that balance is especially visible, since one leader carries the whole academic portfolio.
What does a Chief Academic Officer earn?
In Excelon Associates' Chief Academic Officer searches, offers have typically landed between $115,000 and $175,000 per year. The Bureau of Labor Statistics groups this role under postsecondary education administrators (SOC 11-9033), which carried a median annual wage of $103,960 in May 2024. That category spans deans through admissions leadership, so pay for any single title can sit well off its midpoint.
Institution size and system complexity drive pay. Chief academic officers overseeing multiple colleges or campuses command the upper half, while single-campus career schools sit lower.
A hiring note from Excelon
Chief Academic Officer searches reward leaders who have carried real academic-leadership weight, as a dean, vice provost, or equivalent, not just held a senior title. Through our higher education practice, we look for candidates with a terminal degree and a track record across curriculum, accreditation, and budget, since at a smaller institution the CAO has to command the confidence of faculty and the president at once.
The strongest academic officers champion faculty and students while making the hard resource decisions institutional health requires.
Related sample job descriptions
Chief Academic Officer: frequently asked questions
What does a Chief Academic Officer do?
A Chief Academic Officer (CAO) is the primary academic leader of a college, overseeing all academic programs and initiatives. The role leads curriculum development, faculty development, accreditation and compliance, academic budgeting, strategic planning, and student success efforts.
What qualifications does the role require?
This sample role requires a doctorate in an academic discipline from a regionally accredited institution and at least ten years of progressive academic leadership experience, with a track record of program development, faculty support, accreditation, and strategic planning.
Is a Chief Academic Officer the same as a Provost?
They are closely related and the titles often overlap. Both serve as an institution's senior academic leader. Larger universities tend to use Provost, while smaller colleges often use Chief Academic Officer, though some institutions use both at different levels.
What does the role mean by accreditation and compliance?
The CAO ensures the institution meets the standards of its accrediting body, including program reviews and assessment of student learning outcomes, and complies with applicable regulatory requirements.
Why is this role important?
The Chief Academic Officer sets the academic direction of the entire institution. Their leadership over curriculum, faculty, accreditation, and budgets directly shapes academic quality, student success, and the institution's reputation.
How much does a Chief Academic Officer make?
Chief Academic Officer offers in Excelon Associates' searches have typically ranged from $115,000 to $175,000 per year, against a BLS median of $103,960 for the broader postsecondary education administrators category (SOC 11-9033, May 2024). Institution size and system complexity drive pay.
Hiring a Chief Academic Officer?
Excelon Associates recruits Chief Academic Officers, provosts, and senior academic leaders for colleges and universities across the United States through our higher education recruitment practice. Retained executive search since 2007, headquartered in Asheville, NC, with offices in Boca Raton and Delray Beach, FL. The average Excelon search delivers a slate of 5 qualified candidates in 3 to 5 weeks, with 88 searches completed in the last 12 months.
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