Foundation Lecturer - #2166557

Job Title: Foundation Lecturer

Reports to: Foundation Programme Leader

Location: Manchester

Salary Range: £45,000

Hours: Tuesday-Saturday 9am-5pm (with one potential late start to teach evening class)

Overview

As a Lecturer at the Victoria College of Arts & Design, you are expected to play a key role in delivering high-quality, research-informed material while maintaining, and continuously enhancing the high standards of teaching, mentoring, and academic support that we aim to provide for our students. You will play a key role in designing, delivering, and assessing undergraduate and / or postgraduate modules and programmes. This position is ideal for someone who is an academic practitioner and passionate about contextual studies and the relationship between fashion narratives, market, audiences and cultural change.

Key Responsibilities

1. Teaching and Module Delivery:

Plan, develop, and deliver high-quality, student-centred lectures, seminars, tutorials, and workshops for assigned modules.

Integrate theoretical, practical, and critical approaches to support student creativity and innovation across design and marketing contexts.

Utilise a range of best-practice teaching methods to support various learning styles, fostering engagement and inclusivity.

Maintain up-to-date knowledge of subject areas, ensuring course content is relevant, current, and aligned with contemporary industry practice and research insight.

2. Assessment and Feedback:

Design, manage and assess formative and summative coursework assignments, ensuring flexibility, fairness, transparency, and relevance. This is to include the assessment of written essays and presentations.

Provide succinct, constructive, coherent and timely feedback to students, using written, recorded or written media, designed to aid students in their academic reflection, progress and development of core skills.

Ensure that grading and feedback is in line with best practice and standards across the English Higher Education sector.

3. Student Support and Guidance:

Act as an academic advisor and mentor to students, providing guidance on academic matters and supporting their professional aspirations.

Organise and participate in student engagement activities and additional, non-curricular, learning and academic integrity support sessions.

Address individual student needs, such as reasonable adjustments for students with disabilities, and refer to appropriate support services as necessary.

4. Curriculum and Module Development:

Work collaboratively with faculty, management, students and external stakeholders to develop, modify and enhance curricula so that it always reflects contemporary industry and academic trends. As appropriate, devise, design, manage and deliver the continuous improvement of teaching resources, such as updating reading lists, case studies, practical equipment, practical exercises, and online learning content.

Participate, as appropriate and when requested, in all Academic Development Committees including curriculum review committees, considering such things as the development of new and revised programmes. Integrate practice-based learning and develop an ongoing visiting lecturer programme.

5. Quality Assurance and Continuous Improvement

Adhere to all VCAD and Partner institution policies, procedures, and quality assurance standards.

Engage in peer review processes to improve and share good practices across teaching methods.

Participate in teaching observation and evaluation processes to ensure good quality support, development and enhancement of teaching practice across faculty.

6. Professional Development

Participate in professional development activities, keeping abreast of innovations and developments within the field of higher education teaching and learning and regulatory requirements.

7. Administrative and Departmental Responsibilities

Undertake, as required, administrative duties related to teaching, timetable management, module coordination, course management, marking, grading and other associated administrative tasks concerned with the efficient running of the Board, as well as any other appropriate duties reasonably requested by your line manager, including attendance and participation in departmental meetings. Actively contribute to departmental goals and participate in activities such as open days, student recruitment, induction events, knowledge transfer and other outreach work.

Support VCAD initiatives, such as diversity and inclusion efforts, digital learning, and community collaboration.

8. Staff Management Responsibilities

Holders of any Lecturer post will have line management responsibilities as per their various and occasional non-substantive role, such as module or programme leader. These roles will be recognised through such procedures as remission of teaching hours or honorarium payments and will be reasonably negotiated with the Academic Dean and VCAD Director and in keeping with established VCAD policy.

Qualifications & Experience

Essential (E)

Desirable (D)

• A Bachelor’s Degree (E)
• Confidence and ability to communicate complex information to a class of students. (E)
• Ability to utilise a range of digital platforms, in particular Microsoft Office / 365. (E)
• Enthusiasm, knowledge and experience of your specialist area. (E)
• Experience of Teaching (D)
• A Master’s Degree (D)
• Relevant professional experience in an associated or appropriate area of practice (D)
• Knowledge of the Higher Education sector in England. (D)

Benefits

• Annual leave (7.2 weeks)
• Workplace pension scheme.
• Company Sick Pay
• Employee Assistance Programme (HA Wisdom Wellbeing)
• Virtual GP access (Livi)
• 'Speak Up Service' - confidential support service to report any workplace concerns
• Specialist physical and mental wellbeing support services with 24/7 confidential counselling support (Wisdom)
• Specialist menopause support, including online CBT (Wisdom)
• Financial, legal and medical advice services provided (Wisdom)
• Life & Leadership coaching (Wisdom)
• Financial coaching (MUNNY)
• Discounts and perks, offering savings on shopping, activities and more (Bright Exchange)
• Self development and Self taught trainings