Clarification from the agency

Must be a U.S. Citizen or a U.S. Permanent Resident.

Major Duties

The purpose of this position is to plan and coordinate academic support for delivery of curriculum for the Africa Center's Academic Affairs Division.

Specific duties include:

1. The incumbent provides course development and refinement, manages and procures or otherwise acquires instructional and educational materials in support of curriculum, and conducts research support for Academic programs and activities. Works directly with Faculty and Program Managers to support the development and execution of academic curriculum and programs such as seminars, workshops, courses and the research program. Drafts written documents which serve to contribute to the development and refinement of the curriculum and in support of academic programs (letters, research summaries and synopsis, literature reviews).
2. Undertakes guided research on security matters related to Africa, and to U.S. policy towards Africa (e.g., counter-terrorism, national and transnational security strategy, human security, civil-military relations, defense economics, conflict management, arms proliferation, etc.).
3. Assists with the development of section publications, in collaboration with Faculty and Program Leads. Proofreads and formats guest speaker presentations, program highlights, academic syllabi, and other academic materials in English, Portuguese, French and/or Arabic as required. Analyzes program evaluation data and compiles into program evaluation reports.
4. Supports the Academic section by working collaboratively with Faculty to research, identify, contact and invite adjunct faculty, guest speakers, note-takers, and other staff needed to support academic programs. Researches, develops and collates short biographies for adjunct faculty and guest speakers. Reviews and proofreads reports and other documents, editorial and content, for quality control purposes. Develops, manages and updates spreadsheets and databases on publications, potential attendees, faculty and guest speaker presentations, travel and other logistical information.
5. In collaboration with faculty, develops, formats and prepares documents and presentations and complies syllabus binders with attention to prescribed procedures and protocols for branding and quality control purposes, in one or more languages as required. Drafts and finalizes program-related correspondence and after-action reports. Manages academic databases for participant and faculty support including evaluation records, and adjunct faculty and alumni records. Performs occasional translation of documents from English to Portuguese, French and/or Arabic as needed.
6. Serves as the Academic Affairs support staff representative on ACSS project teams, liaising within the Africa Center as well as with other organizations on event planning and preparation of operational matters related to the academic program schedule, adjunct faculty, guest speakers, interpreters, and note-takers. Serves as primary Point-of-Contact for the Academic Section to other organizations, sections and augmented staff (adjunct faculty, guest speakers, note-takers, interpreters) during the development and execution of organizational academic programs to which the incumbent is assigned. Provides oversight and direction to temporary employees and note-takers during the execution of academic programs as needed. Manages the Africa Center's academic program peer-learning system, corresponding processes, and operating procedures in support of curriculum delivery. Develops and disseminates course and program information and resources for current and prospective participants and faculty.
7. Performs other duties as assigned.

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or a U.S. Permanent Resident.
• Travel requirement for this position is Occasional. You may be required to travel up to 30% of the time.

Qualifications

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Possess an earned Master's degree from an accredited institution of higher education in international relations, African Affairs, public policy, political science, history, economics, national security affairs or a related area or other appropriate discipline.
• Possess program management experience supporting the development and execution of academic curriculum and programs such as seminars, workshops, courses and research programs, to include managing, developing, coordinating and executing research projects in support of academic programs.
• Possess experience using academic literature search engines to conduct research on security matters related to Africa, and U.S. policy towards Africa (e.g., counter-terrorism, national and transnational security strategy, human security, civil-military relations, defense economics, conflict management, arms proliferation, etc.).
• Possess academic writing experience, such as managing, coordinating, developing, reviewing, proofreading, editing, updating, and formatting publications, administrative and logistical reports, syllabi, letters, literature reviews, research summaries, spreadsheets, databases, evaluations, presentations, and other documents.
• Possess excellent oral and written communications skills in the English language with a demonstrated ability to express clear, concise concepts and findings to a general foreign policy audience. Must also demonstrate the ability to take notes and coordinate and liaise with other staff members, sections and external organizations.
• Highly proficient (native or near-native fluency) in oral and written communication in either Portuguese, French or Arabic with a demonstrated ability to express clear, concise concepts and findings, and to edit and perform quality checks on documents written in Portuguese, French or Arabic with experience in the security vernacular.

• Deep understanding of Africa's political economy, security challenges, trends, and priorities.
• Experience engaging with U.S. and African security sector officials.
• Previous academic or field experience in Africa.
• Possess strong analytical skills and demonstrable experience analyzing program evaluation data and compiling reports.
• Experience living and/or working on the African continent.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

To qualify, you must meet the education and experience requirements described in the qualifications section. A screening panel will review your resume and narrative answers to the hiring criteria to evaluate your qualifications for the position. NDU uses a multi-tier selection process for academic positions. The following questions will be reviewed by the NDU screening panel:

You MUST upload a cover letter separate from your resume addressing the following hiring criteria:

1. Describe your academic writing experience (managing, coordinating, developing, reviewing, proofreading, editing, updating, and formatting publications, administrative and logistical reports, syllabi, letters, literature reviews, research summaries, spreadsheets, databases, evaluations, presentations, and other documents).
2. Describe your experience using academic literature search engines to conduct research on security matters related to Africa, and U.S. policy towards Africa (e.g., counterterrorism, national and transnational security strategy, human security, civil-military relations, defense economics, conflict management, arms proliferation, etc).
3. Describe your experience planning academic events and programs, to execution of academic curriculum and programs such as seminars, workshops, courses and research programs, to include managing, developing, coordinating and executing operational, logistical, administrative and research projects supporting academic programs.
4. Describe your experience managing student databases, schedules, course registration, evaluation records, applications, and travel and other logistical information.
5. Describe your experience interacting and collaborating professionally with staff and personnel from academia, the U.S. government, foreign governments, international organizations, and/or the private sector.
6. Describe your language experience in English and Portuguese, French, and/or Arabic.