Duties:

The Dean assumes overarching responsibility for:

• Providing strategic academic leadership of the Faculty of Military Science across learning and teaching, research, innovation, internationalisation and social impact, in alignment with the University’s institutional strategy.
• Serving as the academic head of the Faculty and providing academic leadership of the Military Academy within a joint SU–DoD governance framework.
• Ensuring the academic integrity, quality assurance and accreditation of programmes offered within a military education context, and alignment with relevant defence education, security cluster and training requirements.
• Leading and managing the Faculty’s academic, administrative and support structures, including providing leadership and management with regard to all staff and student matters within a complex, multi-employer and security-regulated environment.
• Managing the Faculty’s financial resources, infrastructure and facilities responsibly and strategically, including full oversight of financial management and resource stewardship
• Promoting research excellence, research translation, the unlocking of research funding opportunities, and the establishment of externally funded Chairs, while strengthening research capacity and supporting the recruitment and retention of academic talent.
• Promoting interdisciplinary excellence and transdisciplinary collaboration with other faculties, schools and research entities within the University.
• Taking initiative for and managing marketing, student recruitment and fundraising activities in support of the Faculty’s strategic objectives.
• Engaging with senior stakeholders within Stellenbosch University and the Department of Defence, and liaising externally to establish and maintain multi-level partnerships and collaborations nationally and internationally.
• Driving transformation, diversity, equity and inclusion within the Faculty, in line with institutional priorities.
• Ensuring sound governance, compliance and risk management, including responsible operation within a security-regulated environment and adherence to applicable University and Defence frameworks.
• Sharing responsibility for the leadership and management of the University as a whole, as a member of the broader institutional leadership community.

Stellenbosch University
Dean: Faculty of Military Science
(Five-year term with the possibility of reappointment for
another term)
Ref. MIL/084/0426

Stellenbosch University (SU) invites applications from visionary, values-driven, and collaborative academic leaders for the position of Dean: Faculty of Military Science.

As a globally connected, research-intensive institution, SU advances knowledge in service of society and aspires to be Africa’s leading research-intensive university and Africa’s first Top 100 global university — globally recognised for excellence, inclusivity, and innovation.

Guided by Vision 2040 and the Strategy Plan 2026–2030, SU pursues academic excellence, purposeful partnerships, and a transformative student experience that equips graduates to navigate and shape a complex, rapidly changing world. Central to this ambition is the capacity to respond to the pressing challenges of our time — inequality, climate change, technological disruption, and social cohesion — through research that has real societal and economic impact, and through interdisciplinary collaboration that transcends traditional boundaries.

Within this institutional context, the Faculty of Military Science operates in a distinctive academic environment at the interface of higher education and military education. Co-located within the Military Academy at Saldanha Campus, the Faculty offers undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, conducts research and advances social impact within a joint governance framework between Stellenbosch University and the Department of Defence (DoD), as provided for in the applicable Memorandum of Agreement.

The Faculty plays a strategic role in military leadership development and academic pursuits within the Department of Defence and knowledge production in support of national priorities, while upholding the academic standards, governance principles and institutional values of the University within a security-regulated environment.

The Faculty requires principled and strategically astute academic leadership capable of navigating complex governance arrangements, multi-stakeholder partnerships and defence-aligned operational requirements, while advancing academic excellence, transformation and institutional integrity.

Visit the Faculty`s website for further information.