Director, Development Administration

Special Instructions to Applicants

All interested applicants should attach a cover letter and resume in the Supporting Documents section of the application, preferably in a PDF format to avoid any formatting issues.

Boasting a 300‑acre tree‑lined campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has a 6-to-1 undergraduate student‑to‑faculty ratio, and a residential college system, which supports students intellectually, emotionally and culturally through social events, intramural sports, student plays, lecture series, courses and student government. Developing close‑knit, diverse college communities is a strong campus tradition, which is why Rice is highly ranked for best quality of life and best value among private universities.

Rice is also a wonderful place to work. Rice faculty, staff and students share values that are essential to our success as a healthy community. Those values guide our decisions and behaviors and shape Rice’s culture. They come through in the way we treat each other and the welcome we extend to our visitors. These values can be recalled simply by our name — RICE — Responsibility, Integrity, Community and Excellence.

Reporting to the Executive Director, Development and Alumni Operations, the Director of Development Administration has management and oversight of multiple operational support functions that serve as the backbone for the fundraising and engagement efforts of the Development and Alumni Relations Division at Rice University. These functions encompass finance, budget, human resources, IT desktop support, and office management for a division of approximately 160 staff members.

This individual participates on the team that aids in implementing the vice president’s overall strategic vision and strategy for the division, providing specific updates to the team related to administrative and financial activities and annual planning efforts. The Director of Development Administration operates as troubleshooter, problem-solver, and advisor when special administrative, financial, and IT support issues arise within the division;

serves in an advisory capacity for budget preparations by departmental budget managers and the vice president for development and alumni relations; and serves as the division’s source of information for official university policies and procedures.

The ideal candidate for this position is strongly detail‑oriented with an analytical background; is an excellent communicator and relationship builder, having an ability to both advise and maintain confidentiality on sensitive, and sometimes complicated, administrative issues; and is a leader with demonstrated success in managing and guiding a team or program in achieving the goals that support the mission of the institution.

This position is offered as a hybrid role, combining both in‑office and remote work to provide flexibility and support collaboration. Per Rice policy 440, work arrangements may be subject to change.

* Exempt (salaried) positions under FLSA are not eligible for overtime.

• Bachelor’s degree
• Four or more (4+) years of related professional experience in administration, budget management, and/or financial reporting, including experience in managing people, systems, processes, and functions

• Demonstrated leadership, supervisory, planning and change management skills
• Excellent oral and written communication skills
• Ability to influence people, solve problems, troubleshoot, think creatively and resolve conflicts
• Advanced financial expertise in budget planning and financial forecasting
• Advanced analytical and problem‑solving skills
• Excellent data analysis skills
• Strong attention to detail
• Ability to work well under pressure and manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Strong organizational and time management skills
• Extensive knowledge of Microsoft Office suite
• Maturity in judgment and ability to maintain confidentiality

• Master’s degree
• 5+ years of related professional experience described above
• Previous work in a similar role at Rice University, or at…