Assistant Director of Life Design, Science & Medicine (Integrative Learning and Life Design)

We are seeking an Assistant Director of Life Design, Science & Medicine, Life Design Educator who will report to the Senior Director for Undergraduate Education and will execute on the Life Design Lab’s vision, strategy, and objectives to enhance and deliver the professional development, career advancement, and life design offerings for students pursuing careers in science and medicine. The Science & Medicine portfolio is composed of six primary majors: chemistry, biology, molecular and cellular biology, biophysics, physics, and medicine, science, and humanities.

As an equity-based office that believes all of our students have the same opportunity to pursue their life purpose regardless of background, field of study, or social capital, each Life Design Educator is expected to co-create, collaborate, and support all of our students; however, this position has a particular focus on careers in science and medicine.

The Life Design Educator will become familiar with the novel approach to career readiness and life design established at Johns Hopkins University and implement programs, scalable support systems, and content that connect critical mindsets, frameworks, and approaches with their designated student population. There will be an emphasis on scalable solutions, initiative-based delivery, and high-impact applied experiences to support students pursuing science and medicine pathways.

Primary Duties & Responsibilities

Core Services & Outcomes

• Scale efforts for a positive life design and professional development experience for all students and alumni, with special attention to students within the Science & Medicine portfolio.
• Design and implement workshops to support students’ career readiness and life design needs at scale, grounded in current best practices and emerging trends.
• Develop scalable asynchronous and on-demand content to deliver career readiness best practices at scale to students pursuing undergraduate education.
• Strategically manage targeted outreach to enhance participation and support, ensuring students are informed about relevant opportunities, coaching, programs, and events while proactively monitoring engagement and outcome attainment.
• Collaborate with fellow Life Design Educators and departmental leadership to advance bridge-year career placement and support, share best practices, and coordinate team-wide efforts.
• Provide strategic individual and group coaching to support students’ life design exploration, career readiness, and professional development.
• Track, analyze, and drive key student outcomes, including full-time attainment, bridge-year attainment, offer conversion, and participation in high-impact experiences.
• Engage in social media, digital outlets, and academic and professional journals and associations to establish an exciting brand, tell the story, and serve as a thought leader at Johns Hopkins University and in higher education.

Curriculum Development & Facilitation

• Using the mindsets and methodologies of life design and best practices from the Life Design Lab, deliver workshops, programs, content, and digital resources to help students and alumni achieve their life ambitions.
• Customize existing Life Design curriculum, offerings, and approaches given the unique needs of students and alumni based on identity and values, academic pursuits, and professional interests.
• Instruct the Life Design Summer Experience Practicum Course and additional credit-bearing classes when available.
• Integrate asynchronous learning material into tailored student outreach, cohort development, and programmatic efforts.

Project Management

• Adhere to project timelines, supporting the execution of life design programs and initiatives.
• Coordinate cohort-specific programs and services in partnership with key stakeholders.

Strategic Partnerships

• In partnership with Life Design Lab leadership, cultivate and strengthen relationships with colleagues across units, including, but not limited to, school leadership, Pre-Professional Advising, academic advising, and Integrated Learning & Life Design partners.
• Work in partnership with the Life Design Educator for FLI Pathways to provide consistency and partnership with efforts supporting JUMP.
• Collaborate with Hire Hopkins and alumni relations colleagues to build and maintain a network of employers and mentors across varied careers who can attend courses, programs, and networking events.
• Partner with faculty, academic departments, alumni, employers, and campus partners to increase mentoring, experiential learning, bridge-year planning, and career opportunities for students and alumni.

Departmental Contribution

• Actively participate as a member of a Life Design Lab committee, contributing to strategic initiatives and collaborative decision-making.

Behavioral Competencies

• Inclusive Communication: Communicates clearly and empathetically across diverse student and stakeholder groups.
• Collaborative Relationships: Builds respectful and productive partnerships by valuing diverse experiences and perspectives.
• Initiative & Follow-Through: Demonstrates ownership of responsibilities and consistently delivers with integrity and reliability.
• Adaptability: Responds flexibly to evolving priorities, student needs, and technological shifts in a dynamic setting.
• Equity-Centered Practice: Applies an equity lens to programming and decision-making, ensuring inclusive access and support.

Special Skill, Knowledge, & Abilities

• Knowledge of highly selective college or university settings, and familiarity with operations of the world of work and university networks.
• Ability to translate student experiences to employment as evidenced by prior experience in either a government, non-profit, education, or private sector setting.
• Evidence of ability to develop and execute programs, courses, events, and content to scale impact across various constituent groups.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team to achieve individual and shared goals within a complex and decentralized institution.
• Strong multicultural competency and demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with diverse stakeholders to achieve equitable and inclusive results.
• Comfortable with technology and able to quickly learn and use a wide range of systems, collaboration tools, and instructional technologies.
• Listen and communicate convincingly in written and verbal formats.

About Working in the Imagine Center

Our educators work within multiple offices and spaces on campus. Rather than assigning office or desk spaces to our teams, we have modernized our approach and assigned laptops and cell phones, and expect that our teams can work from anywhere to scale our impact across the institution. For this model to work, the ideal candidate must present excellent relationship development skills and engage audiences in groups and via social media and digital outlets.

• Master's Degree required.
• Three (3) years of experience within a higher education, government, non-profit, or corporate setting.
• Additional education may substitute for required experience and additional related experience may substitute for required education beyond a high school diploma/graduation equivalent, to the extent permitted by the JHU equivalency formula.

• Experience presenting or facilitating in both in-person and online formats.
• Experience creating content and utilizing social media to engage and educate diverse audiences and influence public opinion.
• Experience developing and implementing effective assessment methods and articulating strategic priorities.
• Experience with/ understanding of the requirements involved in preparing students for science, medicine, research, bridge-year, and related career pathways.

Classified Title: Life Design Educator 
Job Posting Title (Working Title): Assistant Director of Life Design, Science & Medicine (Integrative Learning and Life Design)   
Role/Level/Range: ACRP/04/MD  
Starting Salary Range: $55,800 - $97,600 Annually ($65,000 targeted; Commensurate w/exp.) 
Employee group: Full Time 
Schedule: Mon - Fri, 8:30am - 5pm 
FLSA Status: Exempt 
Location: Hybrid/Homewood Campus  
Department name: Life Design Lab   
Personnel area: University Student Services