To become a dean of academic affairs, you will typically have to work as a college or university instructor for a significant period of time, taking on more responsible administrative positions within your department and eventually your university. While you may not need to complete additional education or training in educational administration, you will need to demonstrate strong administrative skills as well as the ability to establish and maintain good academic policies. Depending on the size of the school you work at, you may have significant management duties while dealing with support staff and both students and faculty. You may also need to familiarize yourself with accreditation standards, as you may take a significant role in obtaining and renewing accreditation for your school and its programs.
Unlike some educational administration roles, academic deans typically emerge from the ranks of academics rather than career administrators. If you hope to eventually become a dean of academic affairs, you may wish to focus on developing your academic career and eventually earning tenure. During this time, be sure to participate in opportunities to sit on task forces and committees so that you get experience in working on academic policy and so that you develop an understanding of the administrative process. In some cases, you may also be eligible to assume an administrative position even before you gain tenure, perhaps as an assistant to the chair of your department. If the chair of your department decides to leave, you may wish to volunteer to work as an interim chair while your colleagues search for a replacement.
As you participate more in the academic community, you may want to focus your attention and energies on those committees that allow you to learn about issues such as accreditation. Accreditation is often necessary to the ability of a school to receive financial aid and award recognized degrees to students. If you have a strong knowledge of accreditation issues, you may be in a better position to eventually become a dean of academic affairs or to secure a significant administrative position at a school of higher education.
After you achieve tenure, you may be able to focus more on a career in academic administration. If it appears that you may not have the opportunity to take on administrative positions of increasing authority at your current school, you should consider monitoring job listings in the academic community for schools that are seeking administrators. When you find positions that interest you, apply for them. Although this may mean moving some distance away, it may be necessary to do so in order to become a dean of academic affairs.
