Dean of the School of Physical Sciences at InsideHigherEd

Dean of the School of Physical Sciences
The University of California, Irvine

The University of California, Irvine (UCI), among the nation’s top public research universities and part of the world-renowned University of California system, seeks an inspiring, visionary, and strategic scholar-administrator to serve as Dean of the School of Physical Sciences (SPS).

UC Irvine is a proud member of the Association of American Universities (AAU)—a prestigious group of leading research institutions— and is recognized as a top-tier (R1) research university and as an Opportunity University, providing high levels of access and student success, by the Carnegie Classification system. Learn more about UC Irvine at https://uci.edu/.

The UC Irvine School of Physical Sciences, one of the campus’s founding schools, is home to four distinguished departments: Chemistry, Earth System Science, Mathematics, and Physics & Astronomy, each with a strong record of impact and academic leadership.

The Dean of the School of Physical Sciences serves as the chief academic and administrative officer of the School, providing strategic vision, leadership, and oversight for its four departments and affiliated research centers. The Dean is responsible for advancing excellence in teaching, research, and service; supporting faculty recruitment, retention, and development; and ensuring a dynamic and inclusive learning environment for students. In collaboration with campus leadership, the Dean will foster interdisciplinary partnerships, champion inclusive excellence, and strengthen connections with industry, alumni, and philanthropic partners. The Dean also oversees budgetary and operational management, guiding the School toward sustainable growth and national leadership in discovery and innovation.

Required Qualifications

• A PhD (or international equivalent) and a distinguished record of scholarship in the physical sciences.
• A proven record of leadership within research-intensive environments, such as serving as a department chair, program director, dean, associate dean, or comparable international role.
• Experience advancing interdisciplinary educational and research initiatives.
• Demonstrated ability to secure funding and generate resources to support research and academic priorities.
• A strong commitment to inclusive excellence and to the professional development of colleagues, faculty, staff, and students.
• Experience contributing to and leading strategic planning efforts.
• Experience in managing budgets and the ability to work with school administration and the central budget office to develop and forecast future financial plans.

Compensation and Benefits
Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience. The salary range for this role is $400,000-450,000 with a generous benefits package. To learn more about UC Irvine’s offerings, please visit our Human Resources website.

This is a full-time position that will be performed on site in Irvine, California.

The University of California, Irvine is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected categories covered by the UC anti-discrimination policy. For more information visit our Division of Equal Opportunity and Compliance.

Contact
DSG | Storbeck has been exclusively retained for this engagement, which is being led by Ruth Shoemaker Wood, PhD and Susan Kart, PhD. To express interest, please submit a CV to: [email protected] Suggestions of candidates and questions may be submitted to the search team directly at the same email.

All inquiries and discussions are strictly confidential.

Search Team Contact Information
Ruth Shoemaker Wood, PhD, Managing Director
Susan Kart, PhD, Senior Associate
DSG | Storbeck
[email protected]