Director of University Libraries

About the role

The United Arab Emirates University is seeking a senior leader to head its Libraries Deanship. Reporting to the Deputy Vice‑Chancellor for Academic Affairs, the Director will provide strategic, operational and technical leadership for all library services, collections, staff, spaces, systems and partnerships.

Key responsibilities

• Define and communicate a forward‑looking vision that aligns the Deanship with UAEU’s strategic priorities.
• Advance student learning through information literacy, research consultation and integration of library expertise into curricula.
• Support the university’s research enterprise by overseeing scholarly communication, open scholarship, research‑data stewardship, bibliometrics and the institutional repository.
• Lead a coherent collections strategy across print, digital, archival and special collections, managing acquisition, licensing, discovery and preservation.
• Guide digital transformation initiatives, including library platforms, discovery systems, digitisation, digital preservation and ethical adoption of AI and emerging technologies.
• Enhance physical and virtual library environments to be inclusive, accessible and technology‑enabled spaces for study, collaboration and community engagement.
• Use assessment, analytics and benchmarking to evaluate impact, improve user experience and report transparently.
• Prepare and manage the annual budget, overseeing procurement, contracts, subscriptions, vendors and technology investments.
• Recruit, develop and retain a high‑performing, inclusive workforce and foster a culture of continuous professional development.

Required profile

Required skills

• Digital transformation
• Library platforms
• Discovery systems
• Digital preservation
• Artificial Intelligence (ethical application)