The post of Sub-Dean is intended for senior graduate students (i.e., normally in the second or third year of their graduate programme). The post will run from 1 September 2026 to 31 August 2027, subject to a 3-month probationary period.
The primary role of the Sub-Deans is to act as a decanal presence, particularly in the evening and at weekends in term-time, and occasionally for longer periods out of term. The College employs in total four Sub-Deans.
The Sub-Deans are the first point of call for all disciplinary and welfare matters that require immediate response. The role will involve exercising the authority of the Deans of Arts over all students of the College outside of the Deans’ working hours. This includes in any incidents reported by the porters, who will rely on the Sub-Deans to be on call at all times (evenings and weekends), unless otherwise arranged in advance (see below).
Specifically, the Sub-Deans will be required to undertake the following duties:
Discipline
The Sub-Dean will be required to deal with emergencies as they arise and to help to maintain an appropriate environment in the College by upholding its regulations, principally in the evenings, overnight and at weekends. Specifically, this will include the following activities:
i) Being on call to deal with incidents reported by the duty porter in the evenings and overnight, and all day on Saturdays and Sundays, unless otherwise agreed and communicated in advance (see below).
ii) Being ready to act on his/her own initiative, as appropriate, to maintain good order in the College.
iii) Overseeing, in cooperation with the bar manager and others, as appropriate, the smooth running of parties, bops and other approved entertainments.
iv) Liaising with the other Sub-Deans, the Dean for Welfare, the Lodge Manager, the Deans of Arts, the President, and others as necessary, to monitor issues that might from time to time affect the maintenance of a considerate and respectful environment within the College.
v) In the case of serious breaches of discipline, the Sub-Dean will be expected to note the names of those involved, the nature of the intervention and, summon them on the spot to attend the next Deans’ Hour, unless the incident is sufficiently serious as to require a meeting with the Deans of Arts as soon as is practicable. In any event, the details of the incident should be relayed as soon as possible to the Deans of Arts, usually by email. Disciplinary measures will then be taken by the Deans of Arts following the College’s non-academic disciplinary procedures, detailed in the Information and Regulations for Members of the College.
Welfare
In the normal course of being resident on-site, Sub-Deans are part of the College’s network for providing support and pastoral care to students. In this capacity, the Sub-Deans will be required to:
i) Liaise as appropriate, with the other Sub-Deans, Student Support Administrators, the Deans of Arts, the Dean for Welfare, College Mentor for Students, College Nurse, Dean of Divinity, the Tutor for Equality and Diversity, Harassment Officers and JCR and MCR welfare reps. The Sub-Deans collectively are expected to be represented at a weekly meeting of College staff involved in student welfare.
ii) Be aware of issues to do with student welfare in general and deal with individual cases of concern as and when they arise.
iii) Be available for consultation by Junior Members seeking support or advice and be ready to listen supportively, and to refer Junior Members to appropriate sources of support in consultation with the Deans and Student Support Administrators. Though not expected to act as a counsellor, each successful applicant should become familiar with the range of professional assistance available to students so that he or she can direct students towards the most appropriate sources of help. Sub-Deans are expected to be familiar with the College’s expectations concerning confidentiality in a welfare context.
iv) To attend Deans’ Dinners – an occasion where first-year undergraduates are invited to dinner with senior members of the College. These are usually held in Michaelmas and Hilary Term.
Other Duties and Responsibilities
i) Undertake first aid training (at the College’s expense) and participate in other relevant training courses (e.g. the pre-term training course for Junior Deans run by the University’s Counselling Service; ‘Listening Skills’ and ‘Harassment’ courses), as agreed in consultation with the Deans of Arts.
ii) Any other duties which the Deans of Arts may reasonably request from time to time (e.g. to attend Formal Hall and other dinners at certain times, particularly if no Fellows are present. This will be at the College’s expense. When this arises, it may necessarily be at very short notice).
iii) The Sub-Dean may be required to provide cover for the Student Support Administrator for up to two days during Full Term, and may be asked to provide additional cover, subject to availability (additional cover would attract additional remuneration).
Residence and On-Call Requirements
Your hours of work will be as required up to a maximum of 20 hours per week. The Sub-Deans are required to be in residence during term time, normally from Weeks 0 to 9 inclusive, except that in Michaelmas they must be in Oxford in the week during which the pre-sessional Mathematics Freshers’ course is held (the week before 0th Week). Additionally, in Trinity Term they must remain available until the end of Final examinations. The Sub-Deans must generally be available from 5 p.m. during the week, as well as day and night at weekends. It may occasionally be necessary to call on one or more of the Sub-Deans to assist with urgent matters that arise during the day.
In addition, the Sub-Deans will be expected to be in residence for the whole of the admissions period (i.e. until Thursday of Week 10 of Michaelmas Term) and during the Easter vacation, when a great number of students remain resident on the main college site. The coordination of these periods of additional residence will be agreed in advance with the Deans of Arts. There may also be occasions during each vacation when it is necessary for the Sub-Deans to assist in dealing with problems that arise with resident students, including visiting students.
The Sub-Deans are expected to plan a rota for term-time, naming two Sub-Deans ‘on call’ at any time. The rota and mobile numbers for each Sub-Dean should be distributed to the Lodge, the Home Bursar, and the Deans of Arts in 0th week of each term. The third and fourth Sub-Deans who are ‘off-rota’ should be available to help if necessary and in the case of College Bops three sub-deans are required to attend. On the exceptional occasions when one or other of the other Sub-Deans is not in residence overnight, or for a similar span of time, and cannot be called upon by the porters to be present at short notice, the other Sub-Deans will need to be available as a substitute in any area of College requiring coverage. Permission to be out of residence overnight must be sought from the Deans of Arts, and in term-time will only be granted in an exceptional case.
Exceptionally, if a situation does arise where no Sub-Deans are available, it is the responsibility of the Sub-Deans to arrange for the President to be on call in the case of an emergency. This procedure should only be applied in very exceptional cases. In any case, it is the responsibility of each Sub-Dean to ensure that the porters are informed as to who should be contacted on each occasion when s/he is not available, according to a protocol agreed in advance with the Deans of Arts and Lodge Manager.
A Sub-Dean who has not attended the University Counselling Service’s pre-term course for Junior Deans will normally be expected to complete that course in September of the starting year or at an appropriate alternative time.
Applicants should note that fulfilling the responsibilities of the position may involve some unscheduled periods of temporarily time-consuming work at short notice.
Applicants must be in good academic standing; have excellent inter-personal skills; and be able to demonstrate high standards of personal and professional integrity, good organisational skills, and tact. It is essential that each Sub-Dean should enjoy the respect of his/her peers and be able to command both trust and authority. The Sub-Deans should be an active and visible presence in College, getting to know and mixing with the undergraduates, graduates, tutors, Fellows, the Lodge Manager and his/her colleagues, to facilitate good information flow.
The post of Sub-Dean is a fixed-term appointment, normally for one year. However, s/he may ask to be considered for reappointment for a further fixed-term period, provided s/he is in good academic standing and still actively engaged in their current graduate programme of studies (except that, where appropriate, the term of appointment may be extended beyond the viva by a few months).
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Free College accommodation in the form of a set of rooms on the main College site or close by. It is a condition of the role that the postholder reside in this accommodation. Applicants should be aware that the College accommodation provided for this role may not be suitable for families, but may be suitable for a couple;
- An annual stipend (currently £6,000) which includes entertainment expenses;
- 7 meals per week (lunch or dinner) for the duration of this contract, either through the Buttery in Hall or in the SCR.
The College will supply a mobile phone that should be carried at all times when on college business.
Application Process
To apply for this position, please click the 'Apply Now' button and submit the following:
- A curriculum vitae (CV)
- A headed letter of support from your supervisor or head of department
- A few paragraphs outlining your qualifications and relevant experience
All applications and references must be received by 08 June 2026. No applications or references received after this time will be considered. Interviews for selected candidates are expected to be held the end of Seventh Week / beginning of Eight Week.
Following the offer of the position, appointment will be subject to provision of proof of the right to work in the UK, and satisfactory completion of an enhanced DBS check.
If the chosen candidate requires any workplace adjustments, this would be brought to the attention of Human Resources through completion of a new starter Occupational Health Services Declaration.
Applications are particularly welcome from women and from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates, who are under-represented in posts in Oxford.
Magdalen College is an Equal Opportunities Employer. For further information, see http://www.magd.ox.ac.uk/equality.
Magdalen College, founded in 1458, is one of the largest and most beautiful of the colleges of the University of Oxford, set in 100 acres of grounds which include the Deer Park and Addison’s riverside walk.
Our community includes nearly 400 undergraduates, over 280 graduate students, 75 Governing Body Fellows, and some 140 non-academic staff, as well as over 9,400 alumni from all over the world. For more than 500 years it has been the home of politicians, poets, scientists, adventurers, entrepreneurs, and 10 Nobel laureates, as well as being a choral foundation with an internationally renowned choir.
