WHY UT SOUTHWESTERN?
With over 75 years of excellence in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, UT Southwestern is committed to excellence, innovation, teamwork, and compassion. As a world-renowned medical and research center, we strive to provide the best possible care, resources, and benefits for our valued employees. Ranked as the number 1 hospital in Dallas-Fort Worth according to U.S. News & World Report, we invest in you with opportunities for career growth and development to align with your future goals. Our highly competitive benefits package offers healthcare, PTO and paid holidays, on-site childcare, wage, merit increases and so much more. We invite you to be a part of the UT Southwestern team where you’ll discover a culture of teamwork, professionalism, and a rewarding career!

JOB SUMMARY

UT Southwestern Medical Center is seeking a dynamic and experienced Director of Research and Academic Compliance to join our leadership team. Reporting to the Chief Compliance Officer, this individual will oversee the development, implementation, and management of compliance programs related to academics and basic science and clinical research activities. The Director will ensure adherence to all relevant regulations, accreditation standards, and internal policies, ultimately promoting a culture of integrity, transparency, and excellence in research and academic endeavors. 

Regulatory and Policy Oversight

• Develop, implement, and refine compliance policies, procedures, and best practices governing research and academic activities.
• Monitor regulatory changes (e.g., NIH, FDA, OHRP, and other federal and state requirements) and advise leadership on necessary updates to policies and procedures.
• Collaborate with institutional review boards (IRBs), conflict of interest committees, and research oversight committees to ensure timely and thorough reviews.

Program Development and Management

• Lead the design, implementation, and evaluation of comprehensive research and academic compliance programs.
• Establish metrics to measure the effectiveness of compliance efforts and proactively identify areas for program enhancement.
• Manage and coordinate audits and assessments related to research and academic compliance.

Training and Education

• Develop and deliver ongoing training programs for faculty, researchers, and staff on regulatory requirements, ethical standards, and institutional policies.
• Serve as an internal resource and subject matter expert, providing guidance on complex compliance issues.

Investigations and Enforcement

• Oversee investigations of alleged non-compliance, ensuring prompt and thorough review, documentation, and resolution of findings.
• Recommend corrective actions, including policy updates, process modifications, and disciplinary measures, as appropriate.

Collaboration and Stakeholder Engagement

• Partner with academic leaders, principal investigators, departmental chairs, and administrative units to promote consistent and aligned compliance practices.
• Work closely with the Chief Compliance Officer, legal counsel, and senior leadership to address high-risk or significant compliance concerns.
• Represent the organization to external regulatory agencies, accreditors, and professional associations, as needed.

Hybrid schedule:  3 days a week in the office, 2 days working from home. 

BENEFITS
UT Southwestern is proud to offer a competitive and comprehensive benefits package to eligible employees. Our benefits are designed to support your overall wellbeing, and include:

• PPO medical plan, available day one at no cost for full-time employee-only coverage
• 100% coverage for preventive healthcare-no copay
• Paid Time Off, available day one
• Retirement Programs through the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS)
• Paid Parental Leave Benefit
• Wellness programs
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Qualified Employer
• Learn more about these and other UTSW employee benefits!

EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION
Required

• Education
  Master’s Degree in Health Policy, Business, Health Care Administration, Accounting/Finance, Law or a related field.

• Experience
  7 years in research, research compliance, or academic operations. Experience with working in complex regulatory and compliance environments.

JOB DUTIES

• Assists in the University-wide risk assessment process to identify potential areas of research and academic vulnerabilities, critical and emerging risks.
• In conjunctions with UTSW Office of Compliance, collaborates with Research and Academic executives, department heads, programs directors and other research and academic operations leaders and teams to assure the development, implementation and ongoing improvement and assessment of the effectiveness of the seven elements of an effective compliance program for the research and academics mission areas. Creates and implements processes to identify, manage and mitigate the research and academics compliance risks, reduce the potential adverse effects of non-compliance, and develop/assure that effective corrective actions are implemented as appropriate.
• Works in collaboration with leaders in the Research and Academic Offices to develop and implement research compliance education and training program for all research staff and students, including research misconduct, protection of human subjects, conflict of interest, effort reporting and responsible conduct of research.
• Develops, initiates, maintains, and revises compliance-relate standards, policies and procedures for the operations of Research Administration, and Academic Affairs, and its related activities to prevent, detect, identify and mitigate illegal, unethical or improper conduct.
• Assures the effectiveness of the compliance program as applicable to research and academics matters measured and evaluated per the UTSW Office of Compliance and the UT System-wide Compliance Program.
• Directs identified compliance issues to the appropriate existing channels for evaluation and resolution; consults with Research Administration and Academic Affairs to improve the compliance of processes; coordinates and prepares reports and assessments as appropriate.
• Develops, prepares and presents reports to the Office of Compliance Program Development and Effectiveness, the research and academics leadership, the Research Compliance Committee, and other compliance committees as appropriate and pertaining to Research and Academic Affairs compliance activities.
• Assist with investigations of any alleged research misconduct. Reviews investigation reports, associated responses, and remedial action plans; follow-up with the Principal Investigator, his/her research staff, and appropriate members of management to assure that all deficiencies are adequately addressed.
• Leads the Research Compliance Committee meetings and supports activities to monitor adherence to policies, procedures, and legal/regulatory requirements and to identify and evaluate exposures and correct defective processes.
• Directs and supervises assigned personnel in the Research and Academics compliance division including performance evaluations, scheduling, orientation and training.
• Assist the UTSW Institutional Compliance Office as required.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

SECURITY AND EEO STATEMENT
Security
This position is security-sensitive and subject to Texas Education Code 51.215, which authorizes UT Southwestern to obtain criminal history record information.

EEO Statement
UT Southwestern Medical Center is committed to an educational and working environment that provides equal opportunity to all members of the University community. As an equal opportunity employer, UT Southwestern prohibits unlawful discrimination, including discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, disability, genetic information, citizenship status, or veteran status.