Job Description

Salary: £42,000/negotiable per annum

8 Roles Available

Employment type: 12 month Fixed Term Contracts

Hours per week: 37

Reporting into: Head of Learning Design

Department: Learning Design

Click here to read the full job description and view our excellent benefits here

This role operates primarily on a remote working arrangement that will only require occasional travel into one of our UK sites (roughly a couple of times per year). Our working model arrangements are a non-contractual benefit so please note that an Arden work location is added to our employment contracts.

About Arden University:

We are an aspirational and multi-award-winning university, delivering rapid growth with ambitious plans to disrupt the HE sector through our passion for innovation and digital education. Our vision is to become the first-choice university for career-focused lifelong learners worldwide, ensuring that everyone, everywhere can access higher education, by leading the thoughtful integration of AI into teaching and learning and equipping our students to thrive in an AI-enabled world.

There has never been a more exciting time to join Arden University, as we expand into new disciplines, forge worldwide partnerships, and expand our locations.

About our Department:

The Learning Design Department at Arden University is at the forefront of the institution's commitment to delivering accessible, modern, and flexible online education. Operating at the intersection of technology and pedagogy, the department is dedicated to breaking down traditional barriers to higher education. The team collaborates with academic faculties, media producers, and quality assurance specialists to design and continuously enhance the university's cutting-edge Virtual Learning Environment (iLearn). Driven by data, student feedback, and technological trends, the department fosters a culture of innovation, ensuring that Arden remains a sector leader in digital learning and student success

About the Opportunity:

As a Learning Designer, you will play a pivotal role in creating sector-leading digital learning experiences that excite and engage an international student body. In this role, you will design and build interactive digital modules in close partnership with academic subject matter experts, turning complex curriculum concepts into intuitive digital pathways. You will actively support the Faculty of Learning and Teaching, driving the ongoing evolution of our digital learning ecosystem. To thrive in this position, you must have a natural ability to collaborate across multi-disciplinary teams and a genuine passion for creating high-quality, innovative digital education.

About You:

Essential requirements:

• Proven Learning Design Background: Minimum of 3 years of experience as a digital learning designer, with a preference for experience within a Higher Education setting.
• Strong experience in designing and developing high-quality learning modules within a diverse range of learning platforms and authoring tools.
• Pedagogical & UX Knowledge: Deep understanding of pedagogical theories, systematic digital learning design approaches, and user experience (UX) principles.
• Authoring Tool Tools Proficiency: Strong technical skill in building interactive digital learning modules using Articulate Rise.
• LMS/VLE Administration: Practical experience working with a variety of Learning Management Systems and Virtual Learning Environments.
• Strong knowledge of current accessibility standards and inclusive design principles, with the ability to embed equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) throughout the learning design and development process.
• Ability to manage a demanding workload, work at pace, and take full ownership of delivering projects and outputs to agreed deadlines.
• Workshop Facilitation: Ability to lead storyboarding workshops and advise colleagues on how to embed sound teaching approaches.
• SME Collaboration: Proven track record of working with academics and subject-matter experts to develop and maintain digital materials.
• Experience managing and successfully coordinating multi-stakeholder projects.
• Stakeholder Engagement: A passionate interest in learning design and pedagogy with the ability to enthuse and motivate others.
• Autonomy & Resilience: Ability to work independently, respond to unforeseen challenges, and navigate institutional work practices and regulations.

Desirable requirements:

• Educated to a Master’s degree level in a relevant field (e.g., Digital Education, Instructional Design).
• Possession of a recognized professional certification in digital learning design.
• Specific experience working as a digital learning designer within the Higher Education sector.
• A working knowledge of broader university operations and how other departments interface with the learning design team.
• Direct experience working with the Moodle Learning Management System.

Why Arden:

At Arden, you will become a part of a passionate and dedicated team who are committed to removing unnecessary barriers to learning and making education more accessible. Our people work hard to ensure our students journeys are the best they can possibly be, as such we want to reward our people with fantastic benefits. Employees benefit from:

• 30 days holiday + bank holidays on-top, and even a Christmas closure!
• A generous Aviva pension plan, company contributions starting from 7%
• BUPA Cash Plan
• Private Medical Insurance coverage (applies to certain job roles)
• Access to Perkbox benefits
• Study any Arden course for free, with a discount for all family and friends
• Plus, other excellent benefits
• Our ‘Golden Ticket’ which allows you to gift anyone in your life a free Arden education

Our Values:

Stand out, Progressive, Accessible, Resourceful, Kindness, reflect who we are as an institution, a team and as individuals. If they also reflect you and you are excited by the chance to be the driving, creative force within a growing business, we want to hear from you.

There has never been a more exciting time to join Arden University, as we expand into new disciplines and locations.

Closing Date: 14th October

We reserve the right to close this vacancy before the specified closing date should we receive sufficient applications or in order to respond to business needs. In order to avoid missing an opportunity to apply please submit your application as early as possible.

If you are a current Arden student or have an upcoming course with us, you are not eligible to apply for Student Experience roles due to a conflict of interest related to system access.

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion:

Arden University is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. This means that if you have a disability, as defined by the Disability Equality Act 2010, you may be guaranteed an interview if you meet the essential criteria for the role.

If you wish to be considered under this scheme, you can indicate via the application form below. By doing so, you are also consenting for this information to be shared with the hiring team. For more details on what qualifies as a disability under the Disability Equality Act 2010, please refer to the guidance here.

As an Equal Opportunity Employer we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. Therefore, we make sure that our recruitment and selection processes never discriminate based upon people's age, disability, gender, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or other personal circumstances, and actively welcome applications from all groups.

Sponsorship statement:

Please be aware that some roles may not meet the points requirement for a sponsored Skilled Worker visa, or fulfil the criteria we have for providing sponsorship.  However we welcome applications from candidates who do not currently have the right to work in the UK but may be eligible for a visa through an alternative route.