Institutional Advancement VP (Institutional Advancement Vice President)

Most days tend to involve a blend of executive leadership work, donor and alumni engagement, and team management — leadership team meetings, donor and trustee conversations, and oversight of major gifts, annual fund, alumni, and communications. You'll often spend significant time on the road — meeting major donors and alumni in their cities and at events.

The hardest part is often carrying a personal revenue number that depends on relationships built over decades, while leading a function whose work compounds slowly. You'll typically partner with the president on cultivation while still being accountable when totals fall short, and you'll absorb the political dynamics of donors, trustees, and faculty whose interests sometimes diverge.

People who tend to thrive here are strategically minded, deeply relational, and skilled at the long game of institutional advancement. The trade-off is the visibility of fundraising performance and the personal investment that major donor relationships require. If you find satisfaction in shaping an institution's long-term financial future, this role offers one of the most influential seats in higher education leadership.