Salary: £50,000 - £65,000 per annum

Employment type: Permanent

Hours per week: 37

Reporting into: Enterprise Data Architect

Department: IT

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 require little to no travel into our various UK sites. 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.

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 Data Architect sits within our Technology Department that is crucial to making sure our employees and students can work effectively, deliver projects, find the right solutions and ensure we develop the technology that will make the biggest difference.

Our IT team is made up of around 65 employees with a vast range of skills from Software Development to IT Operations and Security.

Our IT Department values employee development and we have lots of great examples of employee progression and promotions within the team.

About the Opportunity:

At Arden University, we're transforming the way higher education works. As we continue to invest in our digital future, data is at the heart of every decision we make - from delivering outstanding student experiences to shaping innovative, AI-enabled learning.

We're looking for a Data Architect to play a pivotal role in defining and delivering our data architecture strategy. This is an opportunity to influence how data is managed, governed and leveraged across the University, creating modern, scalable solutions that unlock insight, drive innovation and support strategic decision-making.

Working across a wide range of transformation initiatives, you'll provide technical leadership on data architecture, helping to design robust data models, improve data quality and establish best practices that enable the business to make confident, evidence-based decisions. You'll collaborate with stakeholders across technology and the wider University to build a future-ready data ecosystem that supports our ambitious growth plans.

As AI becomes an increasingly important part of our strategy, you'll also help shape the data foundations that power intelligent solutions. From ensuring data is fit for purpose to advising on governance, architecture and emerging technologies, you'll play a key role in enabling AI-driven innovation while maintaining high standards of quality, security and compliance.

About You:

If you're passionate about designing modern data architectures, enjoy influencing strategic direction, and want to make a genuine impact in an organisation that's embracing digital transformation and AI, we'd love to hear from you.

Essential requirements:

• Proven experience delivering data architecture transformation initiatives within complex enterprise environments.

• Strong understanding of enterprise architecture frameworks such as TOGAF and their application to data strategy and operating models.

• Hands-on experience with cloud data platforms, including Azure, AWS, GCP, or Microsoft Fabric.

• Expertise in enterprise data management technologies, including database platforms, ETL tooling, SQL, and data modelling principles.

• Knowledge of modern data storage approaches, including relational, MPP, NoSQL, and columnar data platforms.

• Experience supporting data governance, data quality, stewardship, and master data management practices.

• Excellent analytical and problem-solving abilities, with the capability to prioritise effectively and deliver practical, scalable solutions.

• Ability to provide technical leadership and guidance across both technical and non-technical stakeholder groups.

• Strong communication, negotiation, and influencing skills, with the confidence to present complex information clearly and concisely.

• Experience collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver data and transformation initiatives.

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: 4th August

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.