Instructional Designer

George Mason University - Fairfax, VA

Full-time - Mid Level

Hybrid - Fairfax, VA

Educational Services

About the position

The Instructional Designer at George Mason University plays a pivotal role in enhancing the educational experience for students and professionals by applying research and data-driven practices to design and develop effective instructional materials. This position is situated within the Office of Digital Learning, which collaborates closely with faculty, staff, and various stakeholders to identify gaps in skills, knowledge, and dispositions among target audiences. The Instructional Designer is responsible for creating innovative and authentic learning experiences that address contemporary educational challenges across diverse disciplines and global contexts. In this role, the Instructional Designer will work collaboratively with faculty and other university stakeholders to conceptualize, design, and develop accessible and engaging online learning experiences. This includes managing the schedule and quality of each development project and its associated deliverables. The Instructional Designer will also provide ad hoc consulting services to faculty and staff regarding course redesign and other instructional design-related inquiries. Additionally, the position involves collaborating with the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning, Learning Support Services, and other faculty-support offices to develop and present professional development opportunities that are relevant to online learning and instructional technologies. The Instructional Designer will be tasked with sourcing and/or creating student-centric learning objects, including formative and summative assessment strategies, and related module content that fosters interpersonal interaction within courses. Staying current with research related to instructional design, higher education, and emerging technologies is essential to ground recommended instructional strategies effectively. The role also includes reviewing existing instructor content to make recommendations for revisions based on instructor/student feedback and performance data, as well as participating in and leading special projects, committees, initiatives, and activities as assigned by the supervisor.

Responsibilities

• Collaborates with faculty and other university stakeholders to conceptualize, design, and develop accessible and engaging online learning experiences, while managing the schedule and quality of each development project and their associated deliverables.
• Provides ad hoc consulting services to faculty and staff related to course redesign and other instructional design related questions.
• Collaborates with the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning, Learning Support Services, and other faculty-support offices to develop and present professional development opportunities relevant to online learning and instructional technologies.
• Sources and/or creates student-centric learning objects, including formative and summative assessment strategies and related module content that supports interpersonal interaction within a course.
• Maintains current competencies and familiarity with research related to instructional design, higher education, and emerging technologies to appropriately ground recommended instructional strategies.
• Reviews existing instructor content to make recommendations for revision using instructor/student feedback and performance data, as available.
• Participates in and leads special projects, committees, initiatives, and activities, as assigned by the supervisor.

Requirements

• Master's degree in related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience;
• Demonstrated professional work experience providing instructional design support to faculty developing online and hybrid courses (typically 2+ years). Some experience in a higher education setting and ability to work in a university environment;
• Ability to work with faculty to develop online and hybrid courses;
• Ability to develop instructional projects leveraging LMS capabilities, multimedia applications, academic technologies, and/or publisher resources success in an academic or training environment;
• Ability to support faculty adoption of new academic technologies and LMS functionalities into their online and hybrid courses;
• Ability to use LMS, visual presentation software, online collaboration tools, and web-authoring tools to create online learning environments;
• Ability to support learning in student-centered pedagogy;
• Ability to manage multiple projects with competing deadlines, simultaneously;
• Ability to use cloud-based tools such as Office 365 or G-Suite;
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

Nice-to-haves

• Familiarity with the Canvas LMS, Microsoft Office integrations, and other LTI-enabled academic technologies;
• Ability to work with faculty members and departments to develop fully online programs;
• Ability to collaborate in a decentralized university setting;
• Ability to apply performance and other key learning data to course re-design and quality assurance;
• Ability to work with a high degree of independence and initiative;
• Ability to work with e-learning authoring tools such as Articulate 360, Rise 360, and Adobe Captivate;
• Ability to work with basic HTML5 and Adobe creative cloud.

Benefits

• Salary commensurate with education and experience
• Remote eligible work options
• Professional development opportunities
• Supportive work environment focused on education and research