Express an Interest

Targeting:
Females, Youth/Students, People with Disabilities, Seniors/Retired People, Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander, English as an additional language or dialect, LGBTQI

About Country Universities Centre

Regional Australians should not have to leave their communities to access and succeed in tertiary education. Country Universities Centres (CUC) exists to make that possible.

Country UC Ltd (CUC Central) is a not-for-profit company and ACNC-registered charity that coordinates a network of 28 locally owned, CUC-affiliated Regional University Study Hubs serving 41 regional, rural and remote communities. Each Centre is community-led and gives students dedicated study space, technology, academic and wellbeing support, and a local learning community.

CUC Central amplifies, enables, protects and connects its affiliated Centres. It provides the systems, partnerships, data, advocacy and support that no single Centre can deliver alone.

CUC is more than an education service. Centres are regional development infrastructure: they build local workforce capability, keep talent in regional communities and contribute to long-term social and economic prosperity.

The opportunity

CUC is entering a defining period. Our Strategic Plan 2026 to 2029 sets a course for growth, deeper tertiary education and industry partnerships, stronger evidence of impact and a more financially resilient network.

We are seeking an Independent Non-Executive Director who will strengthen the Board's capability, bring rigorous independent judgement and help steer CUC through this next stage.

This is a voluntary, unpaid role. It offers a rare chance to influence educational access and regional prosperity at national scale.

Skills and expertise

The Board is seeking a director with deep, demonstrable expertise in any of the following areas:

Legal and regulatory:

• Corporate and not-for-profit governance, constitutional matters, contract and partnership agreements, statutory compliance and legal risk.

Finance, audit and assurance:

• Financial reporting, audit oversight, internal controls and financial sustainability, ideally including audit and risk committee experience.

Regional development and community governance

• Regional economic development, place-based strategy and community-led models.
• Lived or professional experience in regional, rural or remote communities.
• Working with local government, regional development bodies or community-owned enterprises.

Investment and growth capital

• Revenue diversification beyond government funding, including philanthropic, corporate and impact investment.
• Structuring partnerships and co-investment with universities, industry and government.
• Social finance and impact measurement, including social and economic return.
• Regional infrastructure, property and facilities investment.
• Assessing business cases and the viability of new Centres, services or ventures.

Tertiary education

• University governance, education policy or sector regulation.
• Student access, participation, retention and outcomes, particularly for regional and first-in-family students.

Technology, data and cyber security

• Technology strategy and digital transformation across a distributed network.
• Cyber security, privacy and data governance, including student data.

Risk and assurance

• Enterprise risk management and risk appetite frameworks.
• Organisational resilience and oversight of a federated network.

We equally welcome candidates with broader strategic, commercial or governance experience, sound judgement and a genuine commitment to CUC's purpose.

Key responsibilities

As a Director, you will:

• Shape and oversee CUC's strategic direction and the delivery of the Strategic Plan 2026 to 2029.
• Bring independent judgement and constructive challenge to Board deliberations.
• Oversee financial sustainability, organisational performance and enterprise risk.
• Uphold strong corporate governance, regulatory compliance and accountability.
• Oversee the affiliation framework and the support CUC Central provides to its affiliated Centres.
• Build constructive relationships with Centre boards, regional communities, universities, the government and fellow Directors.
• Act in the best interests of CUC and meet your duties as a company director, contributing to a respectful, collegiate Board culture.

About you

You will bring:

• Significant senior executive, professional or Board experience.
• Strong strategic, analytical and decision-making skills.
• A sound understanding of corporate governance and directors' duties; AICD or equivalent qualification is valued but not essential.
• The confidence to ask hard questions and the judgement to work collaboratively towards good decisions.
• An understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing regional, rural and remote communities.
• A genuine commitment to improving educational access and outcomes across regional Australia.

Experience with not-for-profit, community-owned or federated organisations will be highly regarded.

CUC values a Board that reflects the communities it serves. We strongly encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people living in regional, rural and remote Australia, women, and people from diverse backgrounds.

Independence and conflicts of interest

This is an independent appointment. Candidates must be free of any relationship that could materially interfere with independent judgement.

Please disclose in your application any current or recent (past three years) role as a director, officer, employee or contractor of a CUC-affiliated Centre, a partner university, a funding body or a supplier to CUC. Disclosure of such relationships does not automatically exclude a candidate from consideration. Any potential or perceived conflicts of interest will be assessed as part of the recruitment process

Term

Initial term: 3 years, eligible for reappointment for 2 additional terms under the Constitution.

• Meetings: approximately 11 Board meetings a year, held online and an annual strategy session and AGM.
• Time: approximately 6 hours a month, including preparation and ad hoc engagements as required
• Support: reasonable expenses reimbursed; Directors' and Officers' insurance provided induction and briefing on CUC's network, strategy and governance.

This is a voluntary, unpaid appointment.

How to apply

Please submit:

• A current curriculum vitae.
• An expression of interest (no more than two pages) outlining the expertise and perspectives you would bring, which priority skill area you address, and why you want to contribute to CUC.
• A disclosure of any potential conflicts of interest.

Applications close 5pm (AEDT) Friday 11 December 2026.

Send to Ron Charlton, Company Secretary, at ron.charlton@cuc.edu.au, who is also happy to answer questions about the role.

Selection process: applications will be assessed by the Board against the Board skills matrix. Shortlisted candidates will meet with the Chair and one Director. Appointment is subject to standard checks, including ACNC responsible persons requirements.