The Senior Accreditation Officer at the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) is responsible for leading the delivery of high-quality accreditation services for Higher Education Providers (HEPs) across Australia.

The position upholds and promotes best practice in social work education in alignment with AASW’s strategic directions, ensuring quality, compliance, and continuous development across accredited institutions.

This position can be located remotely from any location with occasional travel required.

About the Association:

The Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) is the professional representative body of social workers in Australia, with more than 17,000 members. The AASW sets the benchmarks for professional education and practice in social work and has a strong voice on matters of social justice, human rights and issues that impact upon the quality of life of all Australians.

Your key responsibilities:

Leadership and Operations

Lead and develop the Accreditation team to deliver workplans, service standards and performance outcomes.
Manage day-to-day operations, including workload, resourcing, budgeting and team capability.
Provide coaching and technical guidance to support high-quality accreditation practice.
Act as the primary point of accountability for operational performance and reporting to the General Manager and CEO.

Accreditation Management

Oversee assessment of accreditation applications, ensuring compliance with standards, policies and legislation.
Provide expert advice on accreditation requirements and resolve complex or sensitive issues.
Identify and manage risks, ensuring consistent and evidence-based decision-making.

Stakeholder Engagement

Build and maintain effective relationships with education providers, panel members and key stakeholders.
Act as an escalation point for complex queries or high-risk matters.
Ensure clear, timely communication of accreditation outcomes.

Panels, Council and Governance

Oversee Accreditation Assessment Panels, including scheduling, recruitment and member support.
Support the Accreditation Council through meeting coordination, reporting and operational advice.
Attend panel and Council meetings as required.

Quality Assurance and Improvement

Lead continuous improvement of accreditation frameworks, processes and systems.
Ensure accuracy and consistency of accreditation information across all platforms.
Contribute to the implementation of updated standards and practices.

Reporting and Compliance

Oversee reporting on accreditation activities, trends and outcomes.
Provide regular advice and reporting to the CEO and Council.
Ensure compliance with governance, contractual and financial requirements.

Key selection criteria:

Tertiary qualifications in Social Work, Business, Accreditation, Quality Auditing, or related fields.
Understanding of the Australian highereducation environment is highly regarded.
Significant demonstrated experience effectively managing a quality auditing program of work within agreed service delivery timeframes and standards.
Demonstrated capacity to manage competing work demands in a complex environment within tight delivery timelines.
Ability to mediate and facilitate stakeholder decision-making activities in accordance with external standards (e.g. ASWEAS) and/or legislation or regulations.
Excellent professional writing skills, including report writing, executive summaries, published documentation and high-level communication, including at a Board or Council level.
High level verbal skills and experience in presenting and facilitating group sessions.
High level administrative and organisational skills, including coaching and managing direct reports and the ability to work autonomously with minimal supervision.
Proficient in the use of Microsoft applications and use of external platforms desirable, e.g. Salesforce, Folio.

How to Apply

The AASW is committed to equal opportunities in employment and embraces diversity and inclusion in its workforce. We encourage applications from culturally and ethnically diverse communities, particularly those underrepresented in the social work profession including the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and people with a disability.

To be considered for this role, your application must include your résumé and a cover letter addressing the key selection criteria listed above.

Applications close 29th of April 2026 however, we reserve the right to end the closing date early.

Please direct any queries to: courtney.thompson@aasw.asn.au