Subject Matter Experts | Higher Education Teaching Certificate Program
Call for Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) | Higher Education Teaching Certificate Program
The Higher Education Teaching Certificate Program is a comprehensive, three certificate professional learning pathway that supports instructors across stages of their teaching career, from emerging educators to experienced faculty.
Grounded in evidence-based pedagogy, reflective practice, inclusive teaching principles, and learner-centred course and program design, the Higher Education Teaching Certificate Program provides participants with structured opportunities to build, apply, and extend their teaching knowledge using a flexible learning pathway. Through a combination of foundational learning, advanced pedagogical development, and future-focused exploration of artificial intelligence in teaching and learning, participants will develop the confidence, competence, and adaptability needed to teach effectively in contemporary higher education environments.
The program comprises three distinct but interconnected certificates:
- Foundations in Higher Education Teaching Certificate
- Advanced Teaching in Higher Education Certificate
- AI in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education Certificate
Together, these certificates provide a flexible and progressive framework for developing teaching competence, instructional leadership, and pedagogical innovation. Each certificate consists of eight, 15-hour micro-credentials.
Foundations in Higher Education Teaching Certificate
The Foundations in Higher Education Teaching Certificate is designed to build the foundational skills that early career faculty and instructors need to effectively develop their teaching practice. This certificate equips participants with practical tools to design, facilitate and assess effective learning experiences in higher education. Courses in this certificate will be self-directed.
Focus
- Designing and delivering courses that prioritize student engagement, inclusivity, and accessibility
- Building strong teaching practices grounded in research, reflective teaching, and effective teaching strategies
- Creating a professional teaching portfolio that demonstrates readiness for academic teaching roles
Advanced Teaching in Higher Education Certificate
The Advanced Teaching in Higher Education Certificate supports experienced faculty in expanding their teaching practice into program design, educational leadership, and scholarly teaching. Participants engage with advanced concepts in inclusive teaching, assessment, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. The program culminates in a capstone that demonstrates integrated expertise in teaching, leadership, and scholarly practice. Courses in this certificate will be self-directed and asynchronous.
Focus
- Designing and leading programs that align with institutional goals, while fostering collaboration and guiding meaningful change within teaching and learning environments
- Strengthening advanced skills in inclusive and accessible pedagogy, implementing effective assessment and evaluation strategies
- Engaging in the scholarship of teaching and learning to inform and improve teaching practice
AI in Higher Education Teaching and Learning Certificate
The AI in Higher Education Teaching and Learning Certificate prepares instructors to effectively and responsibly integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into higher education teaching and learning. Through a sequence of applied, pedagogy-driven courses, participants will develop both conceptual understanding and practical skills to enhance teaching, learning, and assessment in AI-enabled environments. Courses in this certificate will be self-directed and asynchronous.
Focus
- Integrating AI into teaching, learning, and assessment through evidence-based instructional design and applied practice
- Developing strategies to address academic integrity, equity, accessibility, and responsible AI use, including transparency, accountability, and authorship
- Building capacity to critically evaluate AI tools and outputs while applying them effectively to enhance student engagement, learning, and course design
Experience
We are currently seeking SMEs for all three certificates with experience in areas including:
- Teaching and facilitation in higher education
- Evidence-based pedagogy and adult learning principles
- Program and course design and development
- Program evaluation and quality assurance
- Assessment, evaluation and feedback practices
- Equity, inclusion and accessibility in teaching practice
- Reflective practice and teaching portfolio development
- Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)
- Educational leadership within higher education, faculty development and mentoring, instructional coaching
- Educational technology and online learning
- Evaluating and applying AI to teaching, learning and assessment
- Responsible and inclusive AI implementation (academic integrity, ethics, policy, governance, privacy, accessibility, equity, and inclusion)
- Emerging trends shaping higher education teaching and learning
Required Qualifications
- PhD or combination of education and relevant teaching experience
- Professional experience (5+ years) teaching in higher education
- Proven experience in curriculum or course development, with preference given to those who have developed online, self-directed learning programs
- Strong record of teaching, training, or facilitation for adult or professional learners
- Exceptional communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to work across disciplines and institutional units to meet project milestones
Compensation and Engagement
SMEs will be engaged as independent contractors. Each engagement includes structured planning, development of in-person and synchronous activities, design of applied case studies and assessments, review of the CourseLink site (for supplementary asynchronous elements), and collaborative development with the design team. The estimated range of effort is 30–40 hours per course. This should be considered a guideline, as actual time may vary depending on course scope, content complexity, the developer’s prior experience with course development, institutional timelines, technology requirements, and the level of collaboration required.
Note: Developments would commence from Fall 2026 through Fall 2027.
To Apply
Please submit your resume and a brief cover letter outlining your subject matter expertise and relevant experience as well as identifying the certificate(s) for which you are interested in developing courses to the following email address by August 14, 2026, for full consideration. Applications may continue to be accepted after this date until suitable candidates are identified.
Lisa Blenkinsop, Program Manager, Global Initiatives, School of Continuing Studies
Email: lblenkin@uoguelph.ca