Salary Range: Salary commensurate with experience and qualifications
About the Position: This role is an on-campus, in-person position.
The Editorial Director serves as the central leader for writing across SMU marketing and a key partner to SMU communications - elevating the quality, creativity and impact of written content. The role leads writing excellence, ensuring that SMU storytelling reflects the depth of its academic work, strengthens its reputation, and engages prospective students and other key audiences.
Operating in a player-coach model, the Editorial Director serves as lead writer on high-priority initiatives while elevating the capabilities of the broader writing team. The role partners closely with strategy, creative, digital and communications teams to align content with institutional priorities and audience needs, ensuring that the SMU voice is distinctive, compelling and consistent across channels.
Reporting to the Executive Director of Creative Marketing, the Editorial Director manages a team of writers and editors.
Essential Functions: - Lead the development of high-impact, high-visibility content that advances SMU's reputation, supports enrollment and advancement goals, and elevates the University's voice. Serve as the lead writer on priority initiatives, including institutional storytelling and major campaigns.
- Own and evolve the quality and distinctiveness of the University's written voice across SMU Marketing and Communications. Ensure clarity, consistency and differentiation across audiences and channels. Define and uphold standards for writing excellence across marketing, ensuring that all content is clear, compelling, audience-centered and aligned with the SMU brand and positioning.
- Lead and develop a team of writers and an editor, setting performance expectations and fostering a culture of creative excellence. Coach team members to strengthen their storytelling, messaging and craft, empowering them to produce work at a high level across a range of formats and audiences.
- Partner closely with strategy, creative and digital teams to ensure writing is integrated into broader marketing efforts and aligned with campaign goals, audience insights and desired outcomes.
- Collaborate with the Media Relations Director and communications team to align writing resources and assignments, ensuring that projects are staffed appropriately and that messaging is consistent across marketing and communications efforts.
- Shape and contribute to content strategy and planning, defining how stories are developed and delivered across channels - including digital platforms, campaigns, multimedia storytelling and long-form content. Contribute to search engine optimization efforts and coach writers on ways to make content more easily found by constituents and by AI tools.
- Ensure editorial quality and consistency across all content through effective editing, guidance and collaboration with the editor.
Education and Experience: Bachelor's is required. Master's is preferred.
A degree advertising, marketing, communications, English, creative writing, or journalism is preferred
A minimum of seven (7) years of experience in writing, content development or creative roles with a demonstrated ability to produce high-quality, impactful content across formats and audiences is required.
A minimum of three (3) years of experience managing or mentoring writers or creative professionals with a demonstrated ability to develop talent and raise the level of team performance is required.
Experience working in integrated marketing or communications environments as well as collaborating across disciplines such as strategy, design, digital and media is required.
Experience in higher education, nonprofit or mission-driven organizations preferred.
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: Candidate must demonstrate strong interpersonal and verbal communication skills, with the ability to influence, collaborate and communicate broadly across the University and develop and maintain effective relationships with a wide range of constituencies and senior stakeholders. Must also demonstrate strong written communication skills.
Candidate must possess strong problem-solving skills with the ability to identify and analyze problems, as well as devise solutions. Must also have strong organizational, planning and time management skills.
Candidate must have a demonstrated ability to operate as both player and coach, balancing hands-on creative work and content creation with leadership and coaching.
A strong editorial judgment and great attention to detail, with experience ensuring consistency, clarity and quality is essential.
Physical and Environmental Demands: - Sit for long periods of time
Deadline to Apply: Priority consideration may be granted to applications received by October 29, 2026.
Candidates must submit a link directing to their portfolio showcasing exceptional writing and storytelling, particularly in brand, campaign or institutional contexts, in order to be considered. Position will remain open until filled.
Benefits: SMU offers staff a broad, competitive array of health and related benefit s. In addition to traditional benefits such as health, dental, and vision plans, SMU offers a wide range of wellness programs to help attract, support, and retain our employees whose work continues to make SMU an outstanding education and research institution.
SMU is committed to providing an array of retirement programs that benefit and protect you and your family throughout your working years at SMU and, if you meet SMU's retirement eligibility criteria, during your retirement years after you leave SMU.
The value of learning at SMU isn't just about preparing our students for the future. Employees have access to a wide variety of professional and personal development opportunities , including tuition benefits .
