The Isenberg School of Management (ISOM) at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has begun an internal selection process for an interim dean after an unsuccessful national search to fill the position.

According to the provost, the interim dean for the last school year, Soren Bisgaard, has decided not to return to the position. Bisgaard was hired as the interim dean when his predecessor, Tom O’Brien, retired last year after a 19-year tenure.

The new interim dean will serve for a minimum of two years and will be expected to start by the beginning of the fall 2007 semester. Candidates for the position must be a tenured faculty member on campus and have a doctorate or an equivalent terminal degree to apply.

Nominations and applications, including a curriculum vitae, a statement describing how the candidate’s experiences and values fit with the position, and at least three references, were received by Aug. 10. Acceptance of nominations and applications began immediately and will continue until the position is filled.

“Provost Charlena Seymour and the faculty and staff in the school are working together to find the right person to guide the school through the next two or three years,” said Nancy Buffone, the executive director of the provost’s office.

On Aug. 15 and 16, candidates Tony Butterfield, professor of management and Ph.D program director, Eric Berkowitz, the associate dean for professional programs and Ben Branch, professor of finance, held open meetings in the school for faculty and staff.

ISOM offers undergraduate and graduate programs, including two online degrees. Its six departments – accounting and information systems, finance and operations management, hospitality and tourism management, management, marketing and sport management – are all accredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International. There are nearly 3,100 undergraduate students and more than 875 graduate and doctoral students enrolled in the school.

The ISOM staff includes 95 full-time faculty members and is headquarters to the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center Network, the Center for International Securities and Derivatives Markets and the Virtual Center for Supernetworks.

As for the current open position for dean of ISOM, students of the school should expect to see it filled by their first week of classes of the semester.

“I fully expect that the search committee will make their recommendation to the provost before the end of the month, and we will have a dean in place by Sept. 1,” said Buffone.