Communications Officer, Digital & Social Media

Overview

Develops and implements a comprehensive communications strategy aimed at enhancing visibility and engagement for the organization's initiatives. Creates and manages content across various media platforms including print, digital, social media, and video. Collaborates with internal stakeholders and external partners to effectively promote the organization's mission and accomplishments. Ensures consistent and strategic messaging to diverse audiences, enhancing the organization's brand and supporting its strategic objectives.

Yale Engineering is home to world-class researchers, innovative students, and a community of people dedicated to solving the most complex challenges facing humanity. Yale Engineering seeks a dynamic Communications Officer who is not only a skilled communicator and content creator, but someone who finds genuine inspiration in the work happening here every day.

Reporting to the Director of Communications, the Communications Officer will serve as the school’s social media strategist and a versatile, contributing member of the communications team. This is a role for a multi-hyphenate communicator- someone equally comfortable crafting a compelling research story, managing a content calendar, coordinating a photo shoot, and drafting a school-wide announcement. The ideal candidate is technologically savvy, highly collaborative, has a keen visual sense, and a strong attention to detail.

This position plays a critical role in enhancing the visibility and reputation of Yale Engineering, strengthening its relationships with key audiences, and sharing the stories of a community that is shaping the future.

Essential Duties:

Social Media Management:

• Serves as the primary social media manager for the Office of Communications; takes full responsibility for managing the school’s social media platforms, including developing and maintaining a strategic content calendar, writing and scheduling posts, and ensuring a consistent, engaging presence across channels.
• Monitors social media platforms for community engagement, responding to comments and audience interactions in a timely and professional manner; addresses negative comments or misinformation appropriately.
• Tracks, analyzes, and reports on social media metrics and analytics; researches emerging platform trends and algorithm changes to continuously optimize content strategies and audience reach.
• Collaborates with communications team colleagues to design and implement targeted social media campaigns aligned with the school’s strategic priorities; updates guidelines and best practices as platforms evolve.

Content Creation & Development:

• Writes and edits engaging news and feature stories, web profiles, student spotlights, social media content, and a wide range of other content for Yale Engineering’s target audiences, including prospective students and faculty, media, donors, alumni, peer institutions, and industry partners.
• Generates original, compelling story ideas that highlight Yale Engineering’s innovative and impactful community - both on Yale’s campus and through the work of alumni across the world.
• Drafts, prepares, and assists with internal communications for distribution to faculty, staff, and students, as well as external communications including national mailings, annual magazine, and outreach materials.
• Sends schoolwide announcements and communications using Yale Message and other university communication systems.

Visual Content & Photography:

• Regularly photographs research, milestones, and community moments across Yale Engineering; serves as a primary photographer for the office while also coordinating photo and video coverage with staff and student workers to ensure high-quality visual content is consistently captured.
• Coordinates with and manages relationships with external vendors including photographers and videographers as needed for key projects and events.
• Contributes to the school’s digital asset management, maintaining an organized and accessible photo and media library.

Web & Digital Communications:

• Supports website content updates, including posting stories, managing web content, and ensuring that website content is current and accurate.
• Supports short- and long-term communication planning; works with colleagues across Yale Engineering and Yale to identify, evaluate, and measure the impact of the school’s communications vehicles and campaigns.

Brand & Team Support:

• Helps maintain and disseminate Yale and Yale Engineering brand and graphic identity standards; supports and maintains standard operating procedures.
• Supports the communications team in proofreading, content scheduling, and other collaborative tasks as needed.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Required Skills & Abilities

• Demonstrated experience managing social media platforms (Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, X/Twitter, and others) for an organization, brand, or institution. Proficiency with social media scheduling and analytics tools (e.g., Hootsuite, Sprout Social, native platform analytics) and the ability to translate data into actionable insights and strategic recommendations.
• Ability to quickly understand, distill, and communicate complex concepts - including engineering and scientific research - to general audiences in a clear, accessible and engaging manner.
• Demonstrated ability to develop narrative stories, write short copy, proofread, and edit content on deadline. Ability to create content that is engaging, accurate, impactful, and resonates across platforms and audiences.
• Well-developed written and verbal communication skills with the ability to use sound judgment while working independently and/or in a team while managing multiple projects simultaneously while adhering to tight deadlines.
• Excellent people skills with the ability to build rapport with a broad range of faculty, staff, alumni, and students from diverse backgrounds. Ability to manage relationships with key campus stakeholders with professionalism, sound judgment, and an understanding of stakeholder goals; able to represent the school and communications team in a variety of settings and to diverse external audiences.

Preferred Education, Experience & Skills

• Degree in Journalism, Communications, Marketing, or equivalent field; in-depth knowledge or interest in science, engineering, or technology is a strong plus.
• Experience with graphic design tools such as Adobe Creative Suite (Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop).
• Ability to plan, shoot, and edit short-form video content.
• Experience with content management systems (e.g., Drupal, Concrete CMS) and/or Salesforce Marketing Cloud.
• A genuine curiosity about and enthusiasm for engineering, science, and technology research.

Principal Responsibilities

1. Brand & Communications Strategy. Develops and executes public relations strategy, output, and performance for the department with the goal of increasing media impressions in local, national, industry-specific and alumni media. Creates communications strategy to showcase top technologies available for license. Ensures consistent look and tone for all department communications, including written content, website and social media. 2. Media Relations. Establishes and maintains effective working relationships with media representatives. Identifies opportunities to work with other the departments, university publications and the Office of Public Affairs to develop and publicize stories. 3. Content Creation. Assesses the University faculty inventions and student startups for newsworthiness and create compelling news and public relations content. Creates engaging, dynamic content for the public, including press releases, blog articles, website updates, newsletter articles and social media. 4. Outreach. Manages delivery channels for newsworthy content, including updating and maintaining the department websites, social media accounts, and articles for email newsletters, and creating video, print, and on-campus events. Creates websites that embed existing content from Yale and external sites (publications related to the technology, videos featuring inventor, profile on Yale Bulletin and Calendar innovators webpage). 5. Other. Seeks out, negotiates with and recommends external organizations that can provide services that optimize both the cost and functionality of the new communications strategy. Ensures that all communications conform to the University guidelines. Hires student workers as needed to assist in producing copy. May perform other duties as assigned.

Required Education and Experience

Bachelor’s Degree in a related field and four years of experience in website design, production, marketing, project management or an equivalent combination of education and experience.