"Director of Graduate Studies Operations"

Job Details

WARTBURG COLLEGE
Title of Position– Director of Graduate Studies Operations

Wartburg College is dedicated to challenging and nurturing students for lives of leadership and service as a spirited expression of their faith and learning. Founded in 1852, Wartburg College is a selective liberal arts college internationally recognized for its community engagement and academic excellence. As indicated in the vision statement, “Wartburg College is called to be the leading institution in education of the whole person. Together, we create an inclusive community combining diverse curricular and co-curricular experiences to prepare students to be resilient leaders of positive change through service in a complex world.”

Building on the College’s Master of Arts and Graduate Leadership Certificate, key institutional priorities include implementation of four new Master of Science programs in Health and Human Performance and exploration of additional graduate programs in areas of institutional distinction and market appeal.

Located in northeast Iowa, Waverly is an extraordinary "gigabit" community of more than 10,000 residents in the Cedar Valley metro near Waterloo and Cedar Falls, with an abundance of cultural, musical, and recreational opportunities. Major Midwest metropolitan areas within driving distance include Des Moines, Iowa (2.5 hours); Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn. (3 hours); Madison, Wis. (3.5 hours); Rochester, Minn. (2 hours); Chicago (5 hours); and Omaha, Neb. (4 hours).

Function of Position:

Responsible to the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies for graduate student recruitment; policy and process development and implementation; program and student support; and community outreach and event planning. This position provides strategic direction in proposing and implementing necessary infrastructure to support graduate programs and graduate studies.

Principal duties and responsibilities:

1. Serve as primary liaison with graduate enrollment marketing partners and deploy strategic communications for graduate student recruitment.
   • Research/benchmark trends in graduate student recruitment and make recommendations for recruitment strategy adaptation based on findings.
   • In collaboration with graduate studies team, Strategic Marketing and Communication, and enrollment marketing partners:
     • Run queries, build lists and create/launch strategic email campaigns utilizing Slate CRM
     • Purchase names and manage lists of prospective students.
     • Call prospective students
     • Send mailings
     • Develop and implement social media plans for graduate programs.
   • Serve as initial point of contact for prospective graduate students. Collaborate with Graduate Program Directors in engagement of prospective students.
   • Collect experiences of current students to help translate into marketing materials.
   • Coordinate announcements for The Juice, Knightline and other communication outlets.
   • Create and implement strategic outreach efforts to organizations that may be interested in the Learning Alliance Program including maintaining agreements and expectations; serve as primary point of contact.
2. Research best practice and make recommendations for graduate student success infrastructure. Create and maintain policies that support graduate student recruitment and success, including:
   • Graduate Calendar.
   • Graduate Student Handbook.
   • Graduate Assistantship program (collaborating with Human Resources, Financial Aid, Residential Living, Business Office, and other relevant departments).
3. Student Support
   • Assist with student onboarding processes such as access to campus systems, Canvas access, etc.
   • Assist in recruitment, training and supervision of student employees.
   • Provide support to Graduate Assistants.
4. Community Outreach and Event Planning
   • Schedule and promote informational webinars.
   • Coordinate visits to campus by prospective students or partner organization (example Leadership Iowa)
   • Coordinate logistics associated with graduate recruitment events (examples include Grad Finale, Career Fairs, Leadercast sponsorship, DisruptHR and other Cedar Valley events) and webinars.
   • Represent the program at career fairs, visit days, on Zoom webinars, and with other presentations.
   • Oversee organization and logistics of events such as graduate student hooding ceremony and end-of-year celebrations/banquets.
5. Program Support
   • Vision, strategize and project Graduate Studies budgets in collaboration with Division of Finance and Administration.
   • Collect/coordinate Graduate Assistant descriptions.
   • Engage with graduate applicants in collecting materials to ensure completed application files.
   • Communicate professionally to answer phone calls, schedule meetings, and respond to student and professional inquiries.
   • Coordinate and manage databases and reports for graduate programs.
   • Coordinate with Business Office and Financial Aid Office on student tuition rates.
6. Strategic Visioning
   • Collaborate with Associate Dean for Graduate Studies and Graduate Program Directors in creating multi-year strategic plan for graduate studies.
   • Collaborate with the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies in assisting with future feasibility studies.
7. Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree. Minimum of three years of higher education work experience. Experience utilizing software to manage constituent engagement and reporting. Demonstrated high levels of initiative, experience communicating with a variety of constituents, ability to manage multiple priorities, and commitment to innovation and collaboration.

Preferred Qualifications:

A master’s degree in leadership, student affairs or related field. Prior work supporting graduate students. Evidence of new program/process development. Experience utilizing Slate or similar software.