Senior Director of Graduate Admissions

Job Summary

Reporting to the Executive Director of Graduate Programs, the Senior Director of Graduate Admissions holds a key leadership role providing operational and strategic direction for all phases of the recruitment, admissions, and operations aspects of CU Leeds masters-level graduate programs including MBA, Evening MBA, Hybrid MBA, Executive MBA and all specialized MS Business Programs. Recruitment and marketing oversight includes all current traditional and online programs, as well as future programs. This role is responsible for Leeds enrollment initiatives and develops a goal-focused graduate enrollment management plan built to meet enrollment targets related to quantity and quality.

The Senior Director will orchestrate recruiting initiatives that align with CU Leeds strategic goals of nurturing purposeful graduate programs. Additional MS programs may be added to the current Leeds graduate program offering.

Who We Are

At Leeds, we have an outstanding vantage point, and while we’re located at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, we’re not talking about the scenery. Set in the heart of Boulder, Colorado—one of the nation’s most vibrant business communities—Leeds offers unparalleled access to world-changing entrepreneurs, national research institutions and award-winning faculty!

What Your Key Responsibilities Will Be

Recruitment and Admissions

• Develops strategy and tactical plans for achieving admissions goals across all programs.
• Determine the best course of action considering recruitment during challenging times and supervise subsequent execution of the strategy.
• Directs the recruitment team to explore all areas of recruiting and marketing to reach existing and new markets for the school’s portfolio of MBA and MS graduate programs, striving to meet the quality and quantity goals for the school.
• In coordination with their team, develops a comprehensive recruitment calendar of events and programming.
• Supervises the execution of all internal and external events such as open houses, webinars, graduate fairs, admitted student receptions, and other recruiting events. Participates in recruitment fairs (domestic/international) attracting skilled students to Leeds.
• Partners with Leeds Engagement, Marketing & Communications team to develop effective digital marketing campaigns, marketing collateral/websites, print, email, text, and social media platforms to recruit a new class of students.
• Builds and maintains professional relationships with faculty and Center directors to partner on strategic outreach to applicants, present at recruitment events, and otherwise support graduate admissions efforts.
• Collaborates with relevant partners - internal to Leeds and campus-level - to support recruitment initiatives and student success.
• Is responsible for the Business School’s instance of Slate and ensures the admissions team works in the database in an ethical, professional, and transparent manner.
• Leads processes for developing and evaluating application review procedures in a comprehensive and ethical manner.
• Ensures admission decisions, scholarship management, and admission policies followed by the admissions team are fair and ethical.
• Directs the admissions team to ensure process improvements to our admissions activities are implemented as needed and policies and procedures are documented.
• Annually assesses, revises, and updates training on admissions, and recruitment activities and tools.
• Maintains professional relationships and represents Leeds Graduate Programs with industry associations and collectives.
• Ensures that CU policies and requirements are applied and met.
• As head of Graduate recruitment and admissions, the Senior Director presents at recruiting events, professional forums, conferences, and panel discussions to increase the visibility of Leeds and its graduate business programs.
• Stays up-to-date on the GME market landscape, future trends, and to serve as a leader/mentor to the team.
• Leads planning and analysis of recruitment, admissions, marketing, and enrollment data to identify opportunities for growth and adjustment and identify new pools of prospective applicants and enrollees.
• Develops and maintains knowledge of the competitive environment for graduate business programs, the pool of prospective students for these programs, and Leeds competitors.

Management of Admissions and Scholarship Budgets

• Manages recruitment and admissions budget of $1 million, and informs process for awarding/distributing scholarship funds.
• Informs and implements scholarship strategies to address evolving enrollment interests.
• Creates and manages the admissions' budget, including forecasting, monitoring expenditures, and ensuring financial sustainability and alignment with institutional policies and goals.

Data Reporting/Analysis

• Fully immerses in admissions data across all programs and understands trends, and compares to market trends by GMAC, EMBAC and other industry organizations.
• Effectively uses data to assess strategy and priorities.
• Analyzes recruitment-related data and revises programming activities as part of the strategic enrollment planning initiatives, working towards an enrollment management framework.
• Uses historical data & industry knowledge to form a strategic marketing and enrollment plan unique to each graduate program.
• Interprets data in the Leeds Graduate Programs admissions database and CRM (Slate) and makes informed decisions using the data.
• Develops, implements and measures all marketing initiatives across all different channels (SEO, PPC, LinkedIn, FB, social media, etc.).
• Provides timely updates, data and projections related to enrollment management functions, and reports on unit performance to Leeds leadership.
• Monitors and reports on key admissions, recruitment, and outreach metrics, providing insights and recommendations to senior leadership.
• Uses data-driven approaches to evaluate and improve recruitment tactics, increasing conversion rates and enrollment numbers.

Supervision

• Provides day-to-day oversight of graduate admissions staff, including hiring and training of staff, student ambassadors, temporary readers and interviewers, establishing priorities and ensuring everyone understands and follows admission policy and procedures.
• Leads, mentors, and develops the admissions recruitment and operations teams, fostering a collaborative, high-performance culture.
• Ensures the team is equipped with training and resources to engage prospective students and partners effectively.
• Plans and implements regular training sessions on admissions standard methodologies, recruitment strategies, and the use of Slate and other technology tools.
• Responsible for annual performance management of staff and ensuring continuous coaching and mentorship for employees.

What You Should Know

This position offers a hybrid work modality. The approximate work schedule is Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm. Evening and weekend days are occasionally required to accommodate employer and student schedules. Some travel is also required.

What We Can Offer

The annual hiring range for this position is $115,000-$125,000. Relocation assistance is available for eligible candidates.