Academic Counselor Lead

University of Washington•Seattle, WA

2d•$83,040 - $87,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Academic Counselor - Lead oversees the Graduate Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering, including academic advising, program management, admissions, recruitment, and outreach. This position will serve as the adviser for graduate students in a certificate that is part of stacked masters degrees across the College of Engineering. This graduate education program primarily involves distance learning with asynchronous instruction and primarily serves an audience of working professionals. The Academic Counselor - Lead is based in the College of Engineering Dean’s Office. This position reports to the Academic Services Director of the AI & Machine Learning for Engineering Graduate Programs. The Academic Counselor – Lead uses independent judgment to direct the day-to-day academic advising and programmatic operations of the Graduate Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering. Because this certificate is part of the first stacked master’s degree ever offered at the University of Washington, this position regularly encounters situations where there are no relevant policies or procedures. The Academic Counselor – Lead will need to strategically and tactfully collaborate with the Academic Services Director and colleagues across the College of Engineering to ensure the success of the program. The certificate that the Academic Counselor – Lead runs is based centrally at the College of Engineering, rather than in a single department. This requires the Academic Counselor - Lead to constantly coordinate across many College of Engineering departments and ensure that activities of the program meet the needs and requirements of many participating units. This certificate is relatively new, rapidly growing, and with an unknown steady state, which requires added flexibility and problem-solving as enrollment grows. The AI Education & Research Initiative is a well-funded, high visibility effort of critical importance to the College of Engineering and its industry partners. This position requires an experienced academic adviser with a high degree of personal initiative and attention to detail who will oversee the planning, performance and execution of this graduate certificate. This program is expected to train thousands of engineers, as well as other graduate learners.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in education, public administration, policy, social sciences, or a related field.
Four years of experience in university academic advising or a related academic services role. Equivalent experience can substitute for degree requirement
Strong attention to detail, excellent organization skills, and a demonstrated ability to prioritize work and manage complex workloads with frequent deadlines.
Excellent program management skills, including the ability to keep people on task and bring together many individuals to accomplish specific and complex tasks with tight timelines.
Strong written communication skills for workplace settings. The ability to write clear and concise emails, focusing on what needs to be accomplished.
The ability to work well as a collaborative teammate, to give and receive feedback with thoughtfulness and consideration.
Experience tactfully and respectfully working with many different stakeholders, from students to faculty to staff to external partners.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with UW administrative policies and procedures
Familiarity with UW Student Database
Knowledge of UW curricular requirements
Experience with academic programs involving asynchronous instruction and remote learning
Experience with fee-based programs
Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite
Knowledge of or interest in engineering and data science education
Cover letter expressing interest and relevant experience

Responsibilities

Direct the day-to-day academic advising operations for the Graduate Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering, a rapidly growing program.
Serve as the primary point of contact for all students in the certificate.
Maintain a welcoming and supportive advising climate for all students.
Provide one-on-one and group advising to students in the Graduate Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering.
Advise students on short-term and long-term academic program planning, course planning, and certificate completion.
Monitor student quarterly progress and ensure satisfactory academic progress is completed
Provide guidance to at-risk students to ensure their success.
Help students resolve issues with registration, financial aid, and other roadblocks that may arise; make appropriate referrals to UW resources when needed.
Maintain strictest standards of confidentiality and discretion.
Interpret university, college, and department policies and regulations related to academic programs and student issues for students, faculty, and staff.
Facilitate online community building for distance learners.
Design and implement new initiatives for students that enhance advising services and support retention goals.
Provide timely and accurate responses to email and phone inquiries from prospective and current students.
Provide requested information; investigate and resolve issues.
Coordinate and collaborate with advising and other education program staff from the College of Engineering and departments within the College.
Manage the day-to-day operations of the Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering
Serve as the lead programmatic contact for faculty and staff involved in the Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering
Strategize and recommend any necessary new policies and procedures to improve processes and the student experience for the certificate.
Collaborate closely with the Academic Services Director to ensure the success of the graduate certificate.
In collaboration with the Academic Services Director, advocate for the success and needs of the Graduate Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering in College of Engineering-wide and University-wide settings such as all-advisors meetings and when meeting with central offices across UW
Support instructors in accessing online materials and setting up online learning environments.
Monitor course evaluations to determine how well students are meeting learning goals; report and make recommendations to curriculum committee.
Help review this program to improve quality, expand access, and continually respond to market demand.
Lead the development of recruitment goals and approaches for the Graduate Certificate in AI & Machine Learning for Engineering
Manage outreach and recruitment activities for the certificate
Develop and implement communication strategy via web, email, social media, and/or print.
Represent the program at recruiting events.
Advise prospective students regarding program prerequisites and application procedures.
In collaboration with program staff and faculty, manage the admissions process for this program. This includes organizing and distributing application materials to the admissions committee, participating in admissions review processes, and conveying admission decisions to the Graduate School using MyGrad program.
Develop and deliver onboarding information for admitted students, including updating online resources, conducting new student welcome sessions, and providing regular communications throughout the spring and summer to ensure retention.
Track, report, and provide analysis of certificate enrollment, and completion trends.
Identify and help implement process improvements for future recruitment and admission cycles.
Participate in College/Department meetings and contribute to committees.
Provide back-up advising support when other staff are out of the office
Other duties as assigned.