GRADE: 31E

CONTEXT OF THE JOB:

Under the limited direction of the Director, Life Design and Career Integration (DLDCI), the Associate Director, Student Life (Career Access & Mobility) (ADCAM), leads the Career Access & Mobility subteam (CAM). This subteam, along with the Academic & Career Integration subteam, forms the Life Design & Career Integration Team (LDCI) within the UD Career Center (UDCC) and Division of Student Life (DSL).

The ADCAM leads the CAM’s overall strategic direction, advances the goals of the UDCC and DSL, and directly supervises and oversees the Career Access & Mobility subteam (CAM). The Associate Director and their team set strategy and collaborate with DSL, University Studies, AAP, Athletics, CGPS, student support units, and RSOs to design and implement career success strategies. Their primary mission is to integrate life design, career preparation, and professional experiences into the co-curricular, foundational, and early-UD student experience so all undergraduate and graduate students achieve clear outcomes, ROI, and postgraduate success from their UD education. In addition, the ADCAM provides leadership on UDCC, DSL, and college committees and coalitions, represents UD as a career expert, and works with other UDCC staff to build new and forward-thinking operations and initiatives that positively impact career preparation, access and equity, and social mobility for all UD students and alumni.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES:

Strategy & Collaboration

· Direct and coordinate the Career Access & Mobility subteam (CAE) and its strategic priorities and help lead the Life Design and Career Integration Team (LDCI).

· Set priorities, success strategies, and outcomes for CAM team members’ portfolios of DSL, Athletics, University Studies, AAP, student support units, RSOs, and other non-academic units

· Oversee strategy and initiatives for personally assigned portfolio of co-curricular, administrative, and student support units and RSOs.

· Serve on UDCC, DSL, and student service-related teams, committees, and strategic and operational planning groups; integrate career, life-design, and post-graduate success-related programming and content into first-year, co-curricular, DSL, and student service unit partnerships.

· Coordinate and engage in regular strategy and operational meetings with DSL leadership, student service department heads, Institutional Equity leadership, and RSO leaders.

Maintain an understanding of critical national, regional, and local trends and best practices in employer recruiting, the labor market and future of work; career access, sense of belonging; social mobility; higher education, alumni and family engagement; career development; student and postgraduate success; technology; and curriculum design. Share insights and critical information with the UDCC and its constituents.

· Oversee and manage major UDCC institutional programs assigned to the CAM subteam, including but not limited to, the Student Career Advancement Grant Programs, First-Year Seminar, and UNIV-364 coordination.

· Design and implement collaborative and scalable programs and engagement strategies to connect all undergraduate and graduate students to career experiences, preparation, resources, and programming.

· Lead early career engagement, preparation, and life design initiatives through University Studies, AAP, RLH, OTP, Pre-College Programs, the Graduate College, and other units working with first and second-year undergraduate and graduate students.

· Build and utilize knowledge and expertise in the use of Learning Management Systems such as CANVAS to build career content and assignments.

· Recognize and help change UD and UDCC policies, procedures, services, and programs that perpetuate inequities in students’ ability to pursue and achieve postgraduate success.

· Collaborate with Undergraduate Admissions and Pre–College Programs to develop and execute programming and resources to expand prospective students’ understanding of major selection, career, and life-design opportunities.

· Serve on university committees, boards, task forces, and cross-functional teams as requested.

Leadership & Management

· Lead, train, supervise, and evaluate the CAM subteam within the LDCI team.

· Provide direction and guidance of staff to build relationships and foster best practices with non-academic student services staff to ensure integration of career, industry, and professional development education into the student experience.

· Develop standards for maintaining trend knowledge in career fields, programming needs, and internal and external relations.

· Guide and lead team members in the functional areas of career counseling and coaching, industry advising, programming, alumni and employer engagement, special population support, recruiting trends, and professional development.

· Collaborate with LDCI and counterparts on the Career Connections and Experiences Team to design and implement career programs, events and experiences.

· Conduct one-on-one career coaching and counseling appointments, active-learning workshops, and presentations.

· Represent the UDCC and UD as a career expert through social media, professional associations, and conferences.

Grants & Fundraising

· Oversee the Internship & Career Experiences (ICE) Grant, including the creation and maintenance of application and onboarding forms in Qualtrics, funding and purpose code management, and full-cycle recipient processing.

· Manage initial, external, and final application reviews, including reviewer recruitment, assignment, training, deadline setting, and process streamlining to improve efficiency and effectiveness.

Ensure accurate recipient records, and provide ongoing communication to applicants regarding award status, tax implications, and payment processes in collaboration with administrative staff

· Oversee the Registered Student Organization (RSO) Allocations Board funding process, including maintaining web content, marketing opportunities to RSOs, attending allocation board meetings, and ensuring timely completion of all required administrative processes prior to each semester.

· Lead UD Career Center participation in designated fundraising efforts such as I Heart UD Day, including applying for the UDCC gift page, setting fundraising goals, collaborating with Development & Alumni Relations, coordinating social media marketing, event-day tabling, and engagement activities; support other fundraising initiatives as needed.

Assessment

· Ensure CAM and LDCI are engaged in continuous improvement to foresee and respond to changing needs of undergraduate and graduate students and the workplace.

· Analyze, understand, and leverage qualitative and quantitative data to develop, implement, and manage life design and career-related programs and resources and educational, student, and post-graduate success outcomes.

· Collaborate with UDCC team members to collect and assess first-destination career outcomes data.

· Oversee career curriculum assessment and the development of measurable learning outcomes, assignments, and activities.

· Utilize assessment and metrics to implement programs, services, policies, and initiatives to create equal opportunity for all students.

· Research career education, access and social mobility best practices, curriculum development, and workplace competency trends and initiate new and enhanced career programs.

· Establish reporting metrics to support office strategy, outreach, and education efforts.

· Utilize student and staff focus groups and advisory groups as needed.

QUALIFICATIONS:

· Master’s degree and three years of job-related experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.

· Supervisory experience of staff and paraprofessionals is strongly preferred.

· Ability to communicate and implement a strong leadership vision for career access and equity

· Experience as a systems thinker with a strategic mindset that aligns with the direction of an integrated career access and equity model.

· Extensive project and program management experience leading to quantifiable results and goal attainment.

· Completion of (or ability to obtain) CITI Program Human Subjects Protections certification.

· Demonstrated ability to establish, maintain and enhance effective and productive partnerships with diverse external and internal stakeholders, including administrators, staff, faculty, recruiters, alumni, families, and students.

· Experience working with diverse populations; demonstrated professionalism and intercultural openness.

· Experience leading strategic planning and innovative organizational change.

· Ability and proven track record in meeting goals dependent upon internal and external partnerships

· Demonstrated effective skills in collaboration, presentation, reporting, and oral and written communication.

· Broad knowledge and experience implementing career development and student engagement theory, practices, and strategies.

· Commitment to students and maintaining an inviting, inclusive, and equitable office ethos and environment.

· Effective team builder and group leader.

· Ability to utilize data, assessment tools, career information, and analyze and use employment and higher education trends.

· Ability to maintain confidentiality, exercise sound judgment, and act with discretion.

· Ability to take risks, assess and shift priorities and adapt to a rapidly changing environment.

· Ability to utilize Handshake (or similar CRM platform), MS office suite, web editing, and social media technologies for marketing, analysis, and work products.

Special Requirements:

· Requires travel.

· Requires working nights and weekends as needed.