Academic Learning Specialist -School of Medicine

Brigham Young University•Provo, UT

7d•$59,500 - $77,000

About The Position

The Academic Learning Specialist provides individualized academic counseling, learning strategy instruction, early-alert follow-up, board-preparation support, and structured remediation support for medical students in the BYU School of Medicine. The role helps students develop effective learning systems, self-regulated learning behaviors, test-taking strategies, time-management practices, and readiness for national board examinations. It supports student progress while maintaining appropriate boundaries from formal assessment, academic-standing decisions, and accommodation determinations. The position supports students across all phases of the curriculum, contributes to academic enhancement and board-preparation programming, and collaborates with faculty, student-support offices, and other institutional partners. The School of Medicine is newly established and continues to grow, so the specialist must adapt to evolving responsibilities and assignments. The role contributes to a spiritually enriching, collaborative environment that prepares students for service as Christ-centered physicians.

Requirements

Master’s degree in education, psychology, counseling, health sciences, or a related field and 2 years of experience in academic counseling, student-success services, student-learning development, or health-professions education; OR 6 years of directly related professional experience in higher education, academic support, student-learning development, or medical/health-professions education.
Knowledge of adult learning theory, learning science, evidence-based learning strategies, and self-regulated learning.
Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
Ability to analyze academic performance data and translate findings into individualized support plans.
Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive information.
Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a complex academic environment.
Commitment to student-centered, standards-based, mission-aligned support.
Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints must hold and be worthy to hold a current temple recommend to be hired and remain in the position.
All employees must abide by the university’s Honor Code and Dress & Grooming Standards; successful candidates are expected to support and contribute to the academic and religious missions of the university.

Nice To Haves

Experience working with medical or other health-professions learners.
Experience with academic remediation, board preparation, or student-progress support systems.
Familiarity with standardized medical examinations such as the MCAT, NBME, or USMLE and preparation approaches.
Experience with academic-counseling documentation systems or student-support dashboards.
Experience in academic-remediation programming.
Experience working with diverse student populations and learners experiencing academic difficulty.
Experience developing structured board-preparation programming.

Responsibilities

Provide one-on-one academic counseling to medical students across all phases of the curriculum.
Assess students’ learning approaches, study systems, time management, retrieval practice, test-taking strategies, note-taking, clinical learning habits, and self-regulated learning behaviors.
Develop individualized academic success plans using student performance data, student self-assessment, and established support templates.
Respond to early-alert referrals and conduct timely outreach to students identified through performance trends, course or clerkship concerns, board-readiness concerns, or self-referral.
Support students in academic improvement plans, remediation activities, and follow-up meetings as directed by Office of Student Progress workflows or Student Progress Committee follow-up plans.
Assist students with NBME and USMLE preparation strategies, including study planning, resource selection, self-assessment use, readiness milestones, and study-schedule adjustments.
Identify and escalate ongoing academic struggles, disengagement, concerning behavior, or student-reported needs that may involve well-being, mental health, accessibility, or accommodations; refer these concerns to the Senior Academic Learning Specialist and/or Director of Academic Learning and Progress for coordination and follow-up.
Support students with a variety of learning needs and refer them to tutoring, career advising, accessibility services, the Office of Student Experience and Wellbeing, or other resources when indicated.
Contribute to structured board-preparation programming and transition support for major curricular phases.
Develop student-facing resources on study strategies, time management, exam preparation, clinical learning, feedback use, and academic resilience.
Develop proactive course-specific or phase-specific academic support resources, workshops, and guidance based on anticipated learning demands, assessment patterns, and faculty input.
Collaborate with course directors, clerkship directors, faculty, assessment leaders, and Office of Student Progress colleagues to identify and support students who may benefit from academic assistance.
Participate in student-support planning discussions as appropriate while maintaining boundaries from formal assessment and progress decision-making.
Serve as a resource to faculty and staff regarding adult learning, learning science, academic performance strategies, and student-support referral pathways.
Coordinate with the Tutoring Coordinator to identify tutoring needs, recommend tutoring focus areas, and monitor student follow-up after referrals.
Collaborate with the Office of Student Experience and Wellbeing and other institutional partners when academic concerns intersect with well-being, belonging, personal stressors, or learning-environment concerns.
Document student encounters, support plans, referrals, and follow-up actions using standard Office of Student Progress templates, systems, and timelines.
Maintain documentation and confidentiality consistent with FERPA and institutional policy.
Contribute to academic-support quality improvement by identifying trends, barriers, resource needs, and opportunities to improve student support.
Contribute to School of Medicine committee service and academic-enrichment initiatives as assigned.
Remain current in medical education and learning-science best practices.
Perform other responsibilities as assigned.

Benefits

BYU retirement contributions: an automatic 8% contribution, with an additional 4% contribution when the employee contributes 5% (rehire eligibility may differ).
13 paid holidays, 22 days of paid vacation, and 12 sick days accrued annually.
Employee assistance program available to the employee and household members.
Tuition benefits for employees and eligible family members.
Access to athletic facilities.
Medical and dental benefits.
Short- and long-term disability benefits.
Paid parental and maternity leave.
Wellness program.
Free on-campus parking.
Free UTA passes for employees, spouses, and qualified dependents.
Discounts at the BYU Store and for many BYU events.