Assistant Director of Fellowships - Division of Student Success - UTK

University of Tennessee • Knoxville Township, IA

2d • Onsite

About The Position

The Assistant Director of Fellowships works within Undergraduate Research & Fellowships (URF), the university’s centralized undergraduate research programming and nationally competitive fellowships support office. In collaboration with the Assistant Director of Research, Associate Director, Director, and campus partners, the role identifies, advises, mentors, and develops candidates for nationally and internationally competitive awards. The position also advances awareness of these awards among students, faculty, and staff.

The Assistant Director leads the Fulbright U.S. Student Grant application process, including strategy, timelines, internal review, applicant advising, and coordination with faculty and staff recommenders. The role manages a portfolio of additional awards from recruitment through submission, teaches a spring one-credit application course, leads student review panels, and develops consistent advising resources and student-facing writing support.

The position also builds campus recruitment pipelines and relationships, communicates award opportunities across campus, supervises a URF Coach, supports office-wide programming and grant processes, contributes to reporting and evaluation, and maintains data for fellowship applicants. The role is based onsite in Knoxville, Tennessee. A master’s degree and 2–3 years of relevant professional experience are required; a doctoral degree and experience advising nationally competitive fellowship applicants are preferred.

Requirements

• Master’s degree.
• 2–3 years of professional experience supporting the academic pursuits and intellectual development of college or high school students. Relevant experience may include teaching or advising in fellowships, study abroad, honors, undergraduate research, writing support, TRiO, academic services, or career services; relevant graduate assistantships and certain postgraduate international experiences may count.
• Experience teaching writing in one-on-one and/or group or workshop settings.
• Superior written communication skills.
• Experience with public speaking and/or teaching.
• Experience exercising sound judgment, discretion, and confidentiality.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively and remain composed under pressure during high-volume periods.
• Must be legally authorized to work in the United States full-time without current or future sponsorship for employment-based visa status.

Nice To Haves

• Doctoral degree.
• Experience advising applicants for nationally competitive fellowships.
• Knowledge of experiential learning in higher education, such as international education, undergraduate research, service-learning, and internships.
• Demonstrated ability to take direction, initiate action, develop ideas, and collaborate as a team member.
• Experience creating, updating, and maintaining resources, documents, or virtual courses supporting student writing and/or development.
• Demonstrated ability to challenge and support talented students and develop rapport with them across disciplines and career interests.
• Experience using Microsoft Office suite.
• Experience using Canvas.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Fulbright U.S. Student Grant application process, including strategy, timelines, internal reviews, and advising applicants from recruitment through submission.
• Advise Fulbright applicants on grant and country selection, application writing, cohort and individual reviews, and submission obstacles; coordinate with faculty and staff recommenders.
• Teach a one-credit spring course focused primarily on successful Fulbright U.S. Student Grant applications.
• Manage a portfolio of other competitive awards from recruitment through submission, including applicant recruitment, advising, and application development.
• Lead student review panels and provide objective feedback to office leadership about candidate progress and nominations.
• Develop, evaluate, and manage Canvas sites and advising standards, and research strategies for managing large applicant cohorts.
• Design and lead writing workshops, writing retreats, and other student-facing support.
• Build and maintain relationships with faculty, departments, student-support offices, and student groups to recruit and retain fellowship candidates.
• Promote awards and applicant-development benefits at campus events, class sessions, and department meetings.
• Work with campus partners to develop and maintain a pipeline of future applicants.
• Supervise, mentor, develop, and conduct annual reviews for one URF Coach; during peak activity, the position may supervise a part-time seasonal employee.
• Provide office-wide support during peak seasons, including written candidate evaluations, nomination letters, mock interviews, and major campus events.
• Review and score applications for URF-sponsored grant processes each term.
• Contribute to mid-year and annual reports and support decisions about data collection, evaluation metrics, and reporting strategies.
• Manage data collection and maintenance for several hundred fellowship applicants annually.
• Encourage and support undergraduate completion of the Vol Edge.
• Help foster a positive office and divisional culture.

Benefits

• Employees have access to career development and coaching, continued education, and development and training opportunities.
• The university highlights work-life balance, compensation, and professional advancement as part of its employee support.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level