Graduate Admissions Specialist

American University • Washington, DC

3d • $28 - $31 • Hybrid

About The Position

The Graduate Admissions Specialist will serve a vital processing, tracking, and front-line role within the Office of Graduate Admission (OGA) in the School of Public Affairs. The Graduate Admissions Specialist will primarily provide support for the timely and thorough processing of prospective graduate student applications, including direct interface with applicants (written, online, and in person), extensive use of the campus’ CRM, Salesforce, and the management and update of an array of tracking spreadsheets. This position will also provide support with admissions, enrollment, and assessment reports; merit aid (Graduate Financial Aid ((GFA)) notifications, tracking, and auditing; international student immigration paperwork; admissions marketing collateral; and relevant event preparation, delivery, and follow-up. This position reports directly to the Associate Director of Graduate Admissions & Enrollment Analytics as part of the SPA Office of Graduate Admissions, which includes the Assistant Dean of Graduate Enrollment, the Assistant Director of Graduate Recruitment, Graduate Recruitment and Advisement Coordinator, supporting graduate student staff. In addition to the OGA staff, the position will work with the SPA Senior Associate Dean, graduate applicants and admitted students, graduate advisors, International Student and Scholar Services staff, and faculty members, as well as other campus graduate admissions units and support services. The position may also directly supervise one to two hourly graduate students.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent.
• Advanced training in MS Office software applications or equivalent in education, training, and experience.
• 1 - 3 years of relevant experience.
• A minimum of one (1) year of relevant full-time professional experience (post-degree) in a higher education environment or other relevant experience in a high traffic, customer contact position within a complex organization.
• Experience with databases and acute attention to detail.
• Proficiency in MS Office software applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook) and web-based research.
• Experience managing sensitive information and maintaining confidentiality.

Nice To Haves

• Master's Degree or equivalent.
• Familiarity with Salesforce, CRM or other customer relationship management software and/or Colleague a plus.
• Experience in a front-line customer service role.

Responsibilities

• Application & Admissions Support Primarily responsible for supporting the Associate Director of Graduate Admissions & Enrollment Analytics. Duties include processing applications, entering, and maintaining relevant admissions data in various University systems. This position will review official and unofficial college transcripts to verify final grade point averages (GPA), degree conferral, and send international transcripts for evaluation. This position will regularly assist SPA graduate applicants, admitted students, faculty members, and staff with their questions and concerns regarding the application/admissions processes utilizing various mediums (written, online, in-person, and over the phone), including bi-monthly Application Coaching Session virtual presentations. The Specialist will also support the merit aid (Graduate Financial Aid ((GFA)) notification, tracking, and auditing processes of the School. This position assists with the edit and release of communications related to application, admission and/or merit aid processes. This position will also collect and submit international student immigration paperwork for processing and track international student visa status. This area of responsibility may include supervising one to two graduate student staff in support of the OGA process.
• Spreadsheet Management & Data Reporting Creates and manages an array of application, admission, and merit aid spreadsheets requiring regular updates. Contributes to enrollment and assessment reports including the monthly Graduate Enrollment Report as well as the annual Assessment Report. Completes ad hoc data requests related to recruitment, yield,, and international student statuses.
• Events Planning & Logistics This position intermittently supports OGA’s efforts to plan, execute, and follow-up on recruitment/admission/ onboarding events for prospective and admitted graduate students. This position will be asked to periodically extract targeted distribution lists from the CRM to support graduate enrollment initiatives.
• Other Duties as Assigned Occasional other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• AU offers a competitive benefits package including a 200% matching retirement plan, tuition benefits for full-time staff and their families, several leadership development certificates, and has been recognized by the American Heart Association as a fit-friendly worksite.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Number of Employees: 1,001-5,000 employees