Registration Assistant & International Student Advisor

Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary•Hamilton, MA

4h•Onsite

About The Position

Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary is a multidenominational, evangelical graduate school committed to equipping Christian leaders to think theologically, engage globally, and live biblically. With nearly 1,400 students across campuses in Massachusetts, North Carolina, Florida, and online, Gordon-Conwell’s student body represents more than eighty-five denominations and fifty countries. The seminary offers master’s and doctoral programs—delivered in English, Spanish, and Portuguese—that combine academic excellence, spiritual formation, and a deep commitment to Scripture. Its 12,000 alumni serve Christ through ministry in the church, the academy, and the workplace. Gordon-Conwell is accredited by the Association of Theological Schools, the New England Commission of Higher Education, and the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs. Under the supervision of the Assistant Registrar, the Registration Assistant supports the mission of the seminary by overseeing a variety of functions required to ensure the smooth and efficient operation of the Registration Office and its service to students through efficiently completing detail-oriented administrative tasks including data entry, communication, and other duties as assigned. This position also serves as an International Student Advisor. This position is required to work in person at Gordon-Conwell’s Hamilton, MA location 5 days a week.

Requirements

Must have strong written and verbal communication skills.
Must be sensitive to the varied needs of a diverse student population, can maintain a high level of confidentiality, and be capable of functioning effectively within a student-centered, cooperative, decision-making environment.
Commitment to collegiality, diversity, inclusion, and cultural awareness.
Demonstrated ability to collaborate and serve in a team environment that requires collegiality and regular collaboration across matrixed, multi-campus environment.
Competent in using Outlook, Word, Excel, PDF Editor, Teams, Zoom.
Ability and willingness to learn to perform at an intermediate level in the Student Information System (SONIS).
Strong customer service skills with ability to display empathy with all constituents.
Willingness to learn registration policies, procedures, and standard degree program requirements in order to assist students.
Able to manage time well in order to accurately perform detailed work while also serving students in their varied academic concerns.
Must be highly organized and detail oriented.
Clear understanding of the mission of the Seminary and willingness to abide by the Statement of Faith and Community Life Statement of GCTS.
DSO must be either a citizen or a lawful permanent resident of the United States per federal law.

Nice To Haves

Experience with website content maintenance is helpful but not required.
Bachelor's degree preferred.
2+ years of experience working in an administrative setting committed to confidentiality is strongly preferred.
2+ years of experience in customer service is strongly preferred.
Experience working in a multi-ethnic environment with cultural sensitivity.
Knowledge of Gordon-Conwell and its various academic programs is helpful.

Responsibilities

Coordinates administrative activities of the Registration Office. (65%)
Oversees office operations and supervises Registration student worker(s) to ensure the timely processing of incoming requests via phone, email, voicemail, mail and walk-ins; timely responses to all requests or forwarding to the appropriate team member; student loan verifications, transcript requests, withdrawal/leave of absence, pass/fail and other petitions, immunization/TB documentation, course registration actions, posting transfer credit, grades; data entry and student record updates, ensuring the integrity and safe handling of all student records.
Monitors and updates the Master Calendar list of tasks performed by Registration Assistant to stay on track with all work needing to be performed throughout the year. Updates documentation for this role.
Creates, reviews, and revises office forms, documentation, academic and master calendars, and Registration webpages (in Canvas and Wordpress) for accuracy. Updates the webpage content with schedule changes, updated forms, or other changes.
Creates course sections in the Student Information System (SONIS) in advance of online registration. Edits the Registration Canvas site content with course schedule updates or other changes. Posts ECDs each term.
Creates new student checksheets and audits new student records every semester. Provides assistance to the Student Success team by updating current student checksheets.
Oversees office upkeep and supply maintenance.
Coordinates major events. (10%)
Oversees the administration of Online Competency Exams (fall, spring, summer), including training of proctors. Adds advanced standing credit for passed competency exams to student transcripts.
Coordinates TB Clinics (fall and spring) in conjunction with GCTS TB nurse and town of Hamilton nurse as needed. Serve as primary liaison between nurses and Registration Office, providing follow-up assistance as needed. Completes MIIS Immunization Survey annually.
Coordinates front office preparations for Commencement: regalia distribution, name review, diploma issuance, signage and labels, and other various tasks assisting in Commencement preparations.
Assists with New Student Registration Fair (fall and spring).
BTI Cross-Registrations. (10%) Serve as the office liaison between students and the BTI host school registrars, providing updated course schedule (fall and spring), processing cross-registrations, and other registration actions and grades.
Serves as an International Student Advisor. (10%)
Serves as a Designated School Official (DSO), assisting the Principal DSO with maintaining the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) for the Hamilton campus.
Organizes SEVIS data processing under the guidelines provided by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Advises students with petitions and applications to include processing for new F-1 visas, practical training, reinstatement, and reduced course load authorizations, change of status, medical leave and economic hardship employment authorization.
Assists international students with processing applications for work permits, reinstatements, extensions of stay and other F-1 visa related matters.
Other Duties as Assigned (5%) Assists in other tasks requested by the Assistant Registrar or Lead Associate Registrar and provides support to the Team as needed to ensure the smooth operation of the Registration Office.