Director, Student Success Advising

Job Description:

In 2022, Berklee launched an innovative student success advising model. The Berklee Bridge transformed Berklee’s advising services into a holistic student support system. With a student-centered approach, the Student Success Advising team affirms each individual student’s capacity for self-direction, personal development, and growth. In addition to providing traditional academic advising, the Student Success Advising team acts as the central coordinator of the student success network. Through proactive outreach and engagement, the Student Success Advising team ensures each student is aware of and has access to the resources, programs, and supports provided by academic programs, academic support services, accessibility resources, personal counseling, wellness services, student affairs, student aid, international student services, identity-based programs, and career services.
This Director role is designed for professionals who are passionate about making an impact on student success in all aspects of their educational experience—academic, personal, artistic, and professional. This role is also designed for leaders and innovators in the student success and persistence and/or academic advising fields. The person in this role should have a keen interest in the mentorship and development of professional advisors at all levels of experience, and find fulfillment in their advancement and success while leading with empathy. The Student Success Advising leadership team is seeking candidates who will thrive in a role that supports a community of diverse, talented, and inspiring students from all over the world as they develop as creatives, artists, musicians, performers, entrepreneurs, dancers, designers, educators, and therapists.
This is a unique opportunity to join a talented leadership team and lead a team of professional advisors dedicated to advancing student success in a highly personalized, cohort-based model. The Director will also be a key member of the leadership team and will have an opportunity to contribute in significant ways to the successful expansion and transformation of the advising team.
Job Summary
The Director position reports directly to the Assistant Dean of Student Advising and Success and helps lead and administer the holistic advising model, specifically as it relates to proactive caseload management, partnerships with academic and student support departments, coordinated student outreach, and developing data-driven student success strategies. The Director will be responsible for helping to drive KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) as well as assisting the Assistant Dean with reporting on outcomes. The Director will lead a student cohort-based group of Student Success Advisors, as well as advise a caseload of students.
Student Success Advising is responsible for monitoring and tracking the progress of an assigned cohort-based caseload of undergraduate students and focuses on student success outcomes throughout the entire student journey at Berklee. Student Success Advising builds and nurtures ongoing relationships with academic chairs, faculty, and various support staff, and brings to their daily work current best practices and theories in the areas of student success and persistence, academic advising, and student identity development. Critical to this role is approaching student advising with an ethic of care and the ability to provide a personalized approach that builds strong, authentic, and trusting relationships with students. The Director should be an empathetic leader with a passion for developing and mentoring young professionals, fostering a supportive and growth-oriented environment that empowers individuals to reach their full potential.

Responsibilities

Advising and Success: 

• Provide advice and support to an assigned caseload of students, through appointments, class visits, emails, programming, and more

• Monitor and track progress of an assigned caseload, through academic milestones (music core completion, major declaration, credit completion,  graduation, etc) and partner with students to meet those milestones

• Support academically at-risk students including those withdrawing from courses, off-track for timely graduation, not meeting satisfactory academic progress, and provide coaching and strategies as appropriate 

• Actively connect students to academic department advising, support services, and programming, to help students make the most of their academic experience

• Coach students on connecting the dots about college policies, procedures, and academic options to create goals and an academic plan that works best for them 

• As appropriate, connect students with their Berklee Bridge team to ensure they are aware of and utilizing all available academic and support resources throughout their student journey, including but not limited to, health & wellness resources, financial aid, accessibility resources, study abroad, international student services, and residential education 

• May be responsible for overseeing the advising of special student cohorts, including but not limited to Berklee Global Academic Partners, First-Year Abroad, and Study Abroad students 

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Strategy and Leadership:

• Lead a student cohort-based group of advisors, and oversee the holistic care of a cohort of ~1500 undergraduate students 

• Supervise 6 advisors, and provide active mentorship by setting their priorities and ongoing performance goals while leading with empathy and professionalism 

• Partner with a health and wellness case manager to coordinate proactive care, programming, and outreach to provide wrap around support for individual students in your cohort-based group

• Coordinate care for escalated and complex student cases, within your cohort group

• Work closely with the Assistant Dean to support outreach, intervention and coaching approaches to student retention and success for the entire undergraduate population as well as targeted student populations

• Co-lead the recruitment, training and development of the Student Success Advising department, as part of the leadership team

• Monitor advising system issues or challenges, and advocate for improvements to workflows and case management when necessary

• Support the collection and review of student data to inform process and service goals of the Student Success Advising department

• Collaborate with faculty and academic departments, to ensure academic advising efforts are connected and coordinated 

• Support the administration and advancement of the holistic advising model, and assist in the continual assessment of its effectiveness in driving student success outcomes

• Lead monthly Berklee Bridge team meetings, bringing all appropriate student support members together to share information and collaborate on future success and enhancements to support the holistic advising model 

• An active member of Berklee CARES (Care, Assessment, Response, Evaluation, Success), attending weekly meetings to partner with staff across the college to support students of concern ​

Additional Duties and Responsibilities:

• Some evening, weekend, and holiday hours required

• Follow through with other duties or projects as assigned by the Assistant Dean of Student Advising and Success

• Stay abreast of new developments in the fields of student success and persistence

• Personify Berklee’s fundamental values 

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Knowledge and Skills Required:

• Master's degree required

• Minimum of seven years experience in an undergraduate advising role, and strong professional interest in the field of academic advising or student success and persistence

• Minimum of three years experience with a strong professional interest in supervising and mentoring professional advisors

• Experience and/or strong professional interest in advising and supporting students who identify as First Gen, Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and/or Asian Pacific Islander

• Ability to quickly learn, understand and use technology/software programs, with a focus in predictive analytics and SIS systems

• Energy, empathy, listening skills and a desire to work in a progressive office and innovative team that requires proactive and student-centered approaches

• Must possess a high level of professionalism and discretion as it relates to all interactions with members of the Berklee community

• Strong desire to work as part of a team 

• Ability to adapt to new and rapidly changing situations

This document does not create an employment contract, implied or otherwise, other than an “at will” employment relationship.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Equal Employment Opportunity at Berklee: 

We support an inclusive workplace where everyone excels based on personal merit, qualifications, experience, ability, and job performance.  Berklee affirms that inequality is detrimental to our faculty, staff, students, and the communities we serve. Our goal is to make lasting change through our actions. Berklee is committed to providing fair and equitable consideration of all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, ancestry, age, national origin, place of birth, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, genetic information, or status as a member of the armed forces or veteran of the armed forces, or any other category protected by federal, state, or local law.

As part of this commitment, Berklee will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact the Human Resources Team at [email protected] or call 617-747-2375.

Berklee is committed to increasing the diversity of our institution, community, and the curriculum. Candidates who can contribute to that goal are encouraged to apply and to identify their strengths in this area.

*Currently enrolled Berklee students are not permitted to apply for staff or faculty positions.*

Employee Type:Staff