Associate Director Graduate Admissions
Job Description
Associate Director Graduate Admissions
Position Type
Professional Staff
Faculty Track
Employment Status
Full Time
Months
12
Campus
Biddeford, ME
Description
The Associate Director of Graduate Admissions provides leadership for graduate admissions counseling and applicant services from inquiry handoff through matriculation. This position supervises Graduate Admissions Counselors, promotes consistent service across assigned programs, and oversees accurate, timely, and compliant admissions processes. Working with academic programs and university partners, the Associate Director improves the applicant experience, supports enrollment goals, and strengthens admissions practices.
About the University of New England
UNE is Maine's largest private university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study-abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of flexible online offerings. In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to positively impact a world full of challenges. We are the state's top provider of health professionals and home to Maine's only medical and dental colleges, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care programs, and nationally recognized programs in the marine sciences, the natural and social sciences, business, the humanities, and the arts.
Benefits Overview
- Multiple health and dental plan options, plus vision coverage.
- Up to 8% retirement plan match.
- Generous leave time, including vacation, sick, and personal time, and 12+ holidays per year.
- Educational benefits:
- UNE tuition waiver for employees, spouses, and domestic partners.
- UNE tuition waiver for dependents of employees with 1 year of full-time service.
- 50% tuition reduction if less than 1 year of full-time service.
Responsibilities
Team Leadership & Counselor Development
- Supervise, coach, and evaluate Graduate Admissions Counselors serving assigned programs in WCHP, CAS, CDM, and COM.
- Coordinate program assignments, caseloads, backup coverage, and cross-training based on program complexity, cycle timing, applicant volume, and staff capacity.
- Set clear expectations for applicant contact, service, pipeline management, advising, program partnership, data accuracy, and progress toward enrollment goals.
- Conduct regular one-on-one meetings, team pipeline reviews, workload discussions, and developmental coaching; provide timely feedback and recognize strong performance.
- Support counselor hiring, onboarding, training, professional development, and continuity planning in partnership with the Director and Vice President.
- Oversee applicant service from documented inquiry handoff through application, admission, deposit, matriculation, and transition to the appropriate university partners.
- Coordinate with the Associate Director of Graduate Recruitment & Visitor Experience to maintain a clear and consistent transition from recruitment to counseling.
- Ensure prospective students, applicants, admitted students, and deposited students receive timely and appropriate communication at each stage of the process.
- Identify barriers related to application completion, affordability, financial aid, competing offers, decision timing, and outstanding enrollment requirements; coordinate appropriate follow-up and support.
- Lead counselor participation and follow-up for applicant and admitted-student events in partnership with Recruitment, which coordinates event planning and logistics.
- Oversee procedures for application completion, review, interviews, decisions, deposits, conditions of admission, and matriculation tracking.
- Maintain consistent Graduate Admissions procedures while accommodating approved program-specific and accreditation requirements.
- Address routine operational questions and exceptions within established policy and refer matters requiring broader review to the Director or other appropriate partners.
- Monitor decision accuracy, communication timing, data completeness, compliance, and recurring errors; coordinate corrective action when needed.
- Coordinate testing, training, and documentation when admissions procedures or system-supported workflows change.
- Support counselors as the primary day-to-day admissions contacts for their assigned programs and address program concerns that require management involvement.
- Work with academic leadership, Admissions Operations & Analytics, and the Director to align admissions criteria, review practices, decision timelines, and compliance requirements.
- Coordinate with the Assistant Director on shared processes, cross-applicant activity involving COM, CDM, and CPS.
- Work with the Director, Financial Aid, and other university partners to ensure scholarship and financial aid information is timely and accurate and that unresolved affordability concerns are directed appropriately.
- Represent counseling and admissions-process needs in Slate and Centralized Application Service planning, testing, and reporting discussions.
- Review funnel activity, application completion, decision timing, enrollment conversion, counselor caseloads, service levels, errors, and data quality to identify concerns and opportunities.
- Provide the Director with analysis and recommendations related to applicant service, enrollment conversion, workload, and admissions processes.
- Lead post-cycle reviews and incorporate approved improvements into procedures, training, systems, and staff expectations.
- Perform other duties as assigned.
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelor's degree, with eight or more years of progressive experience in graduate admissions or enrollment management, or an equivalent combination of education and experience from which comparable knowledge and skills are acquired.
- At least two years of direct supervisory experience managing admissions, enrollment, or student-service professionals.
- Demonstrated experience improving applicant service, enrollment conversion, or team performance.
- Experience managing complex admissions processes for health-professions or professional graduate programs.
- Experience with customer relationship management and student information systems; Slate experience is strongly preferred.
- Strong organizational, analytical, coaching, communication, and judgment skills.
- Demonstrated ability to balance consistent practices with program-specific needs, accuracy, compliance, and applicant experience.
- Master's degree in a relevant discipline.
- Experience with health-professions Centralized Application Services.
- Experience with Slate-supported admissions processes, testing, workflow improvement, or operational quality assurance.
- Knowledge of financial aid, scholarship timing, yield, and melt prevention.
- Experience supporting multiple program portfolios with overlapping admissions cycles.
EEO Statement Summary
Consistent with federal and state law and University policy, the University of New England is committed to the fundamental concept of equal opportunity for all of the members of the University community. The University prohibits, and will not tolerate, discrimination in employment, the provision of academic services or in any other area of University life based on race, color, sex, physical or mental disability, religion, age, ancestry, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, ethnicity, genetic information, HIV status, or status as a veteran. Prohibited bias factors should not motivate decisions regarding students, employees, applicants for admission, applicants for employment, contractors, volunteers or participants in and/or users of institutional programs, services, and activities.
COVID Vaccination Statement (PLEASE NOTE)
Posting Number
2022PS0976P
Close Date
Open Until Filled
To apply, visit https://une.peopleadmin.com/postings/26714
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