American University is a student-centered research institution located in Washington, DC, with highly-ranked schools and colleges, internationally-renowned faculty, and a reputation for creating meaningful change in the world. Learn more about American University

School of Public Affairs

Time Type:

Full time

Job Type:

Regular

FLSA Status:

ExemptHybrid 01 (On Campus 3-4 Days/Week)

SEIU Local 500 - Provost & Enrollment Division

This position is part of a collective bargaining unit represented by SEIU Local 500 - Provost & Enrollment Division. That means the terms and conditions of your employment are governed by university policy (including the Staff Personnel Policies Manual) and any collective bargaining agreement entered into between American University and SEIU Local 500 - Provost & Enrollment Division.

Summary:

The Online Graduate Enrollment Lead is a new and integral, position in the Office of Graduate Admissions (OGA) at the School of Public Affairs (SPA). The primary purview of the position is to support the development and execution of a comprehensive, data-driven, online recruitment strategy, manage the application, admissions, and merit aid allocation, conduct timely yield events and initiatives and lead as well as contribute to reporting for SPA’s Master of Public Administration and Policy (MPAP) and MS in Counter-Terrorism and Homeland Security (CTHS) degrees. The incumbent will be required to establish and prioritize a high-touch, personalized, and mission-aligned enrollment lifecycle experience for all interested students (prospect to enrollee).

 

The Online Graduate Enrollment Lead will serve as the CRM lead. They will be responsible for making full use of the campus’ Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform, Salesforce (SF), as well as the Salesforce Marketing Cloud (SFMC) to support the online enrollment cycle. In addition to the CRM’s management of the application, admissions, and merit aid processes, the incumbent is charged with the implementation and use of a Virtual Agent, a technology capability in SF that will function as a "digital team member" enhancing response time and driving operational efficacy. The SFMC will be leveraged for the release of communications, establishing communication workflows, as well as creating dedicated degree journeys for SPA’s online programs.

 

With a supervisory line to the School’s Assistant Dean of Graduate Enrollment, the Online Graduate Enrollment Lead will leverage established strategy, processes, and reporting tools, when applicable, in the OGA and will work closely with the associated staff in aligning online operations as well as administration. The Online Graduate Enrollment Lead’s purview also requires close and detailed work with SPA’s online Faculty Program Directors, OGA team members, online advisor(s), SPA Communications & Marketing, Office of Graduate and Professional Studies (OGPS), Office of Information Technology (OIT), and, most importantly, valued online prospective students.

 

As an important part of the OGA, the Online Graduate Enrollment Lead will also, on occasion, be requested to contribute to operational projects and/or reporting as well as participate in (and, as pertinent, lead) major recruitment events (online and on campus), virtual sessions, relevant School, campus, and team meetings, as well as required and desired professional development initiatives.

Essential Functions:

1.) Online Graduate Recruitment, Communication, & Events

• The Online Graduate Enrollment Lead is responsible for leveraging expertise in online student recruitment to create and execute a data-driven strategic recruitment plan, developing targeted initiatives that drive high-quality inquiries and applications. The recruitment plan should be grounded by landscape research and market analysis to identify relevant trends to ensure the programs’ competitive and unique positioning in the market at large as well as around SPA’s top-ranked, comparable on-campus degree offerings. 
• And, in collaboration with SPA Communications & Marketing, develop a complementary, sophisticated multi-channel communication plan designed to nurture a diverse, high-quality cohort of online students for the MPAP and CTHSP degrees. The internal communication plan should leverage the SFMC and, as much as viable for the online market segment, align with SPA’s communication strategy for the School’s on-campus programs.
• The incumbent is also responsible for designing, implementing, and leading, as relevant, virtual information sessions (i.e., recruitment, application coaching, Post-Admission Workshops), establishing regular "Live Chat" opportunities that allow prospective students to interact with faculty and current students, and instituting relevant yield events (i.e., virtual topical sessions, Admit Day and/or Open Houses).

 

2.) Admissions & Graduate Merit Aid

• In consultation and collaboration with the Assistant Dean and Online Program Directors, administers the faculty-driven admissions and merit award processes for SPA’s online graduate programs. Leads the cultivation and timely processing of graduate applications and rendering of decisions for SPA’s online programs. This includes establishing recurring initiatives to support applicants in completing applications and prioritizing responsiveness to address questions and concerns from online applicants, as well as faculty directors and related staff regarding the SPA online program application/admissions processes. Updates and maintains the School’s online admission committee lists and relevant, degree-specific admission criteria. In collaboration with the assistant dean, serves as a primary point of contact for the online faculty program directors in matters related to admissions processes and policies. Conducts admission interviews for online applicants as requested. Supports the online graduate program merit aid process by releasing award-specific communications as well as tracking, reporting,  auditing, and loading awards for all new/incoming online graduate students for each entry term.

 

3.) Graduate Enrollment Reporting & Analytics

• Leads, contributes, and provides analysis of online graduate enrollment data. This requires leveraging the university enterprise system (Microstrategy Business Intelligence (BI)) and the campus’ CRM, Salesforce. The Online Graduate Enrollment Lead will support the current, weekly BI reporting in the OGA, lead responses to ad hoc online data requests, and contribute to OGA’s monthly Graduate Enrollment Report as well as the annual, comprehensive analytics report(s) to/for School- and University-based stakeholders.

 

4.) CRM Lead

• Serves as the CRM Lead for SPA’s online graduate programs, working closely with the OGA’s Associate Director of Graduate Admissions & Enrollment Analytics, Office of Information Technology (OIT), Office of Graduate and Professional Studies (OGPS), and other CRM Leads, as needed, across the AU campus. The position is responsible for troubleshooting system issues, testing post-production upgrades and/or updates, training, as needed, of SPA faculty, staff, and student workers associated with SPA’s online programs, and serving as the primary point of contact for users (including online prospective students as they interface with the application portal). Serves as the CRM expert as it relates to online graduate program enrollment processes including application and admission management, view and dashboard development, advanced queries, workflow implementation and modification, and reporting. Coordinates with OGA’s Associate Director of Graduate Admissions and Enrollment Analytics in adhering to University/School data security and confidentiality policies and in maintaining the CRM access and users list.

 

5.) Supervision & Operational Support

• The Online Graduate Enrollment Lead will be expected to manage the designated Graduate Student Ambassador(s) and Virtual Agent prioritizing work that supports online recruitment, admissions, and yield activities. The work will include forward-facing communications, telephone and email campaigns, and “Chats” (email, telephone, and virtual), as well as various research projects, and other pertinent initiatives. It is anticipated that the deployment of the Virtual Agent technology in support of the online graduate enrollment cycle will require enhanced start-up measures. (Additional support for the Online Graduate Enrollment Lead with this technology will be deployed within the OGA and, ideally, the campus’ OIT.)
• The incumbent will also be expected to support OGA operational initiatives, events, and projects as relevant and as capacity allows.

 

6.) Other Duties as Assigned

Supervisory Responsibility:

• Will supervise a graduate student(s) and virtual agent to support online enrollment operation.

Position Type/Expected Hours of Work:

• Full-time.
• 35 hours per week.

Salary Range:

• $70,000.00 - $75,000.00 annually.

Required Education and Experience:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in public affairs/policy, education, mathematics, statistics, computer science, economics, science, social science, business, or a related field required.
• 3 - 5 years of relevant experience providing analytical support or working in a higher education/admission setting.
• Technical and strong Excel proficiency required.

Preferred Education and Experience:

• Master's degree in education, mathematics, statistics, computer science, economics, science, social science, business, or a related field preferred.

Additional Eligibility Qualifications:

• Experience with Customer Relationship Management platforms and, specifically, dashboard and reporting capabilities.

• Ability to formulate inquiries and analysis to inform and advance an enrollment operation.

• Ability to work collaboratively with campus-level graduate enrollment professionals and technical support.
• Ability to prioritize tasks and manage competing priorities on deadline.
• Ability to learn and successfully use new software programs as needed.
• Ability to work independently with minimal supervision.
• Attention to detail and to manage confidential student information/data.
• Excellent customer service and critical thinking skills.
• Excellent communication skills (written and oral).

Benefits

AU offers a competitive benefits package. Click here to learn about American University's unique benefit options.

Other Details

• Hiring offers for this position are contingent on successful completion of a background check.

• Employees in staff positions at American University must deliver their services to the university from either the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia, or perform work on-site at the university.

• Please note this job announcement is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

• American University is an E-Verify employer.

Current American University Employees

American University current employees must apply through their employee Workday account. If you are a current employee at American University, please log into Workday and select the Find Jobs report which will take you to our internal career listings.

Contact Us

For more information or assistance with the American University careers site, email [email protected].

American University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action institution that operates in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The university does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy), age, sexual orientation, disability, marital status, personal appearance, gender identity and expression, family responsibilities, political affiliation, source of income, veteran status, an individual’s genetic information or any other bases under federal or local laws (collectively "Protected Bases") in its programs and activities.