New

Associate Director for Graduate Student Recruitment

University of Kansas
United States, Kansas, Lawrence
1450 Jayhawk Boulevard (Show on map)
Jul 08, 2025
Position Overview More than perhaps any other factor, the degree to which a university attracts and retains qualified students determines the success or failure of that institution. The Enrollment Management (EM) division is a key player in this activity and has a profound effect on the institution's success. The division is committed to developing a data-informed, forward-looking, comprehensive enrollment strategy that enables the institution to pursue strategic goals in an integrated and intentional manner. Graduate Enrollment Management (GEM) reports to the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management. The GEM unit collaborates closely with all offices within EM, the Office of Graduate Studies (OGS), and Academic Success (AS) to ensure that prospective students, applicants, program faculty and staff are supported during the graduate inquiry, application, admission, and new student enrollment process. The unit also ensures that policies for graduate admissions are upheld and formally admits graduate students on behalf of the Office of Graduate Studies. The Associate Director for Graduate Student Recruitment plays a pivotal leadership role in advancing the institution's graduate enrollment goals. This position is responsible for developing and executing data-informed recruitment strategies that support a diverse portfolio of graduate programs, including research-based, professional master's, fully online, satellite, and Competency Based Education (CBE) programs. The Associate Director works collaboratively with academic units across the institution to ensure that recruitment efforts are aligned with each program's unique enrollment goals, structures, and target audiences. The role includes direct supervision of a growing team responsible for executing recruitment efforts, including Graduate Recruitment Specialists, a Business-to-University (B2U) Coordinator, and a team of student ambassadors. Job Description Recruitment Planning and Academic Unit Collaboration (30%) Partner with academic units to develop a comprehensive plan for graduate student recruitment that is structured to meet both enrollment and net revenue goals, ensuring recruitment efforts reflect program-specific goals, timelines, and student profiles Design and implement recruitment strategies aligned with distinct enrollment goals for research-based, professional, online, satellite, and CBE graduate programs Use data and market analysis to inform decision-making and evaluate recruitment effectiveness In collaboration with the Enrollment Marketing and Communications (EMC) team and other stakeholders, research opportunities for new student growth and facilitate new program development across academic units Develop and cultivate relationships to create pipelines for graduate student enrollment, including opportunities to recruit KU alumni and undergraduates Team Leadership, Supervision, and Budget Management (30%) Hire, train, and supervise a team of Graduate Recruitment Specialists, a Business-to-University (B2U) Coordinator, and graduate student ambassadors Set goals and key performance indicators, oversee daily graduate student recruitment operations, and provide professional development to build a high-performing student recruitment team Collaborate with the Associate Director for Operations on professional development and training for stakeholders on GEM best practices; provide expertise on workshops and training sessions focused on graduate student recruitment, ensuring consistency, clarity, and alignment with graduate enrollment goals Develop and maintain comprehensive playbooks and standard operating procedures (SOPs) to guide recruitment efforts Manage the graduate student recruitment operations budget, ensuring efficient use of resources and alignment with enrollment priorities Track recruitment activity and spending, assess return on investment, and adjust tactics based on performance data and recruitment tools Marketing, Communications, and Outreach (30%) Partner with the EMC team to develop and execute segmented, multichannel outreach plans, which include automated and personalized communications highlighting KU and program-specific information Design and implement outreach plans to move prospective students from initial inquiry to application submission Collaborate with the Associate Director for Operations to develop and implement effective prospect to enrollment workflows, strengthen cross-functional communication, and ensure alignment on shared goals and responsibilities Oversee recruitment events (virtual and in-person) with occasional travel to on-site events Collaborate with EMC and Student Lifecycle Technology (SLT) teams to utilize the latest technology for student recruitment, including but not limited to the CRM and chatbot Partner with the Office of Graduate Studies (OGS) and Academic Success (AS) to review new student orientation material and facilitate invitations to the appropriate student audience GEM tasks and projects and other duties or special projects as assigned by the AVP/Director (10%) Position Requirements Valid U.S. driver's license at the time of appointment Must be eligible to work in the U.S. by the time of appointment Travel, evening, and weekend work may be required Required Qualifications Master's degree and three years of related experience or bachelor's degree and five years of related experience At least two years' experience supervising full-time staff as evidenced by application materials At least two years of experience leading or coordinating recruitment campaigns or strategies specifically for graduate-level programs At least two years of experience using a CRM system (e.g., Slate, Salesforce, TargetX), including building campaigns, managing workflows, and analyzing performance metrics At least one year of experience developing and maintaining at least one comprehensive set of standard operating procedures or recruitment playbooks for internal or cross-functional use At least two years of experience analyzing and presenting recruitment data and using data to make strategic decisions and adjust outreach tactics At least two years of experience managing multiple concurrent projects and meeting deadlines in a fast-paced, collaborative work environment Work experience that required working independently to organize and track tasks/projects and to meet deadlines as evidenced by application materials Preferred Qualifications Doctoral degree At least one year of experience with Slate's CRM and application systems Experience with Graduate Enrollment Management theory and practices as evidenced by application materials Experience with KU graduate academic programs, graduate admission policies, and support services as evidenced by application materials Additional Candidate Instructions In addition to the online application, the following documents are required to be considered for this position: Cover letter describing how you meet the required and preferred qualifications Resume List of three (3) professional references Only complete applications will be considered. Application review begins Monday July 21st and will continue until a qualified pool of applicants is identified. Contact Information to Applicants Amanda Ostreko, amandao@ku.edu Advertised Salary Range $75,000 Application Review Begins Monday July 21, 2025 Anticipated Start Date Monday August 18, 2025