Academic Student Advisor - Part-Time

Brandeis University is delighted to announce a career opportunity as the Academic Student Advisor, Brandeis Online. At Brandeis, we offer a competitive benefits and compensation package which includes medical, dental and life insurances.  If you are looking to advance your career through educational opportunities, Brandeis offers tuition assistance for employees, dependents and spouses.  Our 403b retirement savings plan includes a generous match.

The Academic Student Advisor is a part-time position, 25 hours a week, responsible for developing and enhancing relationships with students to support student enrollment, persistence, and success in degree programs. The Student Advisor offers one-on-one advising to ensure a smooth transition to the online learning environment, provides support and guidance throughout the student’s program, and monitors student progress with the ultimate goal of program completion. Advisors provide timely and regular feedback to students, answer all student questions about their programs, keep in regular communication with all students, work with every student on their program plans of study and career goals, and keep detailed records.

The Academic Advisor's primary responsibility is to provide superb student support, academic advising, and to meet established online program retention goals. Acts as the coach and mentor for students throughout their program, be there to inspire, motivate, and challenge students, provides student support through academic planning, communication, and outreach to students, as well as providing resources and tools for success. This is a part-time non-exempt role.

Key Responsibilities:

Student advising and retention:

• Serve as the primary point of contact for students, providing the encouragement and support necessary to enable students to complete their program of study and interceding with at-risk students to reduce attrition.

• Support new student enrollment and offer one-on-one advising to ensure a smooth transition to the online learning environment.

• Guide and monitor student progress toward program completion.

• Demonstrate and communicate current, detailed, and accurate knowledge of university and divisional policies to students. Communicate the policies and procedures in a manner that displays a deep understanding of the rationale and the value of the policy to the student. 

• Assist students in preparing for the start of each session, including course recommendations and degree completion planning.

• Assess risk factors that may contribute to attrition and proactively work to mitigate those risk factors. Utilize reports and student feedback to identify concerns affecting student progression and create an action plan with the student to address these concerns.

• Help students explore alternatives to overcome issues or problems that may be barriers to persistence or graduation. Assess the need for other services and make appropriate referrals. 

• Implement re-entry initiatives to bring inactive students back to the program.

• Take ownership of and meet enrollment and retention targets both as an individual and as a team, leveraging available tools and platforms.

• Provide and coordinate career advising to students, including reviewing resumes, pointing students to professional development resources, and providing industry-specific guidance in coordination with program chairs, members of the team and the Director of Student Services.

• Support career development initiatives across the student services unit and Rabb division, including alumni and student engagement and professional development opportunities.

• Assist in maintaining and updating relevant student services and career development resources, including key student resources within the University’s learning management system.

• Encourage and support students as they gain the skills and knowledge necessary for success Provide a trusting environment where students can share their thoughts, aspirations, concerns, and interests, ensuring a positive student experience and academic success.

• Provide students with the available resources to aid with their success here at the university Act as the student liaison between other departments; possess a thorough understanding of university policies, procedures, requirements, and effectively communicate them to students.

• Advise students regarding academic interests, college offerings and requirements.

• Assist students in selecting courses and combinations of courses that reflect individual interests and academic preparedness.

• Track student progress using the student success system and communicating plans of su