Academic Advisor

General Description of the Position

THIS POSITION IS 100% GRANT FUNDED

Under the leadership of the Associate Vice-President of Academic Affairs ||Office of Student Success the successful candidate for this position will work in collaboration with campus-wide academic advisors, and faculty, to provide advising, offer intervention, perform student tracking and monitoring, and actively participate in new student orientation, pre-registration and registration. In addition, the position requires special skills, abilities and frequent discretionary judgment to implement appropriate courses of action following an evaluation of complex situations, involving individual student situations, academic major requirements and university policy.

Essential Functions & Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

The following are the functions essential to performing this job.

• Provide developmental academic advising to assigned incoming freshman and pre-program majors.
• Provide incoming students with policy and procedural information relating to academics and institutional guidelines such as drop/add policy, academic probation/suspension/dismissal, and satisfactory academic progress.
• Assist students in the development of their educational goals, including the selection of a major, course selection, meeting graduation requirements, experiential learning opportunities and exploring the possibility of graduate school using advising database tools such as the Individual Development Plan (IDP) and Degreeworks. Assist students with and registration process. Maintain student counseling and participation records using the IDP.
• Provide assistance on development of academic programming and advisement for students on academic probation and non-compliant with Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress.
• Provide information and referrals regarding campus services and University College academic resources.
• Assist in the coordination of activities related to university wide retention efforts. Perform duties related to data gathering and reporting, for specialized services related to retention, academic early alert, and student success.
• Work as contributing member of the OSS Integrated Academic Support and Advisement Team, which includes preparing academic support workshops and programs.
• Facilitate Learning Strategies workshops, and teach sections of University Seminar as needed.
• Participate in planning and coordinating the program services with other collegiate advising offices and related University programs.
• Assists OSS in collecting, managing, and analyzing data for statistical reports on students’ academic performance. Maintain continuous monitoring of academic performance to encourage persistence and improve progression rates.
• Work collaboratively with others and maintain flexibility in her/his work, and is adaptable to change.
• Perform other duties as determined by the Associate Vice-President for Academic Affairs || Office of Student Success to be essential to the productive operation of the division.

Individuals in this job may be assigned one or more of the following tasks on a rotating or as-needed basis.

• Completion and quality of all work in basic research methods and writing according to the established guidelines and procedures documented in the Office of Student Success’ Reporting Structure/Guidelines for Monthly, Semester, and Annual Reports.
• Meet with and answer inquiries of faculty, students, and staff as pertaining to the university retention programs.
• Assess program outcomes with a focus on continuous improvement of program content and customer service.
• Assists with marketing of programs to the campus, high schools, and the local community.
• Collect data and analyze data to provide in timely retention reports and use the results effectively to improve services. Assists in inputting and retrieving data via the university computing system
• Participate in new student orientations, Open House, Welcome Days, and Spring Receptions.

The individual in this job must possess these skills and abilities or be able to explain and demonstrate that they can perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation, using some other combination of skills and abilities.

• Must possess a thorough understanding of and commitment to the mission of the Office of Student Success as it relates to Goal 2: Student Success as outlined in the Delaware State University Strategic Plan.
• Knowledge of retention and academic success program models. Ability to expand knowledge by keeping abreast of current literature and readings on student success, student development principles, academic advising, educational, learning, and career strategies.
• Demonstrated ability to teach undergraduate students.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective interpersonal relations with students, faculty, staff, parents, and other constituents.
• Competence in oral and written communication skills necessary for effective advising and teaching.
• Must possess sensitivity to cultural diversity and ability to communicate and interact effectively with people of all ages and diverse background. Must be optimistic, positive and supportive in all interactions with others.
• Demonstrated flexibility in a changing administrative model.
• Ability to implement, interpret, and evaluate policies, procedures, and processes.
• Ability to work independently and without intense supervision, but also effectively contribute to a leadership team with a service-oriented philosophy.

Qualification Standards

• Education: Master's degree in Student Personnel, Counseling, Education, Organizational Leadership, or other related fields.
• Successful experience: Two (2) to five (5) years' experience working at the professional level with college students in a college setting.
• Must possess a positive attitude towards student success and University retention initiatives.
• Demonstrated superior customer service skills and ability to work collaboratively with a variety of diverse constituents including students, parents, faculty, advisors, and administrators.
• Must have strong computer skills and can demonstrate mastery knowledge in the use of computers and using Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Publisher, Outlook & Access) and BANNER or like SIS systems to create and produce written reports, data tracking, and other documents.

Performance Standards & EEO Statement

The criteria for evaluation in this position include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Must possess a strong commitment to the mission and vision of DSU and University College.
• Excellent customer/student service skills.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and handling multiple priorities.
• Must possess a passion for supporting the academic success of students through developing an educational environment conducive for learning;
• Requires scheduling and providing evening and some weekend office hours as needed.
• Must possess superior customer/student service skills.

EEO Statement

Delaware State University is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive academic global community. The University is dedicated to enhancing diversity and inclusion in all aspects of recruitment and employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, military and veteran status, marital status, pregnancy, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law. The University is committed to achieving a diverse faculty and staff and encourages members of underrepresented groups to apply.

Equal opportunity employer/program'' and “auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities''.