Senior Admissions Counselor

Type of Appointment: Full-Time, ProbationaryCollective Bargaining Unit: Academic Professionals of California – Unit 4Job Classification: SSP IVAnticipated Hiring Amount:$5,732 per monthWork Hours: Monday – Friday 8:00am-5:00pmTHE DEPARTMENTThe Office of Admissions is an organizational unit of the Division of Academic Affairs, which strives forexcellence through a student-centered philosophy. The division has adopted a set of values that every Academic Affairs staff member is responsible for promoting. In performing the duties assigned to this position, all staff members are expected to consistently demonstrate attitudes and behaviors that align with these divisional values.The Office of Admissions is responsible for admissions activities for all undergraduate and graduatestudents, as well as the recruitment activities for international prospective students. The Office is meeting the nonresident goals of the University by promoting the image of the University, its programs, and its uniqueness both domestically and internationally. The Office is also charged with assisting with the setting and meeting of the enrollment goals of the University via strategically reviewing trends, needs, and capacity issues; planning with Deans and senior management; developing relationships with the campus and external communities; providing timely, accurate and comprehensive services to students and the campus throughout the recruitment, admission and enrollment processes.DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIESADMISSIONS COUNSELING LEADOversees and leads departmental admission counselors, including, but not limited to, onboarding, training, and scheduling admission counselors, maintaining quality control of counseling services, and providing ongoing training and development of counseling staff and support personnel aiding in front-line services.Explores, determines, implements, tests, and manages new counseling modalities and strategies, including service platforms such as Slate, Ocelot, etc. Analyzes service statistics (telephone, online, CRM platform) to ensure quality control and service/counseling needs are met.Ensures the counseling team stays abreast of current admission policies and requirements while maintaining high-quality service to our constituents. Identifies department and campus community training needs and provides management with an assessment.Develop training plans and schedules and choose the appropriate training methods.Understand the best way to reach our target audience and stay up-to-date on appropriate training methods or activities.Trains staff on how the admissions appeal process works and provides guidance to students on the expected timeline once an appeal has been submitted. This requires providing useful information regarding sensitive issues while maintaining positive customer service relations.Identifies and creates application assistance tools for applicants. Including but not limited to guides, manuals, how-to videos, workshops, etc.Coordinates with the returning student admission counselor and returning student taskforce on policy and practice guidance for the re-enrollment of former CPP students. This requires a strong knowledge of academic and transfer credit policies to ensure proper application guidance and re-admission counseling.Handles escalated student/applicant issues requiring in-depth analysis and cross-departmental (and possibly cross-divisional) coordination. This requires independent decision-making and strong critical thinking skills for proper resolution.Coordination with departments such as University Housing Services, Orientation Services, Office of Student Success, Student Accounts and Cashiering Services, Veterans Resource Center, etc. will be required.Serves as the departmental liaison to on—and off-campus stakeholders, coordinating, developing, and facilitating admission representation at prospective and admitted student events.Designs, coordinates, and implements admission-related activities at major events such as Explore CPP, CPP Open House, Poly Nights, and New Student Orientation. Triages and resolves complex student admission cases, escalating to department management and/or campus partners as needed.Oversees the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) program for entering students.This includes but is not limited to, the advertisement, marketing, and selection of WUE recipients. Provide an annual analysis of program statistics and perform all data entry to ensure appropriate fee assessment.ADMISSION COUNSELINGInforms and advises all prospective students and their families on various issues ranging from CSU admissions eligibility to career and major choices and admissions possibilities.Provides comprehensive advising to all prospective students and is knowledgeable about the complexities of international and nonresident educational systems, transcripts, checklists, and course equivalencies.Responsible for emails to students, performing communication audits to ensure accuracy, and formulating new emails that will go out to prospective students.Works with prospective students and high school and community college counselors to help them navigate and use ASSIST (a computerized student-transfer information system that is the official repository of articulation for California's colleges and universities) and TES (a repository for campus articulation agreements with non-California and California four-year colleges/universities).Provides the most accurate and up-to-date information about student transfer, CalStateApply, and online resources to help students and their families learn about the CSU system, select a CSU campus to attend, and apply for admission.Ensures that student assistants in the Office of Admissions and other students and staff interacting with incoming students are up-to-date on admissions policies and procedures.Evaluate transcripts to determine admissibility and work with the PeopleSoft student information system and OnBase (Cal Poly Pomona's web-based student academic record database), track records of individuals contacted, and perform follow-up tasks required by the tracking system.Represents the University and the Office of Admissions at counselor conferences and other student engagement events such as new student orientation.Guides prospective students on researching admissions requirements, articulation agreements, and available programs and services.Provides useful information regarding potentially sensitive issues and works to achieve a satisfactory result for prospective students and on and off-campus constituencies.Refers prospective students, off-site school personnel, and community contacts to the appropriate Office when information requests are beyond the scope of the Admissions Counselor.Maintains current knowledge of student services professional practices, counseling theories, enrollment management strategies, enrollment trends for the University and nationally, and admissions policies and procedures from Title 5 of the California Code of Regulation and the CSU Chancellor's Office.Responsible for programmatic initiatives, serving as the lead for the public information area and para-professional student staff, including development and training.Works closely with external constituents to provide regular admissions training to the groups interacting with prospective students.Conducts workshops and training in areas of Cal State Apply, freshman, transfer, and graduate admissions.Develops training guides and quick reference guides (QRG) that can be grasped by professional and para-professional staff who work in and outside of the Office of Admissions.Provides assistance to the front counter staff and as a backup to the Admission Counselor overseeing front counter services.Provides advisement on admissions procedures/policies and entrance requirements, CPP majors and academic programs, financial assistance, housing, student life, athletic programs, and career opportunities.Maintains a strong working knowledge of requirements and policies related to CSU admissions, impaction, transfer articulation, and language proficiency.Maintains strong knowledge of CSU residency policies, providing general guidance to prospective and admitted students. Assists with determining residency for new and continuing students.Interacts effectively with applicants, students, faculty, staff, administrators and the general public over the telephone, via email, and at the service counter.STUDENT EXCEPTIONSOversees the allocation and distribution of late application codes and application fee waiver codes, requiring a high degree of responsibility and analysis of, sometimes, highly sensitive information.Possess decision making authority for CSU Application fee waiver appeals based on extenuating financial circumstances and guidelines set forth by the CSU Chancellor's Office. Ensures appropriate documentation is secured and archived for audit purposes.Determines and manages request process and related communication.Admission Deferments/Appeals/Exceptions:Triages and resolves complex admission, denial, appeal, and exception cases, escalating issues to management when warranted. Provides guidance and counseling to appellants who are challenging admission decisions/actions.Establish and maintain a process for admission application/decision deferments. Ensure appropriate documentation is secured and archived for audit purposes. Provide appropriate counsel to students requesting deferment of their admission. Possesses decision-making authority for admission deferments.Coordinates and processes admission appeals. Including but not limited to establishing an appeal committee, conducting in-depth analysis and evaluation of the cases, rendering appeal decisions, and processing decisions. This requires a high degree of responsibility and confidentiality of often highly sensitive information. Incumbents must possess strong knowledge of admissions through the enrollment business process, admission and enrollment requirements, and CSU policy. Incumbents must maintain equity in decision-making and exercise strong professional judgment. Responsible for the communication of appellant decisions.Coordinates and processes admission exceptions for students otherwise not eligible for admission. Requires a high level of responsibility and confidentiality. Must adhere to CSU Executive Order 962 as prescribed by Sections 40900 and 40901.Serves as a key departmental consultant to campus constituents pursuing admission exceptions, providing support and best practices.DEPARTMENTAL COMMUNICATIONSResponsible for the administration and facilitation of the Office of Admissions's public affairs components. This includes, but is not limited to, overseeing the design, coordination, and implementation of all services provided by our front counter team, including in-person and phone inquiries and counseling appointments.Manages the departmental website, ensuring accuracy, timely updates, and student-centered navigation. Explores enhanced web-based technologies to assist with admission advising services.Manages departmental communication plan. Including but not limited to determining admission communication timelines, maintaining accurate communication content, and determining appropriate communication modality (e.g., email, Billy Chat, telephone campaign, web, social media, etc.)Responsible for ensuring timely responses to email inquiries from students and performing communication audits to ensure accuracy. Formulates new emails that will go out to prospective students, parents, and community personnel. Prepares schedules, updates, and assists the Director and Associate Directors with office communications and the website.Provides timely responses as an appeals committee member and communicates sensitively about admission rescinds.Coordinates all aspects of disseminating appropriate policy changes and eligibility checklists, promoting the campus and its programs. OFFICE OF ADMISSIONS ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORTParticipates in all Office of Admissions, Enrollment Management & Services, and divisional staff development and staff meetings, and attends all major staff events to promote the University.Conducts testing of admission systems and modifications (e.g., Cal State Apply application, Slate information/communication system, etc.)Prepares and utilizes enrollment reports detailing application, admit, enrollment trends, and prospective student inquiry analysis to determine yield strategies.Performs administrative and programmatic duties as assigned. Including but not limited to providing generalist support at the department service desk and telephones.Works extended hours, weekends, and evenings supporting Office of Admissions programs and services.Perform customer service duties and support the front-facing Admissions counter on a rotation/as-needed basis as determined by the Lead Admissions Counselor and operational needs.To ensure compliance and maintain the integrity of applicant and student records, staff members are strictly prohibited from making unauthorized changes without explicit HEERA permission.QUALIFICATIONSEquivalent to graduation from a four-year college or university in a related field plus upper division or graduate course work in counseling techniques, interviewing, and conflict resolution, where such are job-related.The following knowledge and abilities, as well as those listed at lower levels in the Student Services Professional series, are required for appointment to this classification. Thorough knowledge of the policies, procedures, and practices of the program area to which assigned or the ability to quickly acquire such knowledge. General knowledge of the policies, practices, and activities of Student Services programs outside the program to which immediately assigned; general knowledge of the principles, problems, and methods of public administration, including organizational, personnel, and fiscal management; general knowledge of advanced statistical and research methods. Ability to carry out very complex assignments without detailed instructions; advise students individually or in groups on varied and complex matters; determine the appropriate course of action and proper techniques to utilize while engaged with individuals and groups in personal interactions of a sensitive nature; reason logically and analyze and solve organizational and operating problems of one or several program areas; plan, coordinate and initiate actions necessary to implement administrative or group decisions or recommendations; analyze and define complex organizational, policy or procedural problems, collect and evaluate data, draw valid conclusions and project consequences of various alternative courses of action; understand the roles and responsibilities of others and to gauge relationships accordingly by taking into account the variety of the interrelationships, motivations and goals of the members of the organization served; and establish and maintain effective, cooperative and harmonious working relationships in circumstances which involve the denial of requests or the necessity to persuade others to accept a different point of view. Possession of these knowledge and abilities is typically demonstrated through the equivalent to four years of progressively responsible professional student services work experience which includes experience in advising students individually and in groups, and in analysis and resolution of complex student services problems. A master's degree in Counseling, Clinical Psychology, Social Work or a job-related field may be substituted for one year of professional experience. A doctorate degree and the appropriate internship or clinical training in counseling, guidance or a job-related field may be substituted for two years of the required professional experience for positions with a major responsibility for professional, personal or career counseling.Preferred QualificationsMust have the ability to present and articulate complex requirements and policies concerning admissions; be able to respond to in-person, telephone and electronic inquiries.Working knowledge of the methods and problems of organization and program management; research and interviewing techniques; the principles of individual and group behavior; the ability to rapidly acquire such knowledge of the organization, procedures and activities of the university; the basic principles, practices and major trends of recruitment and admissions. Must have excellent written and oral communication skills; outstanding interpersonal and social skills in dealing with a diverse population; the ability to work independently; to use good judgment, initiative and resourcefulness in planning work assignments; attention to detail and follow-through.Must have proficiency with computers, the internet, word-processing and simple databases.Out of State WorkThe California State University (CSU) system is a network of twenty-three public universities providing access to a quality education through the support of California taxpayers. Part of CSU's mission is to prepare educated, responsible individuals to contribute to California's schools, economy, culture, and future. As an agency of the State of California, the CSU's business operations almost exclusively reside within California. The CSU Out-of-State Employment Policy prohibits hiring employees to perform CSU-related work outside California. See policy at Background CheckCal Poly Pomona will make a conditional offer of employment to final job candidates, pending the satisfactory completion of a background check (including a criminal records check).The conditional offer of employment may be rescinded if the background check reveals disqualifying information, and/or it is discovered that the candidate knowingly withheld or falsified information. In determining the suitability of the candidate for the position, Cal Poly Pomona will give an individualized assessment to any information that the applicant submits for consideration regarding the criminal conviction history such as the nature, gravity and recency of the conviction, the candidate's conduct, performance or rehabilitation efforts since the conviction and the nature of the job applied for.For more information, go to .Employment Eligibility VerificationCal Poly Pomona hires only individuals lawfully authorized to work in the United States. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire. See Form I-9 Acceptable Documents at Abuse/Neglect Reporting Act (CANRA)The person holding this position is considered a 'mandated reporter' under the California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act and is required to comply with the requirements set forth in CSU Executive Order 1083 as a condition of employment. See policy at & Fire SafetyIn compliance with state and federal crime awareness and campus security legislation, including The Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act, California Education Code section 67380, and the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA), Cal Poly Pomona's Annual Security Report and Annual Fire Safety Report are available for viewing at: and Transparency NondiscriminationAs a federal contractor, Cal Poly Pomona will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. For more information, see the Pay Transparency Nondiscrimination Provision poster .CSU ClassificationThis position is part of the CSUEU bargaining unit, the CSU Classification Standards for this position are located on the following site, The CSU Salary Schedule is located on the following site: . The classification salary range for this position according to the respective skill level is minimum $5,732 and maximum $8,176 per month. Please refer back to the anticipated hiring range for the appropriate salary rate for this particular position.Reasonable AccommodationWe provide reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities. Applicants with questions about access or requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process should contact the ADA Coordinator by email at ******. More information is available at: Poly Pomona is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The University subscribes to the pay transparency nondiscrimination provision and all state and federal regulations that prohibit discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender identity/gender expression, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy, age, disability, genetic information, medical condition, and covered veteran status. More information is available at: and at .Other NoticesFor other important employment notices, we invite you to visit Cal Poly Pomona's Employment Notices web page.