Academic Advising & Financial Aid Specialist
The University of Chicago

Department

Harris School Academic and Financial Aid Advising Sub Group

About the Department

Why Policy? For a better world. Why Harris Public Policy? Because when it comes to better policymaking, evidence matters. We work at the frontiers of data collection and analysis, using the latest technology and social science methods to design policies that work for society. We conduct rigorous inquiry in an environment of innovation and risk taking. We collaborate across the private, public, and nonprofit sectors, adopting new methodologies to drive better solutions. We engage with our city, our world, and our leaders every day to evaluate and test our ideas. And we lead with our passion for driving social change, knowing that passion alone does not equal impact.

Job Summary

The Harris School of Public Policy is known for its outstanding student support. Academic advisors are key to the student experience, serving as a central point of contact for advisees questions on nearly all elements of their academic experience. In addition to the key work of assisting with course selection and tracking students' progress toward the degree, Harris advisors also provide support to students facing personal challenges that impact their academic progress and create programs and systems to help students get the most out of their graduate school experience and become maximally impactful policy leaders.

The Academic Advising and Financial Aid Specialist will be responsible for advising a caseload of public policy master's students. This positon works within a team of academic advisors in the Harris Public Policy Dean of Students' team.

In addition to the academic advising responsibilities this position will provide support in student financial aid processing, including making enrollment-based adjustments to scholarship aid, monitoring the financial aid inbox, answering student questions regarding their financial aid, and maintaining accurate tracking of enrollment and scholarship expenditures.

The Academic Advising Specialist is integral in helping students to achieve their academic and personal goals and will contribute significantly to initiatives that enhance the overall student experience at Harris. They will work on a highly collaborative, high-performing, and student-focused team. This position has growth and promotion potential for a high-performing individual.

Responsibilities

• Academic Advising:
  
• Serve as Academic Advisor to 125-175 master's students.
  
• Serve as first point of contact for all needs for assigned advisees. Learn essentials of financial aid, billing, registration, and campus services to best assist students.
  
• Conduct intake advising meetings with all advisees at the beginning of the year.
  
• Keep accurate advising notes in a database/CRM system (Salesforce).
  
• Monitor each student's progress toward degree completion, intervening appropriately as needed
  
• Conduct accurate graduation degree audits for all advisees.
  
• Gain expertise about Harris curriculum and courses in other divisions at the University to best guide student course selection.
  
• Collaborate with other student-facing offices to best understand programmatic and career opportunities which enhance the student experience.
  
• Identify and communicate student needs and interests to Harris Administration to help shape curriculum and co-curricular offerings.
  
• Create official letters and other necessary documentation for students' scholarship providers and other sponsors as needed.
  
• Monitor all advisees enrollments and update tuition projections each month.
  
• Serve as a support for Harris' large international student population, including assisting advisees with CPT and OPT paperwork and acting as a liaison to the Office of International Affairs (OIA).
  
• Coordinate the creation of resources for all advisors to share information.
  
• Collaborate extensively with the Harris academic advising team to ensure alignment in practices and give students the best possible service.
  
• Collaborate with the Associate Dean of Students or Dean of Students on leaves of absence and other complex student cases.
  
• Financial Aid :
  
• Collaborate with the Associate Director of Academic Advising & Financial Aid on aid adjustments for leaves of absence, reduced course loads, unapplied aid, or other irregular enrollments that require aid adjustments.
  
• Manage scholarship application for incoming masters students in collaboration with Student Recruitment & Global Outreach Team, central Graduate Financial Aid, and the Pearson Institute (for Pearson Fellows).
  
• Apply enrollment deposits for incoming students to appropriate student accounts.
  
• Submit aid adjustments to Graduate Financial Aid as necessary.
  
• Run weekly validation process to ensure that submitted aid was properly posted to student accounts.
  
• Maintain accurate scholarship information in a database/CRM system (Salesforce).
  
• Monitor Harris Financial Aid email inbox and answer routine questions about student accounts, EBills, payments, and resources.
  
• Coordinate with academic advisors to maintain updated enrollment notes in a database/CRM system (Salesforce).
  
• Review applications and assist with processing for the Harris Emergency Scholarship Fund along with other members of the Harris Emergency Scholarship Committee.
  
• Attend and take minutes in Harris finance meetings.
  
• Keeps records of student degree programs and notes on student conversations.
  
• Writes letters of recommendation for students for jobs, scholarships, and graduate schools.
  
• Performs other related work as needed.
  

Minimum Qualifications

Education:
Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.
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Work Experience:
Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 2-5 years of work experience in a related job discipline.
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Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Education:

• Bachelor's degree.
  
• Master's degree.
  
• Degree in public policy, student development, student affairs, higher education, counseling, or similar.
  

Experience:

• Financial aid experience.
  
• Academic advising experience.
  
• Familiarity with academic information systems and database systems.
  
• Familiarity with higher education environment.
  

Preferred Competencies

• Interest in working in a student facing, high touch environment.
  
• Student-centered approach and willingness to go the extra mile for students.
  
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
  
• Strong organization and project management skills.
  
• Detail oriented.
  
• Professional demeanor, including tact, discretion, and a customer-service oriented approach to the job.
  
• Ability to quickly garner credibility with students.
  
• Ability to problem solve with minimal supervision, exercise good judgment, prioritize, and work under pressure during high volume times.
  
• Demonstrated ability to review and prioritize work in order to take appropriate actions without advanced approval, ensuring close attention to detail.
  
• Ability to work collegially and collaboratively in a team setting.
  
• Ability to work in an open office environment.
  
• Knowledge of and eagerness to root workin student development theory and best practices.
  
• Experience updating websites.
  
• Ability to operate Microsoft Word, Excel, the internet and email at the intermediate level.
  

Application Documents:

• Resume (required)
  

When applying, the document(s) MUSTbe uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

Job Family

Student Affairs & Services

Role Impact

Individual Contributor

FLSA Status

Exempt

Pay Frequency

Monthly

Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5

Benefits Eligible

Yes

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity/Disabled/Veterans and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, national or ethnic origin, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

Staff Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

We seek a diverse pool of applicants who wish to join an academic community that places the highest value on rigorous inquiry and encourages a diversity of perspectives, experiences, groups of individuals, and ideas to inform and stimulate intellectual challenge, engagement, and exchange.

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history. A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment. Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

The University of Chicago's Annual Security & Fire Safety Report (Report) provides information about University offices and programs that provide safety support, crime and fire statistics, emergency response and communications plans, and other policies and information. The Report can be accessed online at:http://securityreport.uchicago.edu.Paper copies of the Report are available, upon request, from the University of Chicago Police Department, 850 E. 61st Street, Chicago, IL 60637.

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