Program Director, Mexico

Jobtailor; Mérida; Presencial; MXN 360.000 - 600.000; Jornada completa

Descripción de la vacante

IFSA in Merida, Yucatán, Mexico is seeking an experienced Program Administrator to manage core study abroad operations, plan events, coordinate university partnerships, and support academic administration. The role requires leadership in budgeting, data integrity, and program development across international and local partners.

Fluency in English and Spanish is essential, with on-site work in Merida. Responsibilities include onboarding instructors, coordinating housing and transcripts, and

Formación

• Undergraduate degree in Social Sciences or related discipline; Masters preferred.
• 5+ years in higher education, tourism, event planning, public policy, or hospitality.
• Strong time management and planning skills.
• Ability to work independently and meet deadlines.
• Excellent verbal, interpersonal, writing skills.
• Bilingual English/Spanish communication.
• Experience with Salesforce and university systems.
• Legal right to work in Mexico; must reside in Merida.

Responsabilidades

• Administer core parts of IFSA study abroad programs in Merida.
• Lead planning and support delivery of co-curricular and extracurricular activities, orientations, and events.
• Coordinate enrollment and student support services with local university partners.
• Support effective academic administration, course registration, academic advising, and student roadmap consultations.
• Plan and deliver welcome orientations.
• Coordinate excursions, activities, orientations, and events.
• Conduct appreciative advising sessions and meet with students to assess experiences and goals.
• Manage program data for accuracy and integrity.
• Train and manage program assistants on a rotation basis.
• Contribute to emergency response and student incident management, including after-hours phone rotation.
• Support budgets, forecasts, cost estimates, expense tracking, and financial reports.
• Comply with academic, disciplinary, health and safety, operational, and fiscal policies.
• Attend and contribute to regional meetings.
• Oversee the general office email and respond to queries.
• Coordinate with university partners regarding enrollment, housing, student support, transcripts, and academic/co-curricular offerings.
• Cultivate relationships with sending and host university partners and local partners.
• Identify opportunities to diversify the program portfolio.
• Host site visits and lead group site seminars.
• Travel to U.S. institutions and professional conferences to promote programs.
• Support development and delivery of new semester-long and summer programs.
• Develop custom program proposals.
• Review programs and implement improvements.
• Define program objectives, course content, and delivery schedules.
• Manage program launch timelines and content development plans.
• Recruit, onboard, and train instructors.
• Develop and manage resources for new programs.
• Launch student evaluations, collect data, and design continual-improvement action plans.
• Oversee student conduct and academic trajectories.
• Contribute to organizational best practices and standard operating procedures.
• Prepare annual budget requests and monthly expenditure reports to the CFO.
• Maintain local bank accounts and petty cash reserves.
• Understand legal guidelines and liability issues for Mexico programs.
• Liaise with local legal and accounting teams.

Conocimientos

Program administration

Event planning

Budget management

Student support

Bilingual English/Spanish

Educación

Undergraduate degree

Master's preferred

Herramientas

Salesforce

University systems

Descripción del empleo

• Administer core parts of IFSA study abroad programs in Merida
• Lead planning and support delivery of co-curricular and extracurricular activities, orientations, and events
• Coordinate enrollment and student support services with local university partners
• Support effective academic administration, course registration, academic advising, and student roadmap consultations
• Participate in pre-arrival student webinars
• Plan and deliver welcome orientations
• Coordinate excursions, activities, orientations, and events
• Conduct appreciative advising sessions and meet with students to assess experiences and goals
• Manage program data for accuracy and integrity
• Train and manage program assistants on a rotation basis
• Contribute to emergency response and student incident management, including after-hours phone rotation
• Support budgets, forecasts, cost estimates, expense tracking, and financial reports
• Comply with academic, disciplinary, health and safety, operational, and fiscal policies
• Attend and contribute to regional meetings
• Oversee the general office email and respond to queries
• Coordinate with university partners regarding enrollment, housing, student support, transcripts, and academic/co-curricular offerings
• Cultivate relationships with sending and host university partners and local partners
• Identify opportunities to diversify the program portfolio
• Host site visits and lead group site seminars
• Travel to U.S. institutions and professional conferences to promote programs
• Support development and delivery of new semester-long and summer programs
• Develop custom program proposals
• Review programs and implement improvements
• Define program objectives, course content, and delivery schedules
• Manage program launch timelines and content development plans
• Recruit, onboard, and train instructors
• Develop and manage resources for new programs
• Launch student evaluations, collect data, and design continual-improvement action plans
• Oversee student conduct and academic trajectories
• Contribute to organizational best practices and standard operating procedures
• Prepare annual budget requests and monthly expenditure reports to the CFO
• Maintain local bank accounts and petty cash reserves
• Understand legal guidelines and liability issues for Mexico programs
• Liaise with local legal and accounting teams

Requirements

• Undergraduate degree is required, ideally in Social Sciences or related discipline; Masters preferred
• 5 or more years of work experience, with evidence of progression in responsibility in higher education, tourism, event planning, public policy, or hospitality
• Strong time management and planning skills
• Ability to work independently and execute time-sensitive tasks successfully
• Evidence of initiative and ability to improve operational and administrative procedures
• Exceptional verbal, interpersonal, presentation, and writing skills
• Ability to communicate complex concepts in English and Spanish
• Strong attention to detail and excellent digital competencies
• Ability to engage with multiple systems and Salesforce
• Experience building positive external working relationships
• Ability to support students with diverse lived experiences
• Flexibility and ability to adapt to ambiguous and changing situations
• Mental agility, emotional intelligence, flexibility, and entrepreneurial mindset
• Ability to respond calmly and professionally to emergency situations
• General knowledge of university systems and student life in the US and Latin America is a plus
• Legal right to work in Mexico
• Must physically reside in Merida
• Ability to attend regular meetings outside local business hours
• Ability to navigate and move around the city and other locations for excursions
• Ability to participate in occasional physical activities such as arranging chairs/tables

Core Competencies

Demonstrates expertise in program administration, student support, and event planning within higher education, with strong capabilities in budget management, relationship building, and compliance with legal and operational policies.

Highest-signal resume keywords

• Program Administration
• Event Planning
• Budget Management
• Student Support Services
• Bilingual Communication

Hard Skills

• Program Development
• Data Management
• Academic Advising
• Course Registration
• Emergency Response
• Operational Improvement
• Student Evaluations
• Legal Compliance
• Financial Reporting
• Digital Competencies

Soft Skills

• Time Management
• Interpersonal Skills
• Flexibility
• Emotional Intelligence
• Presentation Skills

Industry Keywords

• Higher Education
• Tourism
• Public Policy
• Hospitality
• Student Life
• Co-Curricular Activities
• Extracurricular Activities
• Cultural Exchange
• Program Portfolio Diversification
• Legal Guidelines

Tools & Technologies

• Salesforce
• University Systems