Program Director, Mexico (Merida, Mexico)

The Institute For Study Abroad; Mérida; On-site; MXN 675,000 - 825,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible work arrangements

Work-life balance appreciation

Job summary

The Institute for Study Abroad (IFSA) in Merida, Mexico is seeking a Programs Director to oversee core aspects of study abroad programs, including planning, orientation, and student support in collaboration with local and international teams.

You will coordinate with Merida-based university partners, supervise program staff, manage data, and contribute to financial planning and safety initiatives to ensure exceptional student experiences.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of work experience with progression in responsibility in higher education, tourism, event planning, public policy or hospitality.
• Strong time management and planning skills with ability to work independently on time-sensitive tasks.
• Initiative and ability to improve operational and administrative procedures.
• Exceptional verbal, interpersonal, presentation and writing skills in English and Spanish.
• Attention to detail in creating internal/external documents and managing data; familiarity with multiple systems and Salesforce.
• Passion for working with diverse stakeholders and building external relationships.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage program operations in Merida, including planning, orientation and events.
• Coordinate enrollment and student support with local university partners.
• Support academic management, course registration and student roadmap consultations.
• Manage program data and supervise rota-based program assistants.
• Contribute to emergency response and incident management.
• Prepare budgets, forecasts and financial reports; track expenses.
• Develop and maintain relationships with local and sending university partners.
• Travel to the U.S. institutions and participate in conferences as needed.

Education

Undergraduate degree

Masters preferred

Job description

Programs Director, Mexico

• Contract Type: F ull Time, Ongoing
• Salary: 750k MXN/Year (includes 13.5 month).
• B enefits: Enjoy flexible work arrangements and a n appreciation for work/life balance.
• Location: Merida, Mexico
• Reports to: Global Director of Operations, ANS, based in Merida, Mexico

Position Overview

Are you a life-long learner, curious about the world around you?

Are you ready to bring your unique skills to a mission-driven organization?

Do you enjoy being a part of a student’s journey of personal, academic and intercultural growth?

If so, we would love to welcome you to our global community!

We are looking for an individual to administer core parts of IFSA study abroad programs in Merida including: leading the planning and supporting the delivery of co- and extracurricular activities, orientation, and other events; coordinating enrolment and student support services with local university partners; supporting and ensuring effective academic administration; and engaging with students to enhance their program experience and wellbeing . In this position, you will work closely with colleagues from our sites in the Americas, New Zealand and Sri Lanka , the Global Health & S afety Team , Academic Programs , Institutional Engagement and Student Engagement teams.

IFSA (Institute for Study Abroad), a US-based nonprofit organization, creates global learning environments to help students gather the critical perspectives, knowledge, and skills essential for future success. With innovative programming and world-class support, IFSA delivers future-focused study abroad options in 17 countries and 48 cities around the globe. Our commitments to inclusive excellence , intercultural agility , individualized learning and enduring impact are present in every aspect of our programs.

Inclusion is a driving passion of our organization. We are committed to building a community where the thoughts and opinions of all team members are valued and contribute to our collective success, just as we build programs with the same focus. If you share our unwavering commitment to Inclusive Excellence and want to join a community that actively strives to improve in all that we do, IFSA is the place for you.

Learn more about IFSA at https://www.ifsa-butler.org/

In This Position, Your Responsibilities Would Include

Program Operations

• Participation in pre-arrival student webinars for catalog, IFSA Design and Custom programming
• Plan and deliver welcome orientations for students in all programs
• Support and coordinate excursions, co-curricular activities, orientations and other events as needed for all type of programming
• Conduct appreciative advising sessions, including roadmap consultations, and regularly meet with students to assess their experiences and help achieve their goals
• Support academic management of programs, including the course registration process, academic advising, and student roadmap consultations
• Manage data associated with programs and program operations to ensure accuracy and integrity
• Manage program assistants on a rotation basis: provide training, and ensure quality delivery
• Contribute to emergency response and student incident management based on established protocol, and participate in after-hours emergency phone rotation
• Support the preparation of budgets, forecasts and other financial reports by ensuring accurate cost estimates and expense tracking
• Understand, support, and comply with IFSA policies, including academic, disciplinary, health and safety, operational, and fiscal policies
• Attend and contribute to regional meetings and be prepared to present gains at IFSA level
• Oversee the general office email and respond to queries in a timely fashion
• Other duties and projects, assigned, which may include: opportunities to contribute to other site and department operations via remote work; opportunities to support organization-wide initiatives.

Partnership Management and Development

• Lead and support ongoing coordination with university partners in Merida and other locations, related to enrolment, housing, student support, transcripts, to enhance the academic and co/extracurricular offering, and other issues as needed
• Cultivate positive working relationships with both sending and host university partners to ensure effective collaboration and support growth and development goals
• Lead, support and develop relationships with local partners in support of co- and extracurricular offering, orientations, and other events and activities
• Identify potential new opportunities to diversify the existing portfolio and potential networks to develop and realize these opportunities
• Oversee the preparation for and hosting of site visits from U.S. universities and partners
• Lead occasional group site seminars, site visits, for university representatives or recruiting teams , including Board of Director's meetings
• Travel to key U.S. institutions as needed to meet with faculty and administrators and promote programs, with the goal of increasing enrollment; represent IFSA at professional conferences

Program Development

• Support the planning, operation and delivery of new programs, semester-long and summer direct Enrollment and IFSA Design
• Support the development of custom program proposals, at different times in the year
• Contribute to the regular and effective review of programs and activities, helping to identify and implement improvements
• Responsible for the delivery of academic and experiential learning programs and co/extracurricular activities that consistently meet or exceed the expectations of students and sending institutions
• Research and define program objectives, course content and delivery schedule
• Manage the program launch timeline and content development plan
• Recruit, onboard and train new instructors
• Develop, align & manage resources to support new programs
• Responsible for launching student evaluations (program/classes/housing/excursions), collecting data and designing action plan with the goal of continual improvement semester/semester
• Primary point of accountability for meeting goals on student response rates for evaluations/assessments
• Ultimate point of accountability in terms of overseeing student’s conduct and academic trajectory

Leadership

• Help maintain the highest standards of academic and operational quality
• Contribute to the development of best practices and standard operating procedures across the organization, and help to foster a culture of continuous improvement
• Help to cultivate and model practices and behaviors that reflect IFSA’s organizational commitments of inclusive excellence , intercultural agility , individualized learning and enduring impact

Program Finances

• Responsible for the preparation of annual budget requests and monthly reports to the CFO for monthly expenditures and bank statements
• Maintain and administer local bank accounts and petty cash reserves
• Understand legal guidelines and liability issues for Mexico programs
• Serve as liaison with local legal team and accountant firm

Requirements, Work Experience And Education

• 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 sectors such as higher education, tourism, event planning, public policy, or hospitality
• Strong time management and planning skills, with the ability to work independently to execute time-sensitive tasks and duties successfully
• Evidence of initiative and ability to identify and implement improvements to operational and administrative procedures
• Evidence of exceptional verbal, superior interpersonal, presentation, and writing skills, with a demonstrated ability to communicate complex concepts to audiences of various knowledge levels and backgrounds in English and Spanish
• Strong attention to detail in creating internal and external documents and in managing program and administrative data; excellent digital competencies, including the ability to engage with multiple systems and our database platform, Salesforce
• Passion for working with multiple diverse stakeholders and evidence of building positive external working relationships in person and online
• Ability to engage with and support students with diverse lived experiences including students of color, students with mental and physical disabilities, first-generation college students, and LGBTQIA+ students
• Flexibility and ability to adapt and thrive in ambiguous and changing situations and to shift focus and reprioritize work as needed; Mental agility, emotional intelligence, flexibility, and entrepreneurial mindset
• An ability to respond calmly and professionally to emergency situations
• General knowledge of university system and student life in the US and Latin America a plus
• The legal right to work in Mexico, physically reside in Merida

We know there are great candidates who won’t check all of these boxes, and we also know you might bring important perspectives, experiences and skills that we haven’t considered. If this describes you, please don’t hesitate to apply and tell us about yourself.

Physical and Work Environment

• This is an in-person position
• Working on a computer, placing phone/video calls.
• Required to navigate and move around the city and other locations for excursions, potentially outdoors in heat
• Additional occasional required travel may include throughout Mexico, within Latin America, or to other IFSA sites around the world.
• Occasional physical activities such as arranging chairs/tables in conference room settings.
• Ability to attend regular meetings outside of local business hours, due to the global nature of our operations.

IFSA is an equal opportunity employer, and our hiring process is inclusive of all genders and gender expressions, races and ethnicities, ages, religions and sexualities as well as veterans and people with disabilities.