Team Leader - Student Achievement

Upeducation; Auckland; On-site; NZD 90,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Upeducation in Auckland seeks a passionate Team Leader - Student Achievement to lead the student achievement and pastoral support across the Masters portfolio. You will guide Teaching Assistants and the Student Success team, shaping engagement, wellbeing, retention and progression through data-informed interventions.

This role partners with the Team Leader - Masters to coordinate support, monitor indicators, and drive continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• Experience leading and developing dynamic teams.
• Proven ability to drive performance and accountability.
• Passion for supporting people to succeed.
• Strong relationship-building and stakeholder management.
• Experience in student support or learner success preferred.
• Ability to identify risk and coordinate interventions.
• Excellent organisational skills balancing operations with long-term improvement.
• Comfort using data and performance insights to inform decisions.
• Empathy and sound judgement for sensitive situations.

Responsibilities

• Lead Teaching Assistants and Student Success Advisors to build a high-performing team.
• Drive team performance, development and accountability.
• Develop the Student Achievement function including systems and processes.
• Coordinate student support and achievement initiatives with Masters Team Leader.
• Monitor and report on attendance, engagement, retention, progression and completion.
• Identify at-risk students and implement timely interventions.
• Use data to identify trends, risks and opportunities for improvement.
• Champion student-centred practice and wellbeing.
• Oversee pastoral support and manage complex student matters.
• Support orientation, transition, employability and graduate success initiatives.

Skills

People leadership

Coaching

Performance management

Stakeholder management

Data analysis

Engagement

Continuous improvement

Team development

Relationship building

Job description

Team Leader - Student Achievement

Location: Auckland

Full-time | Permanent | Yoobee Auckland CBD

About the role:

We're looking for a passionate and people-focused Team Leader - Student Achievement to lead the student achievement and pastoral support function across our Masters portfolio.

This is an opportunity to play a key role in shaping both the student experience and the future direction of the Student Achievement function. You'll lead our Teaching Assistants and an evolving Student Success team, building capability, strengthening ways of working and developing initiatives that support engagement, wellbeing, retention, progression and achievement.

Working in close partnership with the Team Leader - Masters, you'll help create a coordinated approach to student support and achievement. Using attendance, engagement and progression insights, you'll identify emerging trends and students who may need additional support, ensuring timely and effective interventions are put in place.

You'll also take ownership of team performance and capability, setting clear expectations and supporting your team to deliver consistently high-quality outcomes. Alongside this, you'll help shape systems, processes and frameworks that strengthen the way student support is delivered and continuously improve the overall learner experience.

More broadly, you'll champion a student-centred culture across the Masters portfolio, influencing initiatives that create an inclusive and connected environment where students feel supported, valued and motivated to succeed.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Leading, coaching and developing Teaching Assistants and Student Success Advisors, building a capable and high-performing team.
• Driving team performance, development and accountability to deliver strong student achievement outcomes.
• Leading the ongoing development of the Student Achievement function, including systems, processes, frameworks and ways of working.
• Working in close partnership with the Team Leader - Masters to coordinate student support, interventions and achievement initiatives.
• Monitoring and reporting on key student success indicators, including attendance, engagement, retention, progression and completion.
• Identifying students at risk and ensuring timely, coordinated intervention and support plans are in place.
• Using student data and performance insights to identify trends, risks and opportunities for continuous improvement.
• Championing student-centred practice and initiatives that strengthen engagement, wellbeing, connection and the overall learner experience.
• Overseeing pastoral support and the effective management and escalation of more complex student matters.
• Supporting orientation, transition, employability, career readiness, networking and graduate success initiatives.

About you:

You're an engaging and capable people leader who can balance hands-on leadership with a broader view of how a student achievement function can continue to grow and improve. You know how to set clear expectations, develop capability and create accountability while building a positive and collaborative team environment.

You'll be comfortable staying connected to the day-to-day student experience while also looking at the bigger picture - using data, trends and feedback to understand what's working, where improvements are needed and how the team can deliver better outcomes for students.

You'll be confident navigating conversations with students, recognising when additional support may be needed and bringing the right people together to achieve positive outcomes. You'll also be comfortable partnering across academic and operational teams and influencing a student-centred approach beyond your immediate team.

Experience within tertiary education, student support or learner success would be valuable, but isn't essential. We're equally open to experienced leaders from service-focused environments who can bring transferable strengths in people leadership, performance management, coaching, engagement and continuous improvement.

Ideally, you'll bring:

• Proven experience leading, developing and building capability within dynamic teams.
• Experience driving team performance, setting expectations and creating accountability for outcomes.
• A genuine passion for supporting people to succeed and reach their goals.
• Strong relationship-building and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to work effectively across different teams.
• Experience in student support, pastoral care, customer service or another people-focused environment.
• The ability to recognise risk, respond appropriately and coordinate effective interventions.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to balance operational priorities with longer-term improvements.
• Confidence using data, reporting and performance insights to identify trends and inform decisions.
• Sound judgement, empathy and the ability to navigate sensitive or complex situations.

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