Academic Advisor: Automated Industrial Technology

Pima Community College Foundation Inc.; Tucson (AZ); On-site; USD 42,000 - 62,000; Full time

Job summary

Pima Community College Foundation Inc. seeks an Academic Advisor to guide students in setting academic goals and mapping degree requirements. The role supports transfer planning and career pathways both online and on campus.

The advisor identifies at‑risk students, partners with faculty, and coordinates with division deans to align programs with strategic initiatives. Evening/weekend availability and local travel may be required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Education or closely related field.
• 1–3 years of experience in Academic Services.
• Valid Arizona driver’s license.

Responsibilities

• Provide programmatic advice and course recommendations for transfer and employment.
• Develop individual academic plans and monitor progress for at‑risk students.
• Collaborate with faculty to align curricula and pathways across campuses.
• Create and deliver new student orientations and advisory sessions.
• Engage with industry partners and advisory boards to update practices.
• Meet with students across campuses and document course requests.
• Analyze confidential student data to inform actions.
• Support policy interpretations and compliance with laws and regulations.
• Design metrics to measure service quality and report findings.
• Perform duties as assigned by supervisor.

Skills

Effective communication

Public speaking

Organization and coordination

Project management

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Education or related field

Job description

Reporting to the Automated Industrial Technology (AIT) Department Head, the Academic Advisor aids students in setting academic goals and acquiring relevant information and services. This role provides high-level academic advice to guide students into making decisions consistent with interests, goals, abilities, and degree requirements both on-line and in-person. The Academic Advisor identifies at-risk students. This position serves as a liaison between division deans, department heads, faculty, and area staff to develop and support the execution of strategic initiatives. Incumbents participate in outreach events to increase enrollment and awareness. This role performs administrative tasks including registration, paperwork processing, and resource referral.

The Academic Advisor supports the development and execution of strategic initiatives in collaboration with leadership. This position researches and communicates changes and innovations in student affairs and academic and career trajectories utilizing advising and student success best practices, identifies advising objectives, and develops process improvement plans. The Academic Advisor provides information to area leaders regarding student services issues, reviews policies and procedures, drives consistency and efficiency in processes, and builds integrated plans to help shape the College’s culture and position the College as a premier educational institution.

The Academic Advisor participates in projects and consults leadership in key student services functions including academic advising, policy development, planning and process design, and strategic plan interpretation. Incumbents serve on a team to strategize and develop improvements in the way the College serves students and the community.

The work schedule for this position is flexible and may include working evenings and weekends and local travel.

• Ensures programmatic advice and course recommendations provide student pathways for transfer and employment opportunities
• Develops individual academic plans to ensure students register for correct coursework and tracks progress to identify at-risk students for additional support
• Collaborates with faculty to contribute to the development of student academic pathways to achieve curriculum integration across all campuses; Serves on the area teams to plan, facilitate, and assist in developing and implementing goals and objectives
• Creates, schedules, and conducts new student orientations, group advisory sessions, and events including internal and external partnerships
• Networks with industry and educational leaders, attends advisory board meetings, and translates industry changes into updated academic practices to ensure programmatic alignment with student pathways and course recommendations, including the statewide Ready Tech Go initiative
• Meets individually with current and prospective students at all campuses and local high schools to facilitate academic planning and scheduling and address student concerns. Compiles, develops, analyzes, and monitors course requests and approvals. Holds drop-in advising hours in the AIT tool crib at Downtown Campus - M 220
• Analyzes confidential student information; identifies issues and discrepancies; and, formulates recommendations for appropriate action based on findings
• Provides technical information and interpretation of College policies, practices and procedures; best practices, trends in student development theory; and, Federal and state laws and regulations to ensure student compliance
• Collects and evaluates student and academic services operations and processes; assists in designing metrics to measure quality of services; recommends improvements and modifications; summarizes findings and prepares related reports
• Performs all other duties and responsibilities as assigned or directed by the supervisor

• Bachelor’s degree in Education or a closely related field and
• One to three years of experience in Academic Services or related area and
• Valid Arizona driver’s license

Preferred:

• Three to five years of progressive experience in higher education
• Experience working with students in an educational setting

• Knowledge of regulatory compliance principles and practices.
• Knowledge of advising and counseling practices
• Knowledge of College policies and procedures.
• Knowledge of internal and external customer service principles and practices.
• Knowledge of principles and methods for promoting excellence in offered programs and services.
• Knowledge and application of various instructional methodologies.
• Skill in analyzing data and drawing conclusions to inform programmatic changes and support objectives.
• Skill in performing a variety of duties, often changing from one task to another of a different nature.
• Skill in effective communication (both written and oral) with diverse populations.
• Skill in organization, coordination and management related to student support services and programs.
• Skill in project management principles, processes, and techniques.
• Skill in public speaking.
• Skill in positive, productive, and flexible customer service.
• Ability to develop and maintain effective and positive working relationships.
• Ability to work independently as well as in a team environment.
• Ability to operate relevant equipment and programs required to complete assigned responsibilities for the position including: computers, databases, online services, tracking systems, and word processors.