Academic Counselor II

South University; Pittsburgh, Northern (Allegheny County, KY); Hybrid; USD 42,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

South University in Pittsburgh is seeking an Academic Counselor to provide student-centered advising throughout the lifecycle, guiding course planning, progression toward graduation, and coordination with Admissions, Financial Aid, Faculty, and Support Services. The role focuses on improving student experience and retention through proactive outreach and policy guidance.

The counselor will maintain regular contact with students via phone, text, and email, monitor progress, and develop at-risk

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related area required; Master’s preferred.
• 3–5 years of academic advising or counseling experience.
• Customer service experience preferred.
• Strong MS Office skills and familiarity with CRM or SIS (Campus Vue/Campus Nexus preferred).
• Excellent written and verbal communication; strong interpersonal skills.
• Ability to build productive relationships with students, colleagues, and supervisors in a virtual environment.
• Ability to present information clearly and respond to questions from students and staff.
• Ability to generate academic reports and forecasts.
• Team player; able to work with multiple departments.

Responsibilities

• Provide individualized proactive advising to all assigned students.
• Drive persistence and success through orientation, LMS exposure, scheduling, and progress monitoring.
• Develop course schedules for new, continuing, transfer and reentry students aligned with curriculum sequencing.
• Maintain direct contact with assigned students via phone, text and e‑mail; respond within established timeframes.
• Monitor attendance, grades, progress, and financial responsibilities; develop success plans for at‑risk students.
• Explain policies in the University Catalog, Student Handbook, and Programmatic Handbooks; guide academic procedures.
• Facilitate new student acclimation to the academic environment and audit progression toward graduation.
• Assist reentry after withdrawal or dismissal, monitor progress, and develop interventions.
• Access and perform duties using the SIS, LMS and relevant databases.
• Maintain compliance with FERPA and Records policies.
• Participate in counselor training and onboarding.
• Other duties as assigned.

Skills

Customer service

Communication

Interpersonal skills

Organizational skills

Team collaboration

Virtual environment

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Master’s degree preferred

Tools

MS Office

Campus Vue

Campus Nexus

Job description

POSITION SUMMARY:

This position is responsible for providing student centered academic counseling through the student lifecycle and for ensuring the delivery of effective and quality service to students in the following areas: course scheduling, timely response to requests for information, at risk student interventions and referrals to University resources. This is accomplished through proactively advising students of University’s policies and procedures, assisting students with developing goals and plans for progression through the program of study, and collaborating with Admissions, Financial Aid, Faculty, Program Directors, and University Support Services on the student’s behalf. This position provides comprehensive support services and serves as the primary advocate for the assigned student body, aimed to improve the student experience and retention to graduation.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

1. Provide individualized proactive advising to all assigned students.

1. Drive student persistence and success through orientation, exposure to the learning platform, effective class scheduling, and monitoring degree progress to graduation.

1. Develop course schedules for new, continuing, transfer and reentry students aligned with course sequencing in the curriculum and provide advisement focused on academic progress toward graduation in the shortest time possible for the student, as applicable to their individual situation.

1. Maintain direct contact with assigned students via phone, text and e-mail; respond to student inbound communication within established timeframes

1. Monitor student’s attendance, grades, academic progress, and financial responsibilities, and develop success plans for at‑risk students, or those experiencing challenges, in collaboration with faculty, academic leadership and University support services.

1. Demonstrate proficiency with understanding and communicating policies in the University Catalog, Student Handbook and Programmatic Handbooks as they relate to assigned students, such as Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy, Attendance Policies, Academic Integrity/Academic Honesty Policies, Conduct Policies and Appeals Procedures. Provide guidance to assigned students for academic procedures such as grade challenges or appeals.

1. Facilitate new student’s acclimation to the academic environment prior to the first class by reviewing the enrollment process, providing an overview of the on-line or campus classroom and reviewing graduation progression options. Audit student academic records regularly and determine progression towards and candidacy for graduation.

1. Assist students reentering the university after being withdrawn or dismissed from the University with the reinstatement process, monitor student progress to graduation, provide proactive advising, and develop interventions as needed.

1. Effectively access and perform assigned duties using the Student Information System, Learning Management System and relevant databases.

1. Maintain compliance with management of student information through adherence to FERPA requirements and Record Management Policies.

1. Participate and successfully complete all academic counselor training and development activities; mentor new Academic Counselors and participate in onboarding as requested

1. Other duties as assigned by supervisor.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Education:

• Bachelor’s degree in a related degree required, Master’s preferred

Experience:

• 3-5 years Academic advising or academic counseling experience
• Customer Service experience preferred
• Strong basic computer software (MS Office) skills as well as exposure to Customer Relationship Management Systems or Student Information Systems (Campus Vue/Campus Nexus preferred)
• Excellent customer service skills, as well as strong written and verbal communication skills
• Strong interpersonal skills with student and faculty populations
• Effective organizational and problem resolution skills
• Ability to communicate and effectively act as a member of a team.

• Able to develop productive relationships with students, colleagues and supervisors in a virtual environment
• Able to effectively present information and respond to questions or requests from students, staff and faculty
• Able to create and act on academic reports and forecasts
• Ability to interact effectively as a member of a team and work collaboratively with other departments
• Able to adapt to changing assignments and multiple priorities
• Ability to work without close supervision and to set one's own priorities and work schedule

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those encountered while performing the essential functions of this position. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.

South University is an Equal Opportunity Employer and embraces diversity as a critical step in ensuring employee, student and graduate success. We are committed to building and developing a diverse environment where a variety of ideas, cultures, and perspectives can thrive.