Assistant Director - Undergraduate Financial Aid

Sacbar; Orange, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 95,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

Sacbar is seeking an Assistant Director to lead the Undergraduate Financial Aid Office's frontline advising team, providing mentorship, policy guidance, and ensuring compliance with FERPA and federal/state laws. This role supports data integrity and collaborates with campus partners to deliver accurate financial aid services.

The position requires presenting to groups, managing operations, and guiding staff to meet service standards and regulatory requirements.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree.
• A minimum of 4 years undergraduate financial aid experience in a public or private non-profit university.
• Strong and current knowledge of federal and state financial aid programs.
• Proven ability to communicate clearly with internal and external partners, students and families.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to listen, remain calm, and empathize with students and parents from diverse backgrounds.
• Ability to demonstrate tact and diplomacy and maintain confidentiality with FERPA standards.
• Demonstrated ability to make appropriate decisions and sound judgments on routine to critical matters.
• Ability to present data clearly and concisely.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Strong organizational skills to prioritize projects and deadlines.
• Comfort with public speaking and presentations.

Responsibilities

• Lead and mentor front-end operations team within the office including supervising 2-3 members.
• Create and maintain cohesive training materials for new team members.
• Provide policy and regulation interpretation and determine exception requests as needed.
• Promote the Financial Aid Office's image and ensure accurate information dissemination.
• Present at orientation, financial aid nights, and events with community partners.
• Monitor weekly, monthly, and annual reports for compliance with regulations.
• Provide data insights to identify trends and improvements.
• Oversee quality assurance and testing of financial aid packages.

Skills

Leadership

Communication

Public speaking

Data analysis

FERPA compliance

Teamwork

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

As a critical part of the Undergraduate Financial Aid management team, the Assistant Director provides leadership, mentorship, support, and direction to the frontline advising team while providing valuable insight and innovation about policies, procedures, programs, and regulations. This position helps to ensure data integrity and compliance with university, state, and federal laws, internal controls and quality standards of service. This position resolves problems outside the scope of the advising team, including working directly with students and parents and researching and resolving complex issues. The Assistant Director prepares materials and presents to large and small groups during orientation, financial aid nights, and as requested by community partners. Performs other duties as assigned or requested.

Management and Leadership

• Serve as a member of the Undergraduate Financial Aid Office management team.
• Provide leadership, mentorship, support, and direction to the front-end operations team within the office, directly supervising 2 to 3 team members.
• Create and maintain cohesive training materials for new team members.
• Provide a platform for the team to maintain continuous proficiency in federal and state regulations as well as institutional policies.
• Participate in setting goals and objectives for the area and measure performance against those goals and objectives.
• Provide policy and regulation interpretation; determine exception requests as deemed appropriate for the position level. Evaluate internal practices, procedures, and policies and recommend changes or enhancements.
• Promote a positive image of the Financial Aid Office and Enrollment Division ensuring accurate, consistent, and timely information is disseminated in accordance with policies and procedures.
• Maintain professional currency through active participation and leadership in associations and committees both internal and external to the university.
• Create and maintain a master calendar that includes regular meetings with the team as well as individual team members.

Communication and Outreach

• Regularly meet with students and families as needed.
• Handle student, parent, and other issues requiring escalation in a diplomatic and tactful manner.
• Present at on- and off-campus financial aid events including financial aid nights, conferences, and enrollment events that may include overnight travel.
• Act as a liaison for campus partners including Disability Services, Global Education, Student Business Services, Office of the Registrar, as well as the Dean of
• Students Office to answer questions, provide guidance, and resolving complex problems.

Data Management and Reporting

• Monitor weekly, monthly, and annual reports to ensure compliance with federal and state regulations.
• Provide consistent data and analysis related to the effectiveness of the work being done in order to identify trends, successes, and areas of improvement.
• Provide insight during regularly scheduled leverage planning meetings and assist with any yearly setup or changes as needed.
• Provide quality assurance and testing of financial aid packages.

• Bachelor’s degree
• A minimum of 4 years undergraduate financial aid experience in a public or private non-profit university
• Strong and current knowledge of federal and state financial aid programs
• Proven ability to communicate clearly and accurately with internal and external partners as well as students and their families
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to listen, remain calm, and empathize with students and parents from diverse backgrounds
• Ability to demonstrate tact and diplomacy and maintain a high level of confidentiality with a strict adherence to FERPA standards
• Demonstrated ability to make appropriate decisions and sound judgments on routine to critical matters
• Ability to maintain and present data in a clear and concise manner
• Ability to work successfully both independently and as part of a team
• Strong organizational skills to prioritize projects and deadlines and assist the team to do the same
• Comfort with public speaking and presentations including the creation of presentations and outreach materials