Associate Director, Advising

Waukesha County Technical College; Village of Pewaukee (WI); On-site; USD 70,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Comprehensive benefits package

Tuition reimbursement

Retirement plan

Job summary

Waukesha County Technical College is seeking an Associate Director of Advising to lead daily operations for Academic and New Student Advisors. This full-time role involves supervising staff, onboarding, training, and policy development within the Advising department.

The position collaborates with academic leadership, faculty, employers, and support staff to enhance advising services, support student success, and coordinate career partnerships.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree required; Master's preferred in Advising, Counseling, Higher Education Administration, or related field.
• Minimum of 3 years of professional academic, career, or first-year advising experience in higher education.
• Knowledge of academic advising principles and practices.

Responsibilities

• Provide daily operational direction to advising staff across Academic and New Student Advisor functions.
• Directly supervise and develop Academic Advisors and New Student Advisors; hiring, orienting, training, and evaluating staff.
• Collaborate with administrative and academic departments to improve advising processes and services.
• Advise program students and serve as back-up for advising staff as needed.
• Develop strategic initiatives to align advising operations with college goals.
• Participate in campus-wide advising community and provide leadership input.
• Maintain expertise in advising curriculum and policy exceptions as needed.
• Oversee advising communication to students and address technical issues.
• Support Dean in budgeting decisions and provide back-up approvals.

Skills

Leadership

Supervision

Training & development

Conflict resolution

Strategic planning

Communication

Collaboration

Customer service

Problem solving

Time management

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Master's degree preferred

Tools

Microsoft Office

Databases

Presentation software

Job description

The Associate Director, Advising works with the Dean of Advising & Career Pathways to provide daily operational direction to Academic Advisors and New Student Advisors. The Associate Director is closely involved in supervising, training, onboarding, and developing advising team members and assists with developing policies and procedures for the Advising department. This position supports advising staff and students in conflict resolution, coordinates career and employer partnerships, and oversees the caseload standards, early alert response, and warm handoff processes connecting New Student Advisor caseloads to ongoing Academic Advisors or Academic/Career Advisors. The Associate Director works collaboratively with academic leadership, faculty, employers, and support staff throughout the College and serves in the Dean's absence.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Provide daily operational direction to all advising staff across Academic Advisor and New Student Advisor functions, coordinating workload, resolving process issues, and ensuring consistent practice across the unit
• Directly and formally supervise Academic Advisors and New Student Advisors, including hiring, orienting, training, coaching, evaluating, developing, and recommending personnel actions in accordance with College policies, procedures, and other guiding agreements
• Collaborate with other administrative and academic departments as needed to improve advising process and services; function as an expert on advising-related inquiries; serve on committees as needed
• Advise program students. Serve as back-up for the advising staff as needed
• Contribute to the conceptualization, development, and implementation of strategic initiatives to ensure alignment of strategy and operations of advising processes
• Participate in the campus-wide advising community, providing input to leadership regarding the development of advising and student success programs
• Maintain expertise with advising curriculum and may assist in developing and recommending exceptions for policy and curriculum
• Provide clear, consistent communication with colleagues and broader audiences to collaborate and articulate advising goals
• Oversee advising communication to students
• Identify any technical problems and work toward resolutions
• Support the Dean in making budgetary decisions. Serve as a backup for decisions and approvals, as needed

New Student Advising Supervision

• Establish and periodically revise the caseload standard for New Student Advisor and Academic Advisors staff based on institutional retention data, new student service volume, and student needs
• Design and administer the early alert response protocol and the warm handoff protocol transitioning students from New Student Advisor caseloads to ongoing Academic Advisor or Academic/Career Advisor staff as their first semester concludes
• Serve as the escalation point for complex new student cases and cross-departmental coordination issues

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Competency and experience working in diverse environments, inclusive of students, faculty, and staff of varying social, economic, cultural, ideological, ability, gender, sexuality, and ethnic backgrounds and identities
• Demonstrated a high degree of professionalism, discretion, and judgment
• Effective verbal, listening, writing, problem-solving, critical thinking, organizational, and interpersonal communication skills, including public speaking
• Broad knowledge and understanding of higher education, academic advising theory and assessment, student success, and retention best practices
• Strong customer service and leadership skills, working with individuals from diverse backgrounds, connecting and building rapport with students and the community
• Working knowledge of career development theory and first-year/first-semester experience and retention theory
• Ability to establish and maintain positive working relationships and work cooperatively and collaboratively with internal (staff, management, faculty, personnel) and external contacts (students, parents, business/community)
• Ability to work independently, as part of a team, and/or with minimal supervision
• Ability to manage time and organize work, including the ability to prioritize and work on several projects simultaneously and adapt as necessary
• Ability to attend closely to detail, completing and maintaining a high level of accuracy
• Proficient with current operating systems and computer software applications such as word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and presentations

Educational and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree required. Master's degree in Advising, Counseling, Higher Education Administration, or a related field preferred
• Minimum of 3 years of professional academic, career, or first-year advising experience in higher education
• Knowledge of academic advising principles and practices

The Associate Director of Advising supports the Advising & Career Pathways department and is fulltime and benefit eligible.

Hours

Hours are Monday through Friday - 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Some evenings and weekends will be required. Flexibility may be needed based on department/College needs.

WCTC offers a wide range of outstanding benefits. Benefits include, but not limited to:

• Competitive compensation
• Comprehensive Benefits Package including health, dental, vision, life, long-term disability, supplemental life, flex spending accounts, and much more
• Generous time off and holiday schedule
• Eligibility in the Wisconsin Retirement System (ETF)
• Opportunities for professional growth and development (including tuition reimbursement, tuition waiver)
• Well-being activities to support personal and professional well-being
• Collaborative and supportive team environment

Candidates must be legally authorized to work in the United States at the time of hire and maintain that authorization through employment. Verification of employment eligibility will be required upon hire. WCTC does not provide employment-based visa sponsorship.