Associate Director, Graduate Recruitment

Drexel University; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); Hybrid; USD 60,240 - 90,350; Full time

Job summary

Drexel University is seeking an Associate Director of Graduate Recruitment to lead the graduate admissions recruitment and yield efforts. The role involves traveling to college fairs, conferences, and partner events, coordinating with departments, and guiding a team to meet enrollment targets.

The position requires strong leadership, relationship management, and strategic planning skills, with the ability to work evenings and weekends as needed in a hybrid on-campus setting.

Qualifications

• Minimum of a Bachelor's Degree or equivalent experience.
• Minimum of 5 years of leadership in higher education with 3 years in international recruitment.
• Strong understanding of graduate student motivations and adult learning models.
• Excellent customer service and leadership capabilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead and coordinate graduate recruitment and yield activities across colleges.
• Manage relationships with prospective students, families, advisors and partners.
• Travel to recruit locally and nationally; coordinate information sessions and campus events.
• Supervise 2 direct reports and mentor teammates; oversee enrollment strategy implementation.
• Ensure compliance, budgeting, reporting and alignment with university policies.

Skills

Leadership

Team leadership

Strategic planning

Interpersonal communication

Travel readiness

Project management

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Slate CRM

Salesforce CRM

Job description

Associate Director, Graduate Recruitment

The Associate Director of Graduate Recruitment is an essential part of the leadership team responsible for the overall successful operation, training, and monitoring of graduate admissions recruitment and yield processes. Key responsibilities include coordinating with departmental leadership to implement student enrollment strategies and managing resources to meet enrollment targets. The Associate Director will provide leadership in the execution of the strategic vision of Graduate Admissions through travel, recruitment, and campus partnerships. The Associate Director of Graduate Admissions provides leadership and mentorship to teammates, assists in the execution of the strategic plan, monitors expenses and other managerial functions as needed. The Associate Director exhibits professionalism, compliance and ethics, accuracy, and passion for higher education. This position requires frequent travel, as well as working occasional evening and weekend hours as assigned.

While supervising a team of Assistant Directors (Business, Education, Law) the Associate Director will also serve as a primary contact for prospective students and their families, advisors, and other individuals and organizations involved in the college selection process at the graduate level. Key responsibilities include all aspects of the graduate school recruitment process, which includes helping to identify prospects, managing the application funnel, generating applications from leads, and internal and external relationship management throughout the entire application cycle, and across multiple departments at the University. The Associate Director interacts with prospective students and their families during individual meetings, information sessions (in person and virtually), and campus events to build relationships, answer questions, and explain the benefits of a Drexel University graduate education. The Associate Director also counsels accepted students through the enrollment process to facilitate a smooth transition to Drexel.

The Associate Director is responsible for recruiting prospective students both locally and nationally through attendance at and travel to college fairs, conferences, professional organization events, community events, employer partner-organizations and virtual fairs within a designated program vertical. The Associate Director should expect to travel non-consecutively between 5-6 weeks each fall and 2-3 weeks each spring during peak recruitment season.

This is a hybrid position, working on‑campus several times a week.

Essential Functions

• Develops, directs and leads the coordination of student enrollment activities for an individual college, and across an academic vertical of colleges
• Ensures that objectives, plans, budgets, policies, practices and actions are consistent with University policies
• Participates in the development and execution of both short-term and long-term student recruitment strategy to ensure enrollment objectives are met, and is responsible for implementing approved programs
• Serves as the primary point of contact to assigned Colleges, and acts as liaison between the college(s) and EMSS
• Assists in quality hires and manages performance management programs for 2 direct reports, including the interviewing process
• Trains, leads, develops, manages and delegates responsibilities to teammates as appropriate
• Carries out management responsibilities including planning, assigning and directing work of subordinates, performance appraisal; addressing complaints and resolving problems
• Demonstrates Drexel University values in the completion of all job assignments
• Adheres to laws and regulations governing student recruitment activities
• Develops and reviews weekly reports to ensure progress against goals and staff performance metrics
• Completes other projects and duties as assigned

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of a Bachelor's Degree or the equivalent combination of education and work experience. Please review the Equivalency Chart for additional information.
• Minimum of 5 years of leadership experience in higher education, with a minimum of 3 years of international student recruitment experience.
• Demonstrated understanding of graduate student motivations and adult learning models.
• Excellent customer service record.
• Ability to maintain high energy and be a team player with excellent leadership capabilities.
• Ability to be detail oriented, a self‑starter and self‑motivated.
• Ability to achieve success individually and as part of a team in a fast‑paced environment.
• Ability to be persistent and maintain a positive attitude and approach to work and others.
• Ability to meet tight deadlines.
• Ability to work evenings and weekends as needed.
• Strong interpersonal and verbal and written communication skills.
• Strong problem solving and process improvement abilities.
• Valid Driver's License.
• Ability to travel up to 5-6 weeks per year domestically.
• Must be authorized to work in the U.S.A.

Preferred Qualifications

• Advanced degree
• Experience using CRM such as Slate or Salesforce.
• Demonstrated understanding of either professional student educational needs and markets.
• Knowledge of either Business/Education/Law programs, systems, admissions, or the motivations of such employees.

Location

• Hybrid/Flexible Work Arrangement

Additional Information

This position is classified as Exempt, grade K. Compensation for this grade ranges from $60,240 - $90,350 per year. Please note that the offered rate for this position will vary based on the successful candidate's qualifications and experience, department budget, and an internal equity review.

Applicants are encouraged to explore the Professional Staff salary structure and Compensation Guidelines & Policies for more details on Drexel's compensation framework. For information about benefits, please review Drexel's Benefits Brochure.

Special Instructions to the Applicant

Please make sure you upload your CV/resume and cover letter when submitting your application.

Application Dates

Advertised: Jul 13 2026 Eastern Daylight Time

Applications close: Aug 13 2026 Eastern Daylight Time