College Advisor

University of Southern California; Glendale (CA); On-site; USD 25,003 - 35,610; Full time

Job summary

USC College Advising Corps (USC CAC) Advisers provide high quality college advising at local high schools, helping students with searches, applications, and financial aid.

Advisers participate in summer training and ongoing professional development, building strong partnerships with school staff while meeting performance goals.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required.
• Minimum 1 year of experience in administrative/community outreach roles.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Assist students with college searches and applications.
• Help with financial aid applications and enrollment steps.
• Organize and deliver workshops and events for students and families.
• Build relationships with counselors, teachers, and administrators at partner schools.
• Document student interactions daily for program assessment.
• Prepare progress reports for USC staff and school administrators.
• Participate in a 4‑week paid summer training and ongoing PD.
• Commit to one academic year (12 months), with potential two‑year extension.

Skills

Communication skills

Administrative experience

Language skills

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Microsoft Office

Adobe Creative Suite

Job description

USC College Advising Corps (USC CAC) Advisers play a critical role in delivering high quality postsecondary advising to students within a high school setting. College Advisers assist students with their college searches, applications, financial aid, and enrollment. They also host presentations, workshops, and events focused on supporting postsecondary attainment. College Advisers carefully track student interactions and outcomes via our online student tracker to meet performance metrics and goals. As well, College Advisers are responsible for attending summer training, on-going professional development training, team meetings, and may be asked to work on other partnership projects. College Advisers report to the Program Director at USC and an on-site liaison at their assigned school.

College Advising is a full-time position (37.5 hours/week). The rate for this position is $22.00 per hour.

Please note that the adviser IS a USC employee, but will NOT work on the USC campus. The College Adviser's primary work location will be a local high school. The high school campus will be in the greater Los Angeles area. (Potential areas include: Los Angeles, Long Beach, Compton, Lynwood, Paramount and various cities in the San Gabriel Valley).

The College Adviser position is fixed-term and limited to two years. Continuation for the second year is conditional based on performance in the first year and funding availability.

Hiring Windows

Traditional (summer)

We begin reviewing resumes and scheduling interviews in February. We typically continue interviewing candidates through June. If offered a position, a candidate can expect a start date in July alongside several other new hires starting the same day.

Year-round

While most advisers are hired at the beginning of summer, applications are reviewed, candidates interviewed and positions are filled throughout the year.

Overview

Launched in 2013, the University of Southern California College Advising Corps (USC CAC) has grown from serving 3 schools within one district to over 35 schools across ten districts in the greater Los Angeles area. This program is a partnership between the USC Pullias Center for Higher Education and the national College Advising Corps.

The USC Pullias Center for Higher Education is committed to improving access, affordability, and outcomes in higher education through research, policy engagement, and practice. The establishment of the USC CAC program reflects this commitment by expanding postsecondary advising services to high schools serving students who are first-generation and from low-income backgrounds.

Since 2013, USC CAC advisers have collectively provided college advising services to over 88,000 seniors. Our program partners with high schools where many students are first-generation college-bound and qualify for free and reduced lunch.

• 89% of students are first-generation college-bound or from low-income backgrounds.
• 74% of students qualify for free and reduced lunch.

Responsibilities

• Assist students with college searches, applications, applying for financial aid for Community Colleges, 4-year Universities, private colleges and trade schools.
• Organize workshops, presentations, and events that encourage students and their families to consider post-secondary education.
• Establish productive and strategic relationships with counselors, teachers and administrators within the partner school.
• Assist in the efforts of other college adviser(s) within the service area.
• Document all student interactions on daily basis to assist in the assessment and long‑term sustainability of the program.
• Prepare regular progress reports for USC program staff and school administration.
• Participate in a 4-week paid training during the summer and ongoing professional development throughout the school year.
• Commit to one academic year (12 months) of service, with a preferred two-year commitment if mutually agreed upon by the program staff and the adviser.

Required Qualification

• Bachelor's degree (College seniors may apply before graduation for the following school year.)

Preferred Qualifications

• Student program or services experience
• Proven ability to organize and manage many tasks and projects simultaneously
• Attention to detail and excellent quantitative and record‑keeping skills
• Flexibility, creativity, independence, accountability and passion
• Experience working with diverse populations
• Ability to speak Spanish, Armenian, or other languages is a plus but not required

Minimum Requirements

• Minimum Education: Bachelor's degree
• Minimum Experience: 1 year
• Minimum Skills:
  • Administrative experience.
  • Understanding of community outreach programs.
  • Familiarity with relevant programs and applications (e.g., Microsoft Office, Adobe Creative Suite).
  • Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Preferred Education: Bachelor’s degree
• Preferred Experience: 2 years
• Preferred Skills:
  • Demonstrated experience interacting with diverse groups, exercising diplomacy, good judgment and discretion.
  • Familiarity with local community.
  • Demonstrated experience with office management communication software and tools (e.g., Google suite, Slack, Skype) and social media management. Fluency in one or more language in addition to English (e.g., Spanish, Korean).

The hourly rate for this position is $22.00. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate's work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.