Executive Director of University Advising

Drexel University; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); On-site; USD 100,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Drexel University in Philadelphia seeks an Executive Director of University Advising to lead the undergraduate advising teams and coordinate centralized advising initiatives across academic units. You will liaison with ARC, IRAA, CADUE, SCDC, and other offices to ensure high standards of student success.

The role requires master’s level leadership, 7+ years in higher education administration, and proven ability to drive strategic advising initiatives, technology changes, and staff development.

Qualifications

• Master's degree in science or similar field or equivalent experience.
• 7+ years of relevant experience in higher education administration.
• Commitment to student success and engagement.
• Expertise in higher education administration and leadership.
• Experience with student engagement and academic advising.
• Strong organizational and leadership abilities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Provide centralized support for academic advisors across colleges.
• Coordinate university-wide advising initiatives and maintain consistency.
• Act as primary contact for institutional strategy for academic advising.
• Lead regular meetings with academic advising leaders.
• Represent advising in major university initiatives and policy groups.
• Monitor issues and intervene in escalated advising matters as needed.
• Oversee centralized advising budget and vendor contracts.
• Support central student-facing initiatives with Admissions and Student Life.
• Support advisor training and development programs.
• Collaborate with academic units on early warning and gateway course data.
• Lead professional development for advising staff and training platforms.
• Create centralized advising communications via email and DrexelOne platform.

Skills

Student engagement

Higher education administration

Leadership

Communication skills

Education

Master's degree in science or related field

Tools

Banner

Job description

Executive Director of University Advising

Work type: Full-Time

Location: University City - Philadelphia, PA

Categories: Drexel University, Office of the Provost

Job Summary

The Executive Director of University Advising, reporting to the Senior Vice Provost of Undergraduate Affairs, plays a pivotal role in ensuring a high standard of excellence for undergraduate student advising. The Executive Director is responsible for being a student success champion and should work to instill this same commitment in all undergraduate academic advisors. A foundational component of the position is the responsibility to coordinate, manage, and lead the undergraduate academic advising teams within each academic unit. As the head of the Office of University Advising, the Executive Director must serve as a liaison with numerous offices including: i) the McGonigal Academic Resource Center (ARC), ii) the Office of Instiutional Research, Accreditation, and Assessment (IRAA), iii) the Council of Associate Deans of Undergraduate Education (CADUE), iv) Steinbright Career Development Center (SCDC), v) Academic Information Systems, vi) Office of the University Registrar, and vii) Retention Partners Group (RPG), among others.

Essential Functions

• Provide centralized support for academic advisors based in the colleges. Assume primary responsibility for coordinating and monitoring university-wide advising initiatives, ensuring consistent implementation across colleges and advising units.


• Serve as the primary contact for institutional strategy for academic advising (e.g., cross-college retention strategy, changes in technology, changes in SOPs that impact advising).


• Coordinate a regular meeting with academic advising leader (weekly).


• Represent advising on large-scale university initiatives (e.g., MSCHE Standard IV).


• Monitor, take action, and support advisors on emerging advising issues and institutional needs. Provide intervention in escalated significant issues as appropriate.


• Represent advising on centralized leadership groups such as Executive Council, AT Transition Planning Core Team, Retention Partner Group Core Team, AT Curricular Redesign Leads, Provost Office Policy Group, ADUE.


• Manage the centralized advising budget used for advisor development, external vendor contracts (e.g., TimeTrade, McGraw Hill Alex), and office operations.


• Represent Advising on centralized student-facing initiatives specifically through Admissions and Student Life (e.g., anti-melt events and Welcome Week events).


• Coordinating with the advisors all centralized group advising appointments including providing technical support.


• Coordinate with the academic units on the early warning system in terms of gateway course information and advisor training.


• Serve as the primary driver for advisor professional development (e.g., TimeTrade training, AVT training, DegreeWorks Training, hosting NACADA events, hosting partner office in training, updating training platforms).


• Design and deploy centralized, large-scale advising communications via email and the DrexelOne portal/app.


• Coordinate with the advisors and provide operational support for undergraduate academic standing specifically related to permanently dismissed students and tracking the progress of students on academic probation.


• Coordinate with the academic units to continuously update academic equivalencies for high school advanced credit exams.


• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

• Minimum of a Master's Degree in Science or similar field, or the equivalent combination of education and work experience. (Please review the Equivalency Chart for additional information.)


• Minimum of 7+ years of relevant experience


• Demonstrated commitment to student success.


• Demonstrated expertise in higher education administration and leadership.


• Demonstrated expertise in student engagement and academic advising.


• Exceptional organizational and leadership abilities.


• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Ability to navigate complex institutional structures with diplomacy.


• Ability to innovate and improve processes and outcomes in a higher education institution.


• Experience with higher education enterprise software platforms (e.g., Banner)

Location

• University City - Philadelphia, PA

Additional Information

This position is classified as Exempt, grade N. Compensation for this grade ranges from $ 99,720.00 to $ 149,580.00 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.

A review of applicants will begin once a suitable candidate pool is identified.

Advertised: Sep 8 2026 Eastern Daylight Time

Applications close: Oct 8 2026 Eastern Daylight Time