Student Life Coordinator - Cape Town

IIE MSA and IIE Varsity College; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 300,000 - 400,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading higher education institution in Cape Town seeks a Student Life Coordinator to enhance student life initiatives and co-curricular opportunities. This role involves planning campus activities, managing budgets, and collaborating with various stakeholders to ensure student engagement and sustainability. Applicants should hold a relevant bachelor's degree and possess at least two years of event and project management experience. A passion for student development is essential.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 2 years of event management, stakeholder management, and project management experience.
• Minimum of 1 year of budget management experience.
• Minimum of 1 year of risk assessment and management experience.

Responsibilities

• Plan and execute student life activities that support the institution's objectives.
• Collaborate to develop communication strategies for campus activities.
• Monitor budget expenditures and ensure integrity.

Skills

Event management

Stakeholder management

Project management

Communication

Risk assessment

Education

Bachelor’s degree (NQF Level 7)

Job description

Job title: Student Life Coordinator - Cape Town

Job Location: Western Cape, Cape Town

Deadline: September 22, 2025

Overview

Responsibilities and qualifications for the Student Life Coordinator role focusing on planning, supporting, and enhancing co-curricular, extracurricular, and student life initiatives in alignment with the institution’s objectives.

Responsibilities

• Contributes to the identification of co-curricular, extracurricular, and meta-curricular campus activities, with final decisions made by the line manager, and takes the lead in planning and executing approved initiatives that support the Institution’s strategic objectives.
• Identifies and selects student life groups and services (social and cultural groups, clubs, associations, and affiliated groups) and applies insights to improve student participation, sustainability, and longevity.
• Plans and executes student life activities for social, cultural groups, clubs, associations, affiliations, and interest groups, applying insights to improve participation, sustainability, and longevity.
• In collaboration with the Head: Student Experience, ensures the campus calendar of events reflects equitable academic and non-academic offerings.
• Identifies and analyzes current and potential non-curricular participation initiatives.
• Works with internal academic stakeholders to improve participation opportunities aligned with faculty goals and objectives.
• Collaborates with the Head: Student Experience and academic stakeholders to co-design and deliver inclusive student life initiatives such as clubs, societies, and affiliation groups that support academic goals and belonging; guided by participation insights and aligned with the institutional calendar for long-term relevance and impact.
• Evaluates and mitigates health, safety, and risk protocols and procedures against campus events, offerings, and programmes.
• Ensures non-curricular offerings uphold the institution’s commitments to equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Supports the Manager: Student Life with interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary projects, events and activities.
• Supports the Head: Student Experience with interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary projects, events and activities.
• Engages with external stakeholders, networks, and partners to enhance opportunities for engagement of social, cultural, clubs, societies, associations and interest groups.
• Identifies, recruits and onboard the campus Student Life Squad to ensure an inclusive and comprehensive student/campus life experience.
• Provides mentorship and leadership opportunities for the campus Student Life Squad, such as workshops, developmental training and events.
• Collaborates with internal and external stakeholders to ensure successful event planning and execution.

Awareness and Communication

• In collaboration with the line manager, develops, contributes, and implements effective communication strategies to promote campus activities, events, and opportunities, with the aim of maximizing awareness and participation.
• Brief campus staff and external service providers on events (photographers, printers, sound technicians, venue providers).
• Utilize omnichannel communication platforms to promote, maintain and market student life activities and groups.
• Plan and develop multimedia communication elements for use on omnichannel platforms.
• Support internal rollout of communication and awareness campaigns and elements.
• Liaise with national marketing and communications teams to support brand exposure targets.
• Support and ensure student awareness and communication elements are aligned with brand identity.

Budget Management

• Analyzes the resources needed to fulfil social, cultural, clubs, societies, associations, and interest group support obligations.
• Monitors expenditures against budgets and takes corrective action to maintain budget integrity.

Reporting and Advocacy

• In collaboration with the Head: Student Experience, ensures sustainable student representation and governance of student life on student representative councils.
• Monitors and reports on student life trends against established success metrics.

Minimum Qualification Requirements

• Minimum of Bachelor’s degree (NQF Level 7) or equivalent in areas such as education, communication, psychology, or business.

Minimum Work Experience Requirements

• Minimum of 2 years event management, stakeholder management and project management experience.
• Minimum of 1 year budget management experience.
• Minimum of 1 year risk assessment and management experience.

Ideal Work Experience

• Proven experience in co-curricular programme offerings and student governance.
• Occupational Health and Safety experience advantageous.
• Experience in communication elements development and execution.
• Administrative / Management experience.