Assistant Registrar & International Student Advisor, Full-Time, Higher Ed: Boston, MA
Assistant Registrar & International Student Advisor in Boston, MA ($46-50K annually)
Overview
Gordon-Conwell is a multidenominational Protestant graduate school, unique with its broad array of over 2,100 students and 200 faculty and staff from 98 denominations and 64 countries. We offer a residential model of education at South Hamilton, MA; an urban context model offering classes in Boston, MA; adult educational models in both our Charlotte, NC campus and our offerings in Jacksonville, FL; in addition to online and cohort models involving students from around the world.
Our mission is to prepare men and women for ministry at home and abroad. Rooted in the gospel and God’s Word, the seminary seeks to develop Christian leaders who are thoughtful, globally aware, spiritually mature, and ready for a broad array of ministries. While being historically orthodox and evangelical, we seek to address the issues of our times with both relevance to the culture and faithfulness to Christ and God’s truthful Word.
Position Summary
Under the supervision of the Registrar, the Assistant Registrar assists in leading the daily management of the registration office, assisting students with registration concerns, providing counsel regarding curriculum requirements, and serving as the International Student Advisor.
Key Responsibilities
1. Student Petitions and Academic Issues: Receives and acts on student petitions within seminary policies and communicates decisions to students; reviews students for academic probation and notifies individuals of actions taken; provides counsel to students regarding curriculum requirements as needed; refers special problems to the Registrar, Campus Dean, or appropriate committee for counsel and direction. (25%)
2. Graduation verification & Certificate Completion: Certifies the credentials for Boston graduation; reviews graduation applications and communicates important information to pending graduates; assists in planning the graduation banquet and commencement exercises as assigned. Confirms program completion for diploma and certificate students, assists with completion ceremony. (20%)
3. International Student Advisor: Serves as the Designated School Official (DSO) for the Boston campus, maintaining the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS). Organizes SEVIS data processing under the guidelines provided by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS. Advises students with immigration petitions and applications to include processing for new F-1 visas, work permits, reinstatement, and reduced course load authorizations, change of status, medical leave, and economic hardship employment authorization. Supports international students experiencing cross-cultural, family, personal or economic crisis, which may impact academic performance in partnership with Student Life. Helps students to access appropriate community services/resources in partnership with Student Life. Assists international students with processing applications for work permits, reinstatements, extensions of stay and other immigration related matters. (25%)
4. Data Entry and Transcript Production: provides leadership to the Boston Registration Team to ensure that forms and petitions related to data entry such as paper registration forms, pass/fail petitions, immunization records, biographical data, address changes, final grades, and others are processed in a timely manner… (10%)
5. Generates Reports and Data: provides data reports for the Boston Registration Office and other constituencies (e.g. Dean’s office, Admissions, faculty advisors, etc…). This includes but is not limited to enrollment reports, inactive student reports, course registration totals, etc… (10%)
6. Orientation and Other Communication: Coordinates new international student orientation and assists with multiple components of orientation each fall and spring. Communicates with prospective students regarding academic and international student questions when referred by other teams (Admissions, Student Life, Financial Aid); communicates with other constituencies as needed. (5%)
7. Other duties as assigned by the Registrar to ensure the smooth operation of the CUME Registration Office. (5%)
Required Competencies
• Technical Knowledge: Competent in using Outlook, Word, Excel. Ability and willingness to learn to perform at an intermediate level in the CAMS database system. Experience with website content maintenance is helpful but not required.
• Customer Service: Strong customer service skills with ability to display empathy with all constituents. Commitment to a high level of confidentiality and attention to detail is required.
• Communication and Interpersonal Effectiveness: Must have excellent listening, writing, and verbal communication skills. Must demonstrate capable and consistent decision-making skills and problem-solving ability. Must collaborate and serve in a team environment that requires collegiality and collaboration with other seminary offices.
• Organization and Adaptability: Able to manage time well in order to accurately perform detailed work while also serving students in their varied academic concerns.
• Familiarity with Academic standards: familiarity with the policies and degree programs of the seminary is strongly preferred.
Education and Experience
• Master’s degree or commensurate experience.
• 3+ years’ experience working in an academic or similar administrative setting.
• 3+ years’ experience in a customer service and problem-solving environment is strongly preferred.
• Knowledge of current immigration rules and regulations.
• Knowledge of community resources for appropriate referrals.
• Experience working in a multi-ethnic environment with cultural sensitivity.
Application Process
Please apply through Gordon-Conwell’s Career Center available here: https://www.gordonconwell.edu/employment/
Please include these documents in either Microsoft Word or PDF formats:
• A cover letter addressed to Natalie Crowson, Institutional Registrar, explaining your interest in the position.
• A formal CV that includes the names of at least three references.
No hard copy materials, please. Opportunities to interview will be made available at the search committee’s initiative. Applications will be accepted until the position is filled.