Job Description
Reporting to the Associate Director of Career Coaching and Operations, the Assistant Director oversees four to six Career Coaches and manages career development initiatives tailored to graduate and professional students pursuing industry roles. This position is central to supporting the career coach team by providing supervision, encouraging professional growth, and enhancing their effectiveness. Additionally, it plays a key role in expanding, marketing, and improving career services to better support graduate students as they transition to careers beyond academia.
Responsibilities
Supervision and Training
- Supervise and provide feedback and support to four to six Career Coaches, ensuring alignment with departmental goals and high service standards.
- Review semester reports to assess performance and provide constructive feedback for improvement.
- Conduct annual performance evaluations, offering actionable insights for professional development and growth.
- Organize regular check-ins to maintain team collaboration and alignment with organizational priorities.
- Support Career Coaches in overcoming challenges, offering guidance to enhance effectiveness and career growth.
- Contribute to the development and maintenance of training and on-boarding processes while coordinating ongoing professional development and shadowing experiences.
- Provide support and guidance to Career Coaches in building connections with employers, faculty, and alumni to promote student career development and opportunities.
Graduate Student Career Development and Engagement
- Lead career development initiatives for graduate and professional students, focusing on industry career paths.
- Collaborate with the Graduate School, faculty, and career professionals within academic colleges to expand career programming and resources.
- Deliver workshops and presentations tailored to the unique career development needs of graduate students.
- Develop and maintain online career resources and website content to support graduate career exploration and preparation.
- Represent the Center for Career Development and Academic Exploration (CCDAE) at Graduate School orientations, open houses, and other recruitment and engagement events.
- Provide ongoing training, guidance, and best practices to the career coaching team on supporting graduate students in their career development and transitions to industry roles.
- Enhance graduate student participation in the career outcomes survey by developing and implementing targeted engagement strategies.
Career Resource Development and Maintenance
- Develop, update, and maintain career resources and content, both online and printed, to support career exploration and preparation for undergraduate and graduate students. This includes, but is not limited to, resources such as Vol Guides to Resumes, Interviewing, Federal Resumes, Graduate and Professional School Preparation, and website content.
- Ensure that all resources reflect current trends and evolving student needs.
Campus Partnerships, Leadership, and Departmental Initiatives
- Assist the Director and Associate Director in coordinating efforts to maintain strong relationships with college and campus partners to strengthen career services and resources.
- Serve on leadership team for department to ensure most effective operations, analyze long-term impact of decisions and plans, and establish and evaluate standards of performance.
- Serve on various Center for Career Development and Academic Exploration departmental committees.
- Assist in other departmental activities, events, and programs that align with Center for Career Development and Academic Exploration's mission, such as career fairs.
- Participate in professional development activities to ensure professional growth and knowledge needed to provide effective leadership and stay abreast of emerging trends in advising and career coaching.
- Participate in various local, state, regional, and national organizations.
Qualifications
Required Qualifications
- Education: Master’s degree
- Experience: Minimum of three years of full-time experience in higher education at time of hire. Two years of graduate or part-time work will count as one year of professional experience.
- Knowledge, Skills, Abilities: Knowledge of career development theories, coaching best practices, and university career services operations; Ability to build relationships with students, faculty, employers, and campus partners; Capacity to work independently and collaboratively to achieve departmental goals; Ability to effectively market services, resources, events, and programs to diverse audiences, ensuring engagement and awareness across campus stakeholders; Experience planning, organizing, and executing small and large-scale events; Ability to be flexible regarding the facets of this position’s responsibilities and a willingness to adjust when needed in order to meet the goals of the department, division, and university.
Preferred Qualifications
- Education: Master’s degree
- Experience: 1-2 years of professional supervisory experience; university career services experience; experience working with graduate students; experience conducting needs assessments to identify gaps and opportunities in career services, ensuring that programming and resources align with the needs of diverse student populations.
- Knowledge, Skills, Abilities: Knowledge of career services technology platforms such as Handshake, Salesforce, 12Twenty, and Microsoft Office Suite for data tracking and service management; Knowledge of curriculum development and instructional design principles for training and onboarding programs; Ability to develop innovative career programming that addresses emerging workforce trends and student needs; Familiarity with CliftonStrengths.
Work Location
Knoxville, TN
Compensation and Benefits
- UT market range: 10
- Anticipated hiring range: Minimum $55,000
- Find more information on the UT Market Range structure here
- Find more information on UT Benefits here
Application Instructions
Submit resume, cover letter, and 3 professional references
Additional Information on all postings provided by UTK
About Us
About Us
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has shaped leaders, changemakers, and innovative thinkers since its founding in 1794. The university is home to more than 38,000 students and 10,000 statewide employees—the Volunteers—who uphold the university’s tradition of lighting the way for others through leadership and service.
UT Knoxville offers over 900 programs of study across 14 degree-granting colleges and schools. As Tennessee’s flagship land-grant university, its footprint spans the entire state. The university holds the highest Carnegie classification for research activity and has deep partnerships with industry leaders and the US Department of Energy’s largest multidisciplinary laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
The Knoxville campus serves and recruits for UT Knoxville, including the Institute of Agriculture and the Space Institute, as well as the UT Institute of Public Service.
UT Knoxville considers its employees its number one asset. With values that focus on work-life balance, compensation, and innovation leadership, all Vols are supported to advance professionally. Employees have access to career development and coaching, continued education, and an extensive list of development and training possibilities. The Volunteer employee experience implements structures and practices that attract and retain a diverse community and that support a culture where everyone matters and belongs.
The university holds a strong commitment to its land-grant mission of learning and engagement, with a tradition of service and leadership that carries that Volunteer spirit throughout the state and around the world. It has been ranked nationally as “Best Employer for New Graduates,” “One of America’s Best Large Employers,” and “Best Workplace for Women,” and has been designated as “Best Place for Working Parents” by Forbes Magazine.
Apply today and join the Tennessee Volunteer community!
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