Job Description

Admissions Communications Coordinator

Consistently ranked among the top ten social science research universities in the world, the Division of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago is at the vanguard of inquiry and impact. Whether through the field-defining scholarship of the Chicago Schools in Sociology, Political Science, and Economics, the path-breaking impact of the first graduate international affairs program in the U.S., the creation of interdisciplinary programs in the Department of Comparative Human Development and the John U. Nef Committee on Social Thought, or many other pivotal milestones, the Division has repeatedly transformed the social sciences since its founding in 1930. The Office of the Dean of Students provides leadership and strategic direction across a broad range of administrative practices, policies, and services to enrich graduate student experience and promote students' academic and professional success. The Dean of Students Office directs admissions, recruitment, registration, student records, financial aid, and graduation.

The job provides professional support and solves straightforward problems in a broad range of operational business activities in the creation of plans for events programming, marketing, and logistics. With guidance from others, monitors the execution of events. In collaboration with senior management, the Admissions Communications Coordinator will support the development and dissemination of communications on behalf of the Division of the Social Sciences Dean of Students Office, primarily in relation to admissions (with a focus on MA admissions). The Coordinator will be responsible for developing, implementing, and managing communications to enhance prospective student engagement and drive new student enrollment. The Coordinator will create and manage various forms of communication, including email, SMS, web, and social media, to reach and engage prospective students. The Admissions Communications Coordinator will also analyze the effectiveness of these campaigns, utilizing data to optimize future outreach efforts. This position will also assist the Admissions Team by participating in and hosting virtual and in-person events, including some domestic recruitment. The ideal candidate will have excellent written communication skills, is a team-player, can communicate with diverse audiences, has great follow-up skills, can work independently, and will work on task through to completion. Excellent oral communication skills are also required. This position reports to the Associate Dean of Students for Admissions within the Dean of Students Office but will secondarily report to the Director of Admissions and Enrollment for MA Programs and Graduate Recruitment. The position will work closely with the Communications and Marketing Manager in SSD Communications.

Responsibilities include:

• Develop and execute targeted communication strategies that guide prospective students through the admissions funnel, from initial interest to application completion and enrollment, including managing automated email and SMS campaigns, ensuring timely and personalized communication to keep applicants engaged and informed throughout the admissions process; and monitoring and analyze engagement metrics across various communication channels to refine outreach efforts, optimize messaging, and improve conversion rates.
• Coordinate with colleagues across the Division of the Social Sciences to develop communications to prospective and admitted students. Coordinate with staff and program leadership to incorporate feedback, maintain consistent tone, and ensure cohesive messaging in multi-contributor pieces and campaigns.
• Collaborate closely with the Division's communications team to ensure consistency in messaging across all communication platforms, including email, website, and print materials, as well as compliance with University brand/identity and digital accessibility guidelines.
• Working with SSD Communications, ensure that Division of the Social Sciences websites are consistently updated with important admissions and recruitment information.
• Interview students, alumni, and faculty to write profiles, marketing communications, and feature stories for Divisional channels.
• Develop promotional documents and other collateral materials (brochures, newsletters, information sheets, etc.) using approved templates.
• Participate in recruitment and yield events including in-person and virtual info sessions, Campus Days events, and summer programming for enrolling students, and conduct phone outreach to admitted and enrolling students.
• Travels and recruits domestically as needed.
• Is a member of the Office of the Dean of Students team and participates in regular meetings and events including orientation and convocation.
• Reviews and finalizes the guest lists, assists with mailing invitations and creates brochures for the event.
• Works to implement ideas for improvement as they are identified in addition to providing post-event feedback on turnout and vendor performance with direction from others.
• Performs other related work as needed.

Minimum qualifications include a college or university degree in a related field and knowledge and skills developed through 2-5 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Preferred qualifications include a bachelor's degree in communications, public relations, journalism, marketing, social sciences, or a related field. Experience in conceptualizing, researching, and writing a diverse range of content, and proficiency in M.S. Office are preferred.

Application documents must be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.

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