Assistant Director, Financial Aid

Updated: about 1 year ago
Location: College Station, TEXAS
Job Type: FullTime
Deadline: The position may have been removed or expired!

Job Title

Assistant Director, Financial Aid

Agency

Texas A&M University

Department

Scholarships And Financial Aid

Proposed Minimum Salary

$5,416.66 monthly

Job Location

College Station, Texas

Job Type

Staff

Job Description


Our Commitment

Texas A&M University is committed to enriching the learning and working environment by promoting a culture that respects all perspectives, talents & identities.  Embracing varying opinions and perspectives strengthens our core values which are: Respect, Excellence, Leadership, Loyalty, Integrity, and Selfless Service.

Who we are

The mission of Scholarships & Financial Aid is to provide students and their families with information and financial resources to attend Texas A&M University, along with support programs that promote higher education and developmental opportunities. We administer scholarships and financial aid, which include the following programs:  grants, student loans, student employment, veteran educational benefits, athletic aid coordination, short-term loans, and emergency tuition and fee loans. In addition our office provides advising on the programs listed above. Our office also assist students in gaining financial literacy knowledge through our Money Education Center. Our office is responsible for processing student aid and veteran educational benefits for College Station, Galveston, all Health Science Center sites and Qatar which totaled approximately $836 million in financial aid assistance for the prior academic year.

What we want

The Assistant Director provides support to the Associate Director and the Director in managing the business functions of the scholarships area of Scholarships & Financial Aid, including but not limited to funds management, projections for fund availability, transfer of funds, reconciliation, compliance, and payment processing. The Assistant Director collaborates with the Associate Director and Director to plan and carry out strategic and effective scholarship fund administration. The Assistant Director works closely with numerous offices on and off campus to coordinate scholarship processing and provide direction, information, and consultation. Develops and interprets policies and procedures regarding awarding and processing of scholarships. May develop special projects and recommendations. Serves as primary contact and administrator for the Bonfire Memorial Scholarship Program. Serves on the management team which serves to provide overall guidance and support for Scholarships & Financial Aid. If the description sounds interesting to you, we invite you to apply to be considered for this opportunity.

What you need to know

Salary range: $65,000/yr

Cover Letter/Resume’: A cover letter and resume’ are strongly recommended. You may upload these documents on the application under CV/Resume.

Required Education and Experience:


  • Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and experience 
  • Six years of related experience in a financial aid office 

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

  • Knowledge of student financial aid processes/counseling and related federal and state regulation
  • Excellent interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills
  • Ability to perform accurately in a detail-oriented environment
  • Ability to organize and make decisions
  • Ability to work well with students and parents, and to solve complex problems
  • Ability to effectively use word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, and database programs
  • Ability to multi-task and work cooperatively with others
  • Ability to work independently and in a team environment
  • Must be literate in the English language and able to comprehend, provide, and follow both written and verbal instructions
  • Ability to relate well with a diverse student population
  • Ability to travel may be required
  • Must comply with Texas A&M System Policy 07.02 Texas Higher Education Fair Lending Practices. Must be in good standing on all Federal Student Loans. The U.S. Dept. of Education will not grant access to student loan data for any individual who is in default status. Access to such information is a necessity for this position. Must be able to rectify default status within three months of employment. Good standing must be maintained for continued employment

Preferred Education and Experience:


  • Master's degree 

  • Six or more years of progressively responsible experience in student financial aid in higher education, including some supervisory experience
  • Background in general office conditions with much time spent in contact with students and with donors
  • Experience in an enrollment management area focusing on outreach and/or retention 


Preferred Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

  • Knowledge of Banner, Title IV aid, Microsoft Office products (Excel, Word, Outlook, Access, PowerPoint), and FAMIS
  • Understanding of scholarship and donor matters
  • Experience in managing and reconciling accounts
  • Experience with funds management
  • Ability to develop and make presentations
  • Ability to develop and/or coordinate complex programs, complete assessment and analysis, and develop regular and ad hoc reports
  • Bilingual in Spanish and English
  • Strong interpersonal counseling skills, empathy and understanding of human relations, common sense, tactfulness, sensitivity, honesty, commitment, and dedication to a student development/educational philosophy
  • Ability to cultivate and maintain professional working relationships with people of diverse background

Responsibilities:


  • Management - Provides leadership to direct reports and to the team in support of the Associate Director. Hires, supervises, trains, approves time sheets and leave requests, and evaluates staff, recommending raises or promotion, discipline, and termination. Provides direct support to the Associate Director and Director of scholarships area. Serves as a leader in the analysis of business and awarding processes. Manages the testing/maintenance of scholarship administration tools and services provided to campus partners. Oversees new scholarship account creation and scholarship account maintenance to include synthesis of Banner with enterprise scholarships administration tools (SOLAR, SPARTA, OMEGA).  Manages security and access for enterprise scholarships administration tools (SOLAR, SPARTA, OMEGA).  Provides support to Team EIS requests/Compass Work Requests and Technology Services/Enterprise Application Services tickets in collaboration with Associate Director and Director. Coaches team members for peak performance and efficient compliance processing. Serves as part of the Scholarships & Financial Aid management team to provide guidance, support, and assessment for overall office objectives in support of University initiatives. 

  • Scholarship Business Processing - Manages the day-to-day business processing side of SFA’s scholarships functions. Oversees the processing of outside scholarships through OMEGA, including authorizing scholarship payments, ensuring receipting of scholarship checks from outside donors, returning funds to donors, working with Academic Accounting & Business Services (AABS) to reconcile accounts, and troubleshooting. Provides support to for awarding the of scholarships across campus. Manages, disseminates, and monitors payment/information for scholarship funds/projections. Oversees requests for funds from the Texas A&M Foundation and the Association of Former Students. Responsible for working with AABS staff to resolve negative or unusual account balances. Oversees the distribution and review of scholarship minimum enrollment and disbursement validation. Oversees and serves as final reviewer of new account set up for scholarships, fellowships, and some aid programs- including gift agreement review, non-resident tuition waiver eligibility, and set up in SOLAR/SPARTA. Oversees and participates in testing scholarship-specific functions in Banner (scholarship roll, projections, non-resident tuition waiver posting, and establishment of athletic and fellowship stipend posting dates). Serves as the records retention coordinator for scholarship documents. Serves as primary AggieBuy final approver for return of funds to donors and for payments. Oversees ACH/wire transfer processing. Provides oversight for staff processing Gates Scholarship Programs, matching scholarship funds, grade reports and thank you letters, Public Servant Service Survivor funding. May address donor inquiries. 

  • Collaboration - Collaborates and interacts with general public, students, donors, and external agencies to promote scholarship-related initiatives. Monitors unit accounts and spending of funds maintained and invested by the Association of Former Students, Texas A&M Foundation, and University Financial Management Operations. Provides support to colleges/schools and campus departments including Student Business Services and the Graduate and Professional School. Provides direct support to Associate Director and staff in coordination of scholarship receptions and similar recognition events. Supports and attends Team activities and events. May represent TAMU and SFA at local, state, regional and national conferences- enhancing and promoting programs within area of responsibility. May participate in or lead working groups. Assists with department workshops, resource tables, and other SFA programs and events (may involve evening and weekend work). May assist with conducting on and off-campus presentations, seminars, or workshops for donors/students/parents. 

  •  Program/Policy Development and Compliance - Assists leadership with development, implementation, and evaluation of new and existing scholarship programs and their associated policies for funds awarded through Scholarships & Financial Aid. Supports the efforts to ensure that proper policies and procedures are followed and implemented with regards to new and existing scholarship programs across campus. Interprets and maintains knowledge of current federal, state, and institutional policies, procedures, and regulations pertaining to financial aid and scholarship programs. Provides data and/or reports as needed to the leadership. Provides guidance on scholarship criteria for gift agreements. Reviews new/proposed gift agreements for feasibility of awarding and compliance.  Oversees scholarship satisfactory academic progress measures and processes. Oversees institutional differential tuition funds to ensure student eligibility and fund utilization. Oversees coordination, scheduling, invitations, reports, minutes, agendas, and correspondence for the University Scholarship Committee. 

  • Bonfire Memorial Scholarship Program - Serves as the primary campus contact for the Bonfire Memorial Scholarship (BMS) Program. Awards and monitors scholars, communicates with BMS families and designees to coordinate annual awarding. Liaises with BMS families at annual reception. Monitors fund balances and assures each scholarship is awarded annually. 

Instructions to Applicants: Applications received by Texas A&M University must either have all job application data entered or a resume attached. Failure to provide all job application data or a complete resume could result in an invalid submission and a rejected application. We encourage all applicants to upload a resume or use a LinkedIn profile to pre-populate the online application.


All positions are security-sensitive. Applicants are subject to a criminal history investigation, and employment is contingent upon the institution’s verification of credentials and/or other information required by the institution’s procedures, including the completion of the criminal history check.

Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action/Veterans/Disability Employer committed to diversity.



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