College Success Manager

College Success

In order for Scholars to cross the finish line at graduation, they need to establish a strong foundation in their first year. That’s where the College Success team comes in. College Success creates a holistic program that supports Scholars in their transition to college. Providing tailored one-on-one coaching around academics, wellness, and career preparation, the College Success Managers give expert advice to our first-year college Scholars. The College Success team helps Scholars develop strong academic and personal habits so that Scholars can finish their first year with a GPA of 3.3 or higher, setting them up for additional opportunities that support their economic mobility.

The Position

Thrive Scholars is looking to recruit a dynamic, student-focused, and results-driven College Success Manager to join our team. Our College Success program is designed to help first-year Scholars successfully transition to college, thoughtfully explore their major and career interests, achieve academic success, and position themselves for a competitive summer opportunity (i.e. internship, research position). 

Through 1:1 advising, group sessions, online modules, and in person summer programming, College Success Managers (CSM) support first year Scholars in building academic and co-curricular plans consistent with their interests. In addition to serving as the primary relationship manager for first-year scholars, CSMs collaborate with Thrive Scholars’ Career, Community Engagement, and Corporate Partnership teams in developing and connecting Scholars with competitive experiential learning and internship opportunities that facilitate their career development. 

While most scholar-facing work will be virtual, the CSMs are required to be on-site at one of our Summer Academy sites for up to three weeks of the four-week program. Summer Academy runs from July until early-August. 

Key Responsibilities: 

• Guide a caseload of scholars in identifying the academic and co-curricular opportunities best suited to their goals, interests, skills, and long term economic mobility. 
• Assist students in the development of academic and personal skill-building tied to undergraduate student success (e.g. time management, stress management, study skills, self-advocacy skills). 
• Advise first-year scholars on course selection, college planning, major exploration, and decisions related to educational and career goals.
• Support scholars in filing their FAFSA and required paperwork needed to persist to their sophomore year of college.
• Evaluate student needs and provide appropriate referrals to career, academic, counseling, and student life resources and opportunities.
• Coordinate workshops and events with College Success and Career teams to equip students with necessary job search skills and employment preparation strategies to secure first year summer internships and research positions. 
• Monitor student progress and performance towards goals, recording applicable activities via Salesforce in a timely manner.

Qualifications and Experience: 

There are innumerable ways to learn, grow and excel professionally. We respect this when we review applications and take a broad look at the experience of each applicant. The qualifications and experiences listed below are intended as a guide; we do not expect candidates to check every box.  If you believe you can meet the expectations and responsibilities of this position, we want to get to know you and the unique strengths you will bring to the work. 

• Bachelor’s Degree
• 2+ years of professional experience 
• Experience working with collegiate students through a crisis and triaging students to the right resources 
• Strong commitment to students and their growth
• Highly-skilled relationship builder who is able to establish strong, trusting rapport with college students, volunteer mentors, and other partners 
• Effective and adaptable coaching skills
• Strong skills and experience with program design and execution
• A passion for working with low-income young people of color, and expertise in the issues first-generation students face at selective colleges and in corporate settings
• Strong organizational skills and ability to document and manage detailed data
• Accountability for impact and an orientation towards results
• Knowledge around, and understanding of, student experience at selective colleges

Competencies:

Along with the specific qualifications and experiences noted above, the ideal candidate for this position will be expected to demonstrate the following competencies:

• Commitment to Results: Takes action to produce high-quality work with measurable results in service of Thrive’s mission and Scholars.
• Strategic Collaboration: Understands how and when to work with others to drive strong results.  Able to balance attention to both results and relationships.  
• Learning Agility: Effectively adapts own approach in response to new information and/or situational changes.
• Fostering Thrive Community: Contributes to a work environment that embraces organizational values and works effectively across identities.  
• Problem Solving: Able to analyze situations and apply critical thinking in order to identify issues and solutions.

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Thrive Scholars provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment based on race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, national origin, sexual orientation, age, disability, or veteran status.  Knowing its importance to the success of our work, Thrive Scholars is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we aspire to build a diverse staff team and community. We strongly encourage people of all backgrounds to apply. 

For more information, please visit thrivescholars.org