Associate Director of Recruitment and Admissions

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Department: Schar School Policy and Government

Classification: Professional Faculty

Job Category: Administrative or Professional Faculty

Job Type: Full-Time

Work Schedule: Full-time (1.0 FTE, 40 hrs/wk)

Location: Arlington, VA

Workplace Type: Hybrid Eligible

Sponsorship Eligibility: Not eligible for visa sponsorship

Salary: Salary commensurate with education and experience

Criminal Background Check: Yes

About the Department:

The George Mason University Schar School of Policy and Government's objective is to prepare our students for high-level decision making in a complex and technological world.

About the Position:

Reporting to the Senior Director of Enrollment and Marketing, the Associate Director of Recruitment and Admissions provides leadership for recruitment, admissions, and enrollment activities across the Schar School's undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs. The position serves two primary functions: (1) providing day-to-day leadership and management of the integrated recruitment and admissions team and (2) directly engaging prospective students through a managed recruitment portfolio. By balancing leadership of the School's enrollment activities with personalized student engagement, the Associate Director ensures the effective execution of enrollment strategies while supporting the School's enrollment goals.

The Associate Director oversees undergraduate recruitment and yield, as well as graduate recruitment and admissions and yield, while serving as a primary point of contact for a portfolio of prospective students throughout the enrollment funnel. The position supervises professional staff and provides oversight of student/wage employees, manages the daily execution of recruitment and admissions activities, monitors enrollment performance, and identifies opportunities to strengthen processes and outcomes through data-informed decision making. At the same time, the Associate Director maintains an active portfolio of prospective students, providing individualized advising, outreach, and engagement to support application completion, admission, yield, and enrollment.

Responsibilities:

Recruitment and Candidate Engagement:

• Lead undergraduate recruitment and yield, as well as graduate student recruitment initiatives, ensuring alignment with the School's enrollment goals and strategic priorities;
• Lead the School's candidate engagement strategy following lead acquisition, strengthening prospective student engagement while directly engaging with candidates to improve conversion throughout the enrollment funnel;
• Guide the planning, execution, and evaluation of lead generation, recruitment events, travel activities, and other top-of-funnel recruitment initiatives to support enrollment goals;
• Manage a portfolio of prospective students through individualized outreach, advising, and ongoing engagement to support application submission, completion, admission, yield, and enrollment;
• Implement undergraduate and graduate yield strategies that improve conversion, encourage enrollment, and strengthen the admitted student experience through personalized outreach, engagement, and collaboration with faculty, academic programs, and university partners; and
• Collaborate with the enrollment marketing manager to align recruitment communications, campaigns, with enrollment priorities and goals.

Admissions Processes:

• Oversee Schar School admissions operations for master's, doctoral, graduate certificate, and non-degree programs, including application review, admissions workflow management, policy implementation, and timely admissions decisions;
• Oversee the effective utilization of the University's enrollment systems, including Patriot Connect (Salesforce CRM), Banner, MicroStrategy, and other enrollment management tools, to support recruitment, admissions, and yield activities, ensuring accurate data management, workflow efficiency, and pipeline visibility;
• Direct and continuously improve graduate admissions processes to ensure consistency, operational efficiency, and an exceptional applicant experience;
• Lead the graduate admissions review process by overseeing application review staff, workflows, and adherence to established admissions policies and timelines;
• Monitor undergraduate and graduate applicant and admitted student progression throughout the enrollment funnel, identifying opportunities to improve application completion, admission, yield, and matriculation; and
• Oversee the administration of merit-based admissions financial awards, including supervision of award processing, coordination of applicant communications, and tracking award utilization throughout the admissions cycle.

Analytics:

• Develop and prepare enrollment reports, dashboards, and operational analyses to support the Senior Director's decision making and enrollment planning;
• Evaluate enrollment trends, operational metrics, and recruitment and admissions performance to identify opportunities for improvement, providing data-informed recommendations to the Senior Director that strengthen recruitment, admissions, enrollment systems, reporting processes, and operational effectiveness; and
• Monitor and manage the recruitment and admissions operating budget, including expenditures, travel, procurement, and vendor contracts, providing regular updates and recommendations to the Senior Director.

Team Management and Staff Development:

• Provide day-to-day management of the admissions and recruitment team, ensuring alignment with departmental priorities and enrollment goals;
• Supervise, coach, and develop professional and student staff by assigning work, providing ongoing feedback, conducting performance evaluations, and supporting professional development;
• Monitor team performance and daily operations to ensure efficient workflows, consistent service, and a high-quality prospective student experience;
• Foster collaboration and cross-training across recruitment and admissions functions to promote operational continuity and shared accountability; and
• Identify staffing, training, and workflow needs and recommend or implement operational improvements that enhance team effectiveness and service delivery.

Administrative and University Engagement:

• Represent the Schar School on university committees, working groups, task forces, and at professional conferences, recruitment events, and community engagement activities, serving on behalf of the Senior Director as assigned;
• Work closely with faculty and other internal/external stakeholders;
• Maintain the department's university purchasing card and oversee departmental purchasing, procurement, vendor coordination, and related administrative processes in accordance with university policies and procedures;
• Oversee administrative processes and office operations that support the efficient and effective functioning of the recruitment and admissions office; and
• Perform other related duties as assigned in support of the School's enrollment goals and strategic priorities.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in related field, or equivalent combination of education and experience;
• Substantive progressively responsible experience in higher education recruitment, admissions, enrollment management, or a related field (typically five or more years);
• Significant working knowledge of higher education recruitment, admissions, and candidate engagement strategies;
• Significant working knowledge of enrollment management technologies and application workflows, including customer relationship management (CRM) platforms, student information systems, and reporting tools that support recruitment, admissions, and enrollment management;
• Advanced written and verbal communication skills with the ability to effectively engage prospective students, faculty, staff, and external partners;
• Skill in developing and maintaining collaborative working relationships with diverse internal and external stakeholders;
• Ability to supervise, coach, and develop professional and student staff while effectively managing competing priorities in a fast-paced, customer-focused environment; and
• Ability to identify operational challenges, evaluate alternatives, and recommend or implement process improvements that enhance recruitment, admissions, and enrollment outcomes.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's degree in related field;
• Significant experience in higher education recruitment, admissions, or enrollment management (typically seven or more years);
• Skill in analyzing enrollment data, interpreting performance metrics, and developing reports, dashboards, and operational recommendations that support enrollment planning and decision making, including advanced proficiency with Microsoft Excel;
• Knowledge of graduate admissions policies, procedures, and enrollment management practices;
• Skill in budget monitoring, procurement, purchasing, and vendor coordination;
• Ability to supervise professional staff and lead cross-functional operational initiatives that improve recruitment, admissions, and enrollment performance; and
• Other attributes including a commitment to innovation, continuous improvement, and student-centered service.

Instructions to Applicants:

For full consideration, applicants must apply for the Associate Director of Recruitment and Admissions at https://jobs.gmu.edu/. Complete and submit the online application to include three professional references with contact information, and provide a cover letter and resume for review.

Posting Open Date: August 10, 2026

For Full Consideration, Apply by: August 24, 2026

Open Until Filled: Yes