Primary Purpose:
The Assistant or Associate Dean of Students and Career Development leads the Student Services and Career Development Office (CDO).
The Assistant or Associate Dean is responsible for counseling and advising law students about classes, academic programs, and stress and time management. The Assistant or Associate Dean of Students also oversees disciplinary matters, student policies, student government, student organizations, and events, and supports the academic and community life of students to enhance retention. In addition, the Assistant or Associate Dean manages the support process for students in distress and supervises examinations, wellness programs, special projects and programs, certifications of students to state bars, and accommodated examinations and other disabled student services. The Assistant or Associate Dean serves on appropriate faculty committees in an ex-officio capacity. The Assistant or Associate Dean is responsible for the operations of the Student Affairs office, including supervision of staff, day-to-day office operations, and the operations budget.
The Assistant or Associate Dean is responsible for leading the CDO's efforts to maintain and strengthen employment networks to provide students and alumni with a wide breadth of quality internship and post-graduate job opportunities; creating innovative career development programming and activities for Juris Doctor, Master of Science in Law, LLM, JSD, Master of Public Policy, and Master of Public Administration students and alumni at the law school; developing department strategic vision and managing planning for the unit; managing the CDO office and supervising staff and work-study students; and coordinating CDO messaging and professional development activities with Externships, Alumni Relations, Admissions, and other departments on campus, as well as student organizations and faculty.
Essential Functions:
Planning and Management: Develops the strategic goals and annual plan for the two (2) offices; manages the two (2) offices and staff; develops innovative programming and activities; creates and continuously refines metrics and tracks performance results for key department activities. Develops and manages the budgets to meet strategic goals. Applies for grants and funding when appropriate.
Academic Counseling and Other Academic Oversight: Oversee and/or provide academic counseling services to J.D. students and, on occasion, LLM, JSD, MSL, MPA, and MPP students. Make referrals to other University student services as appropriate. Process student requests for withdrawals, leave of absences, accommodations, requests to attend summer and other programs at other ABA schools, request for transfer, add/drop classes, switch divisions, letters of good standing, and letters to State Bar re: moral character and other registration information. Provides students with registration information through email and informational sessions.
Accommodations: Oversee the delivery of services including in-class and exam accommodations to all disabled students under the Americans with Disabilities Act and pursuant to establish University policies and procedures.
Student Services Data: Handle all faculty and staff requests for information regarding academic statistics (academic disqualification, academic probation, division switches). Handle all FERPA issues regarding information maintained by Registrar.
Employer Relations: Develops and oversees innovative, active, and strategic employer outreach plans in specific legal specialties and diverse geographic regions using a variety of strategies. Oversees plans to increase employer recruitment of students both on and off-campus through fairs, job postings, and other activities. Serves as the first point of contact in the CDO regarding any issues related to employers, including Title IX complaints.
Professional Relations: Represents McGeorge through service on national, state, and regional networks and committees, including NALP Committees, California Pro Bono network, and Bay Area Law School Consortium to optimize programming and networking opportunities for our students and to stay abreast of new employment trends and career services best practices.
Career data: Oversees all accreditation and audit responsibilities, including reporting to WASC, the ABA, and NALP and responding to internal and ABA audits.
Communications: Oversees detailed communication plan for Departments with the goal of educating and engaging students, alumni, faculty, and prospective and current employers. Ensures timely, reliable, and high-quality communications through newsletters, blogs, website, social media, printed materials, and email.
Employment Initiative and ERSS: Supervises the collection and maintenance of department and job-placement statistics to ensure compliance with requirements set by the ABA, NALP, and US News, including mandatory tracking of each alumnus through ten months after graduation, and reporting on highly-detailed information about each graduates employment situation, including salary, duration, type of position, employer name, and start date. Conducts a thorough internal audit before filling ABA statistics annually. Reports directly to the Dean on employment statistics and employment initiative strategies.
Develops a plan for support of recent graduates of JD and other graduate programs within McGeorge, which includes extensive programming to support and follow recent graduates throughout the first year after graduation. Coordinates and disseminates information related to employment trends for new graduates.
Faculty and Alumni Association: Serves as liaison between the two (2) offices and the faculty and Alumni Association. Attends faculty meetings and presents on employment initiatives and major programming. Attends Alumni Association meetings. Leads the Alumni Associations Career Development Task Force in regional efforts focused on supporting McGeorge students and recent graduates with mentorship, job guidance, and increasing employment opportunities.
Individualized Academic and Career Advising: Manages advising programs and ensures substantive and qualitative consistency among advisors through regular check-ins as well as tracking data.
Handle all matters which come before the Grading and Advancement Committee and the Graduate Studies Committee. Assist students in preparing student petition files, attend all Committee meetings and provides academic background to Committee, prepare and disseminate all decision letters.
Provide assistance to the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, including issues surrounding the preparation of the academic schedule, class size and classroom changes, exam scheduling, and requests to audit classes.
Assess student-oriented business processes, policies, practices, and procedures to minimize risk and ensure compliance.
Oversee the scheduling and administering of examinations and provide accommodated exams.
Serve on law schools management team.
Perform other duties as assigned.
University of the Pacific recognizes that diversity, equity, and inclusion is foundational to the success of our valued students and employees. We prioritize policy and decision-making that demonstrates awareness of, and responsiveness to, the ways socio-cultural forces related to race, gender, ability, sexuality, socio-economic status, etc. impede or propel students, faculty and staff.
Minimum Qualifications:
Juris Doctorate Degree.
Experience or educational degree in psychology, counseling, higher education, or a related field.
Three (3) years of progressively responsible work experience in a law practice or higher education.
Preferred Qualifications:
Higher education experience, especially, but not limited to, student affairs experience.
Experience with Banner or other database programs.
Exceptional verbal, written, organizational, and interpersonal skills.
Excellent collaboration and negotiation skills, including the ability to work effectively with students, alumni, legal professionals, faculty, and staff, and the ability to form and maintain positive and collaborative professional relationships with colleagues and with other departments and academic units.
Function effectively as a team player.
Demonstrated success in program management and leadership skills.
Ability to work effectively with a diverse population and commitment to diversity.
Ability to function independently in making decisions and completing projects with limited supervision.
Ability to set appropriate priorities and meet deadlines.
Demonstrated ability to work with and manage data.
Demonstrated record of working with sensitive matters and records and maintaining confidentiality.
Dynamic, energetic, and outgoing personality with excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
Ability to interact professionally with all constituents and show a strong commitment to helping law students develop the insight, skills and experience needed to secure a fulfilling career in the legal profession.
Excellent oral and written skills to prepare and present professional workshops, panels, and presentations, and to develop handbooks, articles, and newsletters.
Familiarity with, and interest in, trends in legal education and the legal market.
Experience and sensitivity in working with people of diverse backgrounds and cultures.
Demonstrated experience in advancing social justice, equity, and inclusion in a university setting.
Ability to engage and integrate culturally responsive practices and knowledge in their work.
Physical Requirements:
The physical demands described here are representative but not definitive of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.
Some lifting of materials (twenty (20) lbs or less). Bending, stretching, reaching required. Sitting for long periods of time.
Work Environment/Work Week/Travel:
Work performed during standard business hours. This position requires some travel.
Valid drivers license required. Incumbent must also be able to meet the Universitys fleet rules and be eligible to drive for University business. The University and its insurance carrier reserves the right to exclude applicants based on their driving record.
Hiring Range: Commensurate with experience, exempt
Background Check Statement:
All applicants who receive a conditional offer of employment are required to execute a release and authorization for a background screening.
To apply, visit https://pacific.peopleadmin.com/postings/22127
University of the Pacific is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer dedicated to workforce diversity. In compliance with applicable law and its own policy, Pacific is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse faculty and staff and does not discriminate in its hiring of faculty and staff, or in the provision of its employment benefits to its faculty and staff on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, genetic information, sex/gender, marital status, military and veteran status, sexual orientation, medical condition, pregnancy, gender identity, gender expression, or mental or physical disability.
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