Assistant Director, Student Engagement Center

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• Enrollment
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• Digital Advertising
  
  

Case Studies

• Ohio Wesleyan University
• The University of Mississippi
• Kettering University
• Florida Southern College
• University of Texas at Tyler
• Taylor University
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The Assistant Director, Student Engagement (AD) leads a team supporting key stages of the student life cycle for Carnegie’s university partners. This hands-on role involves setting daily priorities, coaching staff, and ensuring consistent, high-quality service aligned with client expectations. The manager uses strong project management and data-driven insights to optimize performance, collaborates with internal teams and external partners, and must be flexible with scheduling, including potential evening and weekend coverage.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Enrollment Strategy & Performance
• Develop and execute enrollment strategies that drive application volume, yield, and start rates through phone, email, text, and virtual engagement channels.
• Partner with marketing and academic leadership to align outreach efforts with institutional recruitment goals.
• Admissions Operations Management
• Oversee the full application lifecycle through centralized, virtual workflows, including inquiry handling, application support, document collection, interview coordination, and admissions decisions.
• Ensure consistent, high-quality service delivery across all contact channels.
• Student Recruitment & Virtual Engagement
• Lead virtual recruitment team and their initiatives such as call campaigns, virtual open houses, online info sessions, and targeted outreach to prospective students.
• Understanding of and expertise in high-touch engagement methods
• Client Relationship & Pipeline Development
• Build and sustain strong relationships with the client schools through regular communications and meetings.
• Manage the day-to-day operations of assigned enrollment pipelines, ensuring appropriate engagement strategies are deployed.
• Apply a proactive approach to managing the student life cycle, ensuring performance benchmarks are met or exceeded.
• CRM, Data & Reporting
• Operate with the client school’s CRM and contact center systems, ensuring accurate tracking of leads, applications, and enrollment milestones.
• Analyze funnel performance, contact effectiveness, and agent productivity to inform staffing, outreach strategies, and process improvements.
• Prepare regular performance and enrollment reports for executive leadership.
• Compliance & Process Governance
• Ensure all admissions processes comply with institutional policies, accreditation standards, FERPA, and applicable state and federal regulations.
• Maintain consistent documentation and audit-ready admissions workflows.
• Call Center Leadership & Workforce Management
• Recruit, train, coach, and evaluate admissions representatives operating in a high-volume contact center environment (Five9/Zoom).
• Set performance expectations for service quality, conversion outcomes, and regulatory compliance.
• Partner with workforce management or operations teams to align staffing with inquiry and application demand.
  

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities:

• Experience leading admissions, enrollment services, or education-focused contact centers in higher education, career education, or K-12 environments.
• Proven ability to manage teams in structured, metrics-driven environments while maintaining strong student-centered service values.
• Strong operational and workflow management skills, including the ability to design, adjust, and optimize processes.
• Effective communicator able to provide clarity, guidance, and alignment across multiple teams and partners.
• Ability to interpret and apply CRM data to operational improvements and to manage performance and enrollment pipelines.
• Proficient in admissions CRMs, student information systems, call center platforms, and productivity tools (Slate/Five9/Slack/Zoom/Google Workspace).
• Ability to navigate telephony platforms (preferably Five9) to identify performance trends.
• Strong decision-making and critical-thinking abilities in a fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated capacity to work cross-functionally and influence operational outcomes without direct supervision.
• Excellent organization, prioritization, and time management skills.
• Ability to learn and navigate multiple technology platforms simultaneously.
  
  

Performance Metrics

• Achievement of enrollment, start, and persistence targets
• Improvement in inquiry-to-application and applicant-to-enrolled conversion rates
• Contact effectiveness (speed to contact, contact rate, follow-up completion)
• Staff performance metrics including quality scores, productivity, and adherence to compliance standards in conjunction with CC data and quality personnel
  
  

Credentials and Experience:

• Bachelor’s Degree preferred; equivalent experience considered.
• Graduate level education or experience preferred
• Experience in enrollment services, student support operations, contact centers, higher education administration, or process management strongly preferred.
• Experience with CRM systems and enrollment communication workflows required.
  
  

About Carnegie

For more than 30 years, Carnegie has been a leader and innovator in higher education marketing and enrollment strategy, offering groundbreaking services in the areas of Research, Strategy, Digital Marketing, Lead Generation, Slate Optimization, Student Search, Website Development, and Creative that generate authentic connections.

Learn more about who we are, what we do, and what we care about.

No phone calls or unscheduled visits to the office, please. Carnegie is an equal-opportunity employer.