Social Media Manager & Content Creator

McDaniel College is looking for a talented content creator and social media manager to help us show the world who we are with energy, edge, and authenticity. This is a job for someone who thinks in short-form video, who has strong instincts about what makes people stop scrolling, and who wants to build something new, original, and effective.

You'll own McDaniel's social presence on the primary McDaniel account across platforms, conceptualizing and producing content that captures the spirit of campus life. You'll shoot. You'll edit. You'll post. You'll engage. You'll help build a student-led social media ambassador program and turn it into a content engine. And you'll do it all with a clear strategic purpose: building awareness, driving pride, and supporting enrollment.

This role sits at the center of a collaborative team, working alongside writers, a website manager, and admissions staff, with senior strategic support from an outside advisor. You won't be figuring it out alone. But you will be expected to bring a point of view and execute it with conviction.

Who You Are

• You have a point of view. You're not waiting to be told what's interesting- you see it.
• You understand how language works on these platforms, and how strong concepts and captions can bring a visual/video idea to life.
• You're fast without being careless. You can turn around content quickly and still make it feel considered.
• You're comfortable with ambiguity and energized by building something new.
• You take craft seriously (the framing, the cut, the caption) all of it matters to you.
• You're collaborative and low-ego about the work, high-standards about the output.
• You speak Gen Z and Gen Alpha fluently but can shift gears when you're talking to a parent or alum in the comments- You know the difference, and you switch between them without thinking.
• You have good instincts about what fits a college's social presence, and you know when it's better to loop in a supervisor before hitting reply.
  
  

Key Responsibilities

• Short-Form Video & Content Creation
• Conceptualize, shoot, and edit short-form video as the primary content format- Reels, TikToks, YouTube Shorts with a consistent, confident, and creative voice. This is the heart of the job.
• Capture real-time moments across campus: events, everyday life, student stories, athletics, academic culture.
• Produce video assets that are bold, brand-forward, and built for social.
• Stay ahead of platform trends and formats; bring new ideas quickly and execute them with care.
• Channel Management & Community Building
• Own and manage McDaniel's primary social media accounts (Instagram/Facebook, TikTok, YouTube Shorts) with consistency, purpose, and a clear brand voice.
• Manage activity through Sprout Social, including scheduling, listening, and reporting.
• Engage actively with audiences- respond, start conversations, build community.
• Monitor analytics and trends; use data to sharpen content strategy over time.
• Design and execute social activations and campus pop-up moments that generate energy and content.
• Student Social Ambassador Program (by year two)
• Develop and build out McDaniel's Student Social Media Ambassador program in partnership with the marketing team.
• Recruit, train, and lead a small team of student ambassadors, helping them produce content that reflects authentic campus life.
• Establish standards, workflows, and best practices so ambassador content is consistent and on-brand.
• Use the ambassador program as a pipeline for diverse voices, perspectives, and moments across campus.
• Collaboration & Cross-Team Support
• Work closely with the website manager, writers, and admissions team to align content with enrollment priorities and campaign calendars.
• Support the marketing team by delivering photo and video assets for news stories, blog posts, and flagship publications.
• Contribute to the college's Digital Asset Manager (DAM) and use project management tools to keep work organized and on track.
• Be present at signature campus events (Homecoming, Commencement, Out of Darkness, Academic Symposium) with a camera and a creative eye.
• Ensure accessibility compliance (WCAG) in digital content.
• Perform related duties as needed to support the goals of the Communications and Marketing team.
• Be prepared to respond quickly as needed to all urgent requests.
  

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in communications, media, marketing, or related field or equivalent experience
• One to two years of experience creating content and managing social media for an organization, brand, institution, or for yourself, with a collection of videos to show for it
• Strong short-form video skills: you shoot, you edit, you post, you write captions
• Proficiency in video editing tools (Premiere Pro, CapCut, or equivalent)
• Demonstrated proficiency in Adobe Creative Cloud (Photoshop, Lightroom, After Effects or equivalent), Canva, or similar design platforms
• Sharp visual instincts- composition, pacing, storytelling, platform-native aesthetics
• Experience with or ability to quickly learn Sprout Social
• Ability to work some evenings and weekends to capture campus life as it happens