Senior University Counselor

SUMMARY

In support of the university’s mission and objectives, the Senior University Counselor serves as one of PBA’s primary mental health providers for students, delivering individual counseling, crisis assessment, and short-term interventions. This role coordinates preventative training and programming, collaborates with Counseling & Wellness Center staff and campus partners, provides supervision to counseling interns, and supports data reporting and assessment efforts. This role is an 11-month position. 

Personal Counseling & Mental Health Programming

• Provides one-on-one counseling regarding mental health issues for university students.
• Provides short-term mental health assessments to students in crisis.
• Conducts referrals to external agencies for students with mental health issues.
• Coordinates counseling support groups for students with mental health issues (e.g., grief & loss, relationships issues).
• Partners with other Counseling & Wellness Center staff to ensure that students’ emotional needs are being met.
• Conducts training sessions for faculty and staff about how to deal with students with mental health issues.
• Connects with Palm Beach County community agencies to partner with external resources. 
• Serves on-call to respond to student mental health emergencies. 
• Maintains caseload clinical notes/documentation.
• Responds to Navigate 360 alerts.
• Facilitates psychoeducational and wellness workshops/or groups on topics such as stress management, resilience, mindfulness, and coping skills.
• Provides clinical supervision and mentoring for counseling interns and practicum students.
• Supports training and professional development initiatives, including intern orientation.

Administrative

• Serves as a Consultant to the Crisis Management Team, as necessary.
• Keeps the Director of Counseling & Wellness informed of daily activities, problems, emergencies, and occurrences that affect university students.
• Prepares reports as requested by the Director of Counseling & Wellness and AVP of Student Life, including, but not limited to monthly, statistical, discipline, surveys, and graphs.
• Attends and participates in Student Life and university-wide meetings, retreats, and committees.
• Assists with the selection of student and professional staff as requested by the Director of Counseling & Wellness.
• Maintains confidentiality in dealing with students, parents, university faculty/staff, and the community.
• Serves as a Christian role model for faculty, staff, and students.
• Serves as a lead clinician in specific service areas (e.g. crisis response, outreach, or clinical training)
• Assists with data tracking, outcome assessment, and reporting for accreditation and institutional review processes.
• Represents Counseling & Wellness in university committees and cross- campus collaborations to promote mental health awareness and prevention initiatives.
• Assists with the oversight and management of the use of TimelyCare support services.
• Participates in Counseling & Wellness touchpoint presentation on awareness across the university campus. 

Professional Development

• Develops professionally and stays current on Student Life issues and trends that affect university students, particularly as they relate to mental health issues.
• Joins, attends, and participates in local, state, and national counseling conferences. 
• Conducts research and administers surveys of other counseling center professionals.
• Develops and maintains a network with counseling center professionals.
• Attends Counseling & Wellness monthly team meetings.
• Maintains active state licensure and stay current with professional standards and best practices in counseling and higher education mental health.
• Contributes to positive team culture through mentorship, collaboration, and open communication. 

Community Relations

• Recruits and evaluates community health partners that would serve as a referral for PBA students who require off-campus counseling. 
• Represents the University in a positive manner to parents, students, visitors, and the neighboring community through Christian conduct, behavior, and presentation on and off campus.
• Other duties as assigned. 

EDUCATION:

Master's degree in Counseling, Psychology, or Social Work required.

Professional certifications: Florida license in Mental Health Counseling, Marriage & Family, or Social Work, required. Florida Qualified Supervisor Status for Mental Health Counselors, required.

EXPERIENCE:

3 years of mental health counseling or marriage & family experience required; college level experience, preferred. 

ESSENTIAL COMPETENCIES (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities)

• Customer Service Orientation – Keeps internal and/or external key stakeholder(s), students, parents, faculty, staff and community partners in mind at all times.
• Professionalism – Displays a high level of professionalism, e.g., timeliness, reliability, communication, and work ethic.
• Christ-first Faith – Provides spiritual support to community members, including students, on their Christian faith journey.
• Adaptable/Flexibility – Ability to change or adjust to change.
• Analytical Thinking & Decision Making – Identifies and understands trends and/or issues, connects data points through analysis and logical conclusions/actionable strategies.
• Attention to Detail – Ability to efficiently and accurately focus on a specific task or number of tasks. Reviews details with a critical eye.
• Confidentiality – Maintains the necessary confidentiality and discretion required for the position.
• Develops Others – Ability to promote continuous improvement within teams and/or individuals.
• Effective Communication – Expresses ideas and information in a clear and concise manner both verbally and in writing to convey clear, well-articulated messaging across a wide variety of audiences.
• Establishes Trust – Gains the confidence of others by actions and words that promote being honest, forthcoming, and vulnerable.
• Leadership/Influence – Ability to motivate, coach and develop others, as well as influence a group of people to achieve common goals, and implement university strategies. Strong supervisory skills.
• Problem-solving – Anticipates, evaluates, diagnoses, and resolves problems in a systematic and fact-based manner.
• Self-development – Grow one’s self-awareness, abilities, skills, and/or talent.
• Teamwork & Collaboration – Creates a climate that fosters commitment to a common vision and shared values that promote cooperation and working together through trust and support of others both departmentally and cross-functionally.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Ability to work non-routine hours during certain times of the year.
• Ability to sit for prolonged periods of time.

Benefits & Perks 

Join a Christ-first university community committed to academic excellence, spiritual growth, and investing in the well-being of its employees. Palm Beach Atlantic University offers a competitive and comprehensive benefits package designed to support your health, financial well-being, professional growth, and work-life balance. 

Health, Wellness, and Retirement 

• Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance Options 
• Short-Term Disability, Long-Term Disability, and Employer-Paid Life Insurance 
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for confidential personal and work-life support 
• Wellness Program, including access to the Greene Complex Health & Fitness Center 
• Retirement Savings Plan with a 7.25% employer match 

Time Away from Work 

• Generous Paid Holiday Time Off, including Good Friday and Easter Monday; the day before and after Thanksgiving; and a two-week Christmas Break.  
• Vacation and Sick Leave 
• Paid Parental Leave 
• Spiritual Retreat Days 

Additional Benefits 

• Tuition Benefit for eligible full-time employees and their dependents for courses at PBA. 

Additional Employee Perks 

• Free parking 
• One complimentary meal per week in the Fraser Dining Hall 
• 10% discount at the PBA Campus Store 
• Commuter discounts for Brightline and Tri-Rail 
• Free admission to the Norton Museum of Art 

Salary : $58,000 - $60,000