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Vice Provost for Enrollment Management
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Position Number: 5868186
Location: San Diego, CA
Position Type: Admissions/Enrollment

Vice Provost for Enrollment Management

Position Title & Department: Vice Provost for Enrollment Management; Provost

Posting #: 5111

Department Description:
The Division of Enrollment Management includes the Office of Undergraduate Admission and the Office of Financial Aid. The Office of Undergraduate Admission is the central office responsible for the recruitment, assessment, and yield of incoming first-year, transfer and international students. The office employs a holistic review process and renders decisions for incoming freshmen in March of each year and for transfers between April and July. The office also oversees the Torero Promise, a guaranteed admissions program that creates a direct pathway for students in San Diego's and San Bernardino's diocesan high schools to attend USD.

The Office of Financial Aid guides students through the financial aid process and evaluates each student's eligibility for need based financial assistance. The institution believes that cost should not be a barrier to a top-notch education and is committed to providing students with the best financial aid available. At USD 78% of students receive some financial aid with an average award of $39,500. The institution awards approximately $185 million in undergraduate financial aid and $50 million in graduate financial aid annually.

Undergraduate Admission at USD is centralized, and students do not apply to specific degree programs. At the graduate level, each school or college is responsible for setting enrollment strategy, understanding capacity, and working with prospective students as they navigate the admission process.

University Description:
The University of San Diego (USD), a contemporary Catholic university, grounded in the liberal arts seeks a strategic, collaborative and entrepreneurial leader to serve as its inaugural Vice Provost for Enrollment Management (VPEM). Serving as a key member of a highly collaborative President's strategic leadership team, the VPEM will have the opportunity to craft a new strategic enrollment plan, shaping institutional strategy while forging a forward-thinking, data-driven, nimble, more integrated, and sustainable approach to enrollment management, across undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs. The new VPEM will join an exceptional leadership team, led by President Jim Harris III, committed to making more strategic investments in the enrollment operation and will work closely with the Deans who are eager for a more cohesive strategy across campus in support of the university's mission and strategic goals.

USD is set at the edge of an international gateway on a campus that is consistently ranked among the nation's most beautiful in sunny San Diego. With more than 9,100 students from 85 countries and 50 states, USD was named among the Wall Street Journal's Top 50 Best Colleges in the U.S. in 2024. Students are drawn to USD for its small class sizes, compassionate culture, and unique learning opportunities that prepare graduates to lead successful and fulfilling lives after graduation. More than two thirds of undergraduates enhance their studies with an international experience, and students from all disciplines engage in research and scholarly activities. The university is on the cusp of becoming a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and has seen growth among students of color for eight consecutive years. The USD campus is residential, with 93% of freshman and 43% of all undergraduates living on campus, and student life is vibrant, with 18 national sororities and fraternities, 17 NCAA Division 1 teams, and a wide range of organizations and student activities.

Detailed Description:
The VPEM will serve as the institution's chief enrollment officer and will ensure that the University has a comprehensive enrollment strategy where all related processes are optimally structured and effectively leveraged and managed. They will spearhead the assessment of current undergraduate admissions and financial aid practices and policies with the intent to enhance and evolve USD's approach to the field, ensuring that the university competes well with peers while achieving institution-wide goals and priorities. Academic leadership at USD are eager to partner with the division, and the VPEM will work closely with the Deans to provide education on enrollment trends, identify opportunities for new program development, encourage brand and messaging consistency, and promote the standardization of best University of San Diego Page 2 of 8 practices for recruitment activities that occur within the colleges. The VPEM will also bring a deep and sophisticated understanding of data analytics and predictive modeling and will work with the Chief Information Officer to identify and implement a new Student Information System (SIS), in an effort to modernize and more effectively leverage data in the admission and yield process. To be successful, the VPEM will be capable of directing high-level strategy, and engaging in the many fundamental pieces of the enrollment function at a private institution while addressing the following:

Design and implement an overarching and sustainable enrollment strategy to meet institutional goals
Partner with academic leadership to integrate recruitment and marketing strategies with broader institutional enrollment goals
Build a strong data and measurement function while leading the implementation of new enrollment technology
Develop, empower, and unify USD's enrollment division

Reporting to the Provost, with very direct communication with the President regularly, the VPEM is responsible for planning and leading broad-based initiatives to recruit, admit, and enroll an academically gifted, diverse, and talented cohort of new first-year, transfer and international students. Financially, like many private independent universities, USD is tuition dependent and currently 94% of the operating budget is derived from tuition/fees, housing and meal plans. The VPEM is a strong steward of university resources and strategically leverages financial aid to maximize net tuition revenue and effectively manage the discount rate. In collaboration with university leadership, the VPEM sets enrollment targets and financial aid strategy and is responsible for meeting annual headcount and net tuition revenue goals. They also work closely with the Vice President of Student Affairs and other offices across campus to support the successful transition and retention of an ever-more-diverse student body.

The VPEM has direct oversight of Undergraduate Admission and Financial Aid and provides strategic direction and consultation to the academic Deans related to Graduate Admission. The VPEM works closely with the Torero Connect and the Registrar, who are now housed in another area of the Provost's portfolio.

Key Opportunities and Challenges for the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management:

With a campus that is consistently ranked as the most beautiful in the nation and is committed to creating a culture of enrollment management being everyone's responsibility, the VPEM will build on a solid foundation, spearheading new strategies and modernizing the enrollment function to ensure that USD remains competitive in its pursuit of the next generation of changemakers. In doing so, they will address the following opportunities and challenges:

Design and implement an overarching and sustainable enrollment strategy to meet institutional goals

To achieve both short-and long-term enrollment goals, the VPEM will lead the crafting and implementation of a comprehensive enrollment plan that aligns with broader institutional mission and values and employs enrollment management best practices. The university has enjoyed several years of enrollment success, but recent cycles have been more challenging as the institution navigates an increasingly competitive marketplace and the need to employ modernized recruiting strategies and practices. While the beauty of the USD campus and the institution's reputation attract significant interest among prospective students, the VPEM will use proactive strategies to develop new markets, engage new audiences and shape the composition of each class in alignment with institutional goals related to academic quality, geographic diversity, racial and ethnic diversity, and net tuition revenue. The institution has aspirations to grow and diversify its transfer and international enrollment, and San Diego, California provides a favorable landscape to grow both populations, with many California community colleges nearby and throughout the State. The VPEM will lead efforts to strategically target students from these populations, partner with academic leadership to create and augment articulation agreements, and build on the recent success of new programs developed in the graduate space. The VPEM will conduct a review of financial aid policies related to the distribution of both merit and need based aid. They will ensure that financial aid leveraging strategies and the institutional approach to aid allocation align with the institutional goals and mission, while also optimizing net tuition revenue. While the VPEM's primary charge is recruiting and enrolling students, they will work closely with stakeholders across campus to ensure that students are well supported once they arrive at USD. The VPEM will work with staff and faculty across the organization, including the HSI Advisory Committee, to ensure that the appropriate infrastructure is in place to support an increasingly diverse student body.

Partner with academic leadership to integrate recruitment and marketing strategies with broader institutional enrollment goals

The VPEM will forge collaborative relationships with academic Deans and leadership to collectively incorporate college- and discipline-specific goals into a more comprehensive institutional enrollment strategy. Through close relationships and strong communication, the VPEM will ensure that each program has well defined enrollment targets. Further, the VPEM will work with school leadership to tailor and segment messaging to their specific audiences, while ensuring that consistent institutional messaging is employed and that brand standards are upheld in both centralized and college specific marketing materials to more effectively recruit students. It will be important for the VPEM to provide input, feedback, and enrollment area expertise to academic leaders across campus about the marketability of USD's current program portfolio, while working collaboratively to identify areas for new program development to help the institution sharpen its offerings and meet prospective students' needs, while keeping the institution's mission at the forefront.

Build a strong data and measurement function while leading the implementation of new enrollment technology

With a strong comprehension of the national and regional enrollment management landscape, the VPEM will utilize data across all functions of the role. They will bring a deep and sophisticated understanding of data analytics and predictive modeling to enhance the enrollment operation and to guide decision making both on the ground and at the strategic level for all recruiting, financial aid, and marketing efforts. The Undergraduate Admission Office currently uses Banner, an in-house system, while increasingly relying upon Salesforce to read applications and track student communication. In partnership with the CIO, the VPEM will oversee the migration to a new cloud-based SIS, and will play a central role in the product selection, review of business processes, implementation, testing, and training of the admission and financial aid teams. They will work closely with the CIO to build out functionality and expand the reach of the new system, while creating efficiencies, and compiling data analytics for transparent, regular communication with the Deans and university leadership.

Develop, empower, and unify USD's enrollment division around a strategic vision

The VPEM will inherit a strong team in Undergraduate Admission and Financial Aid and will work to evolve and unite those offices around a new and forward-thinking enrollment strategy and vision through team building, professional development, and process improvement. They will promote excellence, emphasize adaptability, and ensure that staff have the resources they need to be successful in their roles. The new VPEM will evaluate current practices, policies, and the organizational structure with an eye toward providing outstanding service to prospective students. They will bring an awareness of prevailing trends in higher education, allowing the enrollment team to recalibrate strategies when necessary and maintain a nimble approach to meeting enrollment goals. They will be a strong advocate, ensuring the appropriate resources to meet enrollment goals, and mentor for the team. The VPEM will be sure to leverage experts on staff who possess institutional knowledge while building community and a culture of continuous and sustainable improvement.

Background check: Successful completion of a pre-employment background check.

Degree Verification Requirement: Persons offered employment in this position will be required to provide official education transcripts for degree verification purposes.

Job Requirements:
Qualifications:

The following qualifications represent the broad set of skills and personal qualities deemed important for success as the inaugural VPEM. While no candidate will embody every quality, ideal candidates will bring many of the following professional qualifications and attributes:

Experience with successful strategic enrollment management assessment and planning.
Current knowledge of best practices in enrollment marketing, recruitment, and communication strategies, as well as a firm understanding of demographic trends and how to optimize them to achieve enrollment goals across disciplines and colleges.
Experience with strategically awarding financial aid and scholarships to meet enrollment goals while ensuring financial stability.
In-depth experience with data-driven analyses of enrollment information including modeling and forecasting as a basis for broader institutional decision-making.
Demonstrated commitment to promoting access, diversity, and academic excellence.
Ability to maintain effective and highly collaborative working relationships across a decentralized university and to facilitate institutional change in a collegial environment.
Experience with Student Information Systems (SIS) and with enrollment-related Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems. Experience with migrating to a cloud-based SIS and with complex change management is highly desirable.
Demonstrated energy, drive, and initiative, and a track record of building and maintaining strong, trusting relationships.
Unwavering commitment to mentorship, professional development, and team building.
Excellent collaborative, relational, and interpersonal communication skills with a high level of transparency.
A proven capacity for decisive, highly skilled, creative, and courageous leadership and strategic thinking.
Exceptional capacity to listen and for both oral and written communication; an effective public presence reflecting comfort and skill as a spokesperson.
A record that demonstrates the highest degree of integrity, transparency, honesty, and fairness.
A bachelor's degree is required; a graduate degree is highly desirable.

Posting Salary:
The anticipated hiring range for this role is $275,000-$325,000. This range takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions, including but not limited to experience, skills, knowledge, abilities, education, licensure and certifications, and other organizational needs. USD offers a robust and comprehensive benefits program for its employees in order to attract and retain individuals that will carry out its mission. Salary offers are determined based on the final candidate's qualifications and experience.

Excellent Benefits:

The University of San Diego offers a very competitive benefits package including; medical, dental, vision, a retirement contribution given to you by the University, and access to on-campus Fitness Centers. Please visit the benefits section of our website to view all of the perks and benefits that USD has to offer. USD: Human Resources: Benefits

The salary range provided in this posting reflects what we reasonably expect to pay for this position. Actual compensation offered or earned is dependent on experience, education and other factors including departmental budget.

Special Application Instructions:
Screening of complete applications will begin immediately and continue until the completion of the search process. Inquiries, nominations, referrals, and resumes/CVs with cover letters should be sent via the Isaacson, Miller website for the search: https://www.imsearch.com/open-searches/university-san-diego/vice-provost-enrollment-management Electronic submission of materials is required.

Additional Details:
Hours: 37.5 hours per week

Closing date: Open until filled

Note: External job postings will be up for at least three days. After that time, applications will be reviewed by the hiring manager/committee throughout the posting period. A candidate may be selected at any time which could then close this posting on a date earlier than listed.

The University of San Diego is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion and is especially interested in candidates who can contribute to the diversity and excellence of the campus community.

The University of San Diego is a smoking and tobacco-free campus. For more information, visit www.sandiego.edu/smokefree.

Advertised: December 12, 2024
Applications close: Open until filled

To apply, visit https://jobs.sandiego.edu/cw/en-us/job/496885/vice-provost-for-enrollment-management