Assistant Vice President & Director of Financial Aid
Assistant Vice President and Director of Financial Aid
Duquesne University seeks an innovative, forward-thinking, and inclusive leader to serve as its next Assistant Vice President and Director of Financial Aid (AVP). As an essential member of the Senior Vice President for Enrollment Management’s team, the AVP will lead a financial aid office committed to supporting the transformational educational experience offered to Duquesne’s students. The AVP will have opportunities to develop a comprehensive and strategic financial aid program, build a strong team, and collaborate with exceptional campus partners across the University.
Duquesne was founded by the Spiritans as a Catholic college for Pittsburgh's poor immigrants. In 1911, it became the state's first Catholic university. For the early part of its history, Duquesne was defined by its Pittsburgh campus and retained the character of a locally focused, primarily undergraduate institution. Today, Duquesne is recognized on the national stage as a comprehensive research institution of excellent quality offering a strong core of the sciences and liberal arts combined with a robust array of professional school offerings, including a new college of medicine. Duquesne ranked in the top tier of schools for the 15th consecutive year in the annual U.S. News & World Report Best National Universities rankings at 151st for 2022-2023. Money, Forbes, and U.S. News consistently rank Duquesne as a best-value institution. For a comprehensive listing of recent accolades, please visit www.duq.edu/about/fast-facts
The University embraces a broad mission and serves a variety of learners in multiple contexts. This private institution with a current total enrollment of more than 8,100 students (roughly 5,100 undergraduate and 3,000 graduate and professional students) educates traditional and non-traditional students through small classes, innovative instruction, and rigorous coursework. Through its ten schools, including the new College of Osteopathic Medicine, the University offers degree programs at the baccalaureate, professional, master's, and doctoral levels while also supporting an ambitious research profile.
The Financial Aid Office is an integral part of the Enrollment Management Group (EMG), which includes Undergraduate Admissions, Graduate Enrollment Services, Financial Aid, Enrollment Marketing and Communications, Enrollment Operations and Student Services, Military and Veterans, and Campus Visit Experience and Enrollment Event Management. The EMG is responsible for the strategy and management of all facets of the University’s enrollment. The EMG’s constant focus is to meet or exceed enrollment and net revenue goals and collaboratively and consistently enroll, support, retain, and graduate the ideal number, academic quality, and diversity of students that will provide the University with the human and financial resources required to be competitive in the higher education marketplace while also being true to mission.
The AVP position reports to the Senior Vice President for Enrollment Management (SVPEM). The AVP serves as a crucial member of the (EMG) leadership team and will be charged with providing an exceptional level of customer service to students and families throughout the financial aid process, recruiting and retaining a strong team of professionals, optimizing the current financial aid systems, and working collaboratively with other student-facing areas across the University. The AVP leads the student financial services team in strategy as well as in complex daily operations.
The position requires strong project management skills, outstanding personnel oversight and mentoring, sound independent judgment, diligence, attention to detail, ability to support cross-functional relationships, and the capacity to develop strategy from research and analytics. The University seeks financial aid leaders with noted achievements in growing enrollments and leveraging aid to enhance both access and institutional resources, demonstrated successes working with partners on retention and persistence to graduation efforts, and impeccable compliance records.
The ideal AVP will be student-centered, collaborative, intellectually curious, and solution-seeking. Successful candidates will have a working knowledge of financial aid and/or enrollment systems. Experience with the Ellucian Banner ERP System is highly preferred. Candidates of choice will embrace the University’s mission and understand that it is implemented through commitments to academic excellence, a spirit of service, moral and spiritual values, sensitivity to world concerns, and an ecumenical campus community. A bachelor’s degree is required for this position while a master’s degree is preferred.
This is a full-time position that will be performed on-site in Pennsylvania with established policies for some remote work as well. Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience and includes a generous benefits package. The AVP of Financial Aid will enjoy a number of family-friendly benefits including family tuition benefits, course auditing, and tuition exchange; a generous vacation leave policy including 22 paid vacation days after first year of employment and 21 paid holidays and holy days of obligation CY 2024; up to six paid family sick days per year; paid maternity and parental leave, and an array of professional development and learning opportunities to support career growth.
THE PROCESS OF CANDIDACY
The University is currently reviewing candidates and will continue until the position is filled. Applications should include a complete résumé and a letter of candidacy that responds to the agenda for leadership and the desired attributes for the AVP outlined in the search profile at this link: https://diversifiedsearchgroup.com/search/20753-duquesne-university-assistant-vice-president-and-director-of-financial-aid/ For best consideration, all applications, nominations, and confidential inquiries should be sent as soon as possible to:
Julie E. Tea, Managing Director
Brian Bustin, Senior Associate
Storbeck Search
DuquesneAVP@storbecksearch.com
Duquesne University was founded in 1878 by its sponsoring religious community, the Congregation of the Holy Spirit. Duquesne University is Catholic in its mission and ecumenical in spirit. Motivated by its Catholic identity, Duquesne values equality of opportunity both as an educational institution and as an employer.
