Associate Head of College Counseling

Description

Saint Mary's School is an independent, Episcopal, college-preparatory, boarding and day school for girls in grades 9-12. The School is the fourth oldest girls' boarding and day school in the country and is located on a beautiful 23-acre campus in the heart of Raleigh, within walking distance to many restaurants and attractions the City of Oaks has to offer. Raleigh-Durham, NC is ranked as one of the best places to live in the United States by US News & World Report.

Saint Mary's School is offering a unique and exciting opportunity to work on a beautiful historic campus beginning with the 2026-27 year. This benefited position has the opportunity to include campus housing provided by the School where Residential Faculty members can participate in a vibrant campus life with other families and students and enjoy meals in the dining hall.

The Associate Head of College Counseling works closely with other members of the College Counseling department to design engaging learning opportunities for Saint Mary's students so they can more effectively and confidently navigate the college search and application process. Additionally, the Associate Head is a lifelong learner with a growth mindset who stays current with the landscape of college admissions.


Responsibilities

As part of a highly collaborative team reporting to the Head of College Counseling, the Associate Head will:

• Counsel, support, and guide a diverse group of approximately 25-30 students in each class through academic planning and the college search and application processes.


• Maintain expertise in understanding the complexities of college admission and guide students with a supportive, optimistic, and thoughtful approach.


• Exhibit strong interest in a student-centered approach to college counseling with a clear commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

• Engage in learning opportunities to research colleges, admission policies, and national trends in the fields of college counseling and college admissions.


• Write compelling and incisive letters of recommendation in support of college applications, enrichment programs, and scholarship applications, for all grade levels as needed.

• Actively engage as a co-teacher of Junior and Senior Colloquium classes and encourage students to think deeply about their progression of personal and authentic development from high school to college.

Travel on behalf of Saint Mary's to attend professional conferences, college-sponsored events, and individual campus visits to cultivate relationships with college counseling and admission professionals.

Provide nuanced college counseling perspective when collaborating with various school constituents.


• Help coordinate and host college admission representative meetings and special programs.

• Maintain a strong working knowledge on all functions of college counseling software (SCOIR).

• Provide council to students on academic planning and course scheduling.

• Serve as School Test Coordinator for PSAT, SAT, ACT, and AP exams.

• Manage Senior Projects Internships.

Additional Responsibilities

• Serve as an academic advisor to a small cohort of Saint Mary's School students.

• Provide expert academic advising for students of all grade levels.

• Prepare and deliver high quality and compelling communication through various modalities, including public speaking, Colloquium classes, workshops, written communication, and presentations.


• Attend meetings with parents, students, and faculty as needed.

• Assist registrar with course registration, scheduling, course conflict resolution, etc.

• Serve as a supportive resource for teachers and advisors in their work with students

Perform other duties as assigned by the Head of College Counseling and school leadership.

• Support Saint Mary's School and its leadership through words and actions.

Perform weekend and evening responsibilities to support the life of the residential community and the academic program as required by your position or requested by your manager/supervisor.

• Be a role model by demonstrating a commitment to ongoing professional learning and building capacity in the college counseling team for excellence through the facilitation of ongoing professional learning. Actively chart progress through regular conversations about professional growth plans.

Requirements

Requirements

• A Bachelor's degree is required, advanced degree is preferred.


• Five or more years of experience in college counseling at a secondary school level or in college admissions. Candidates with an equivalent combination of education and school/counseling experience may also be considered.

• Commitment to building a culture of inclusivity, balance, and wellness for all students.

Excellent communication skills, both oral and written.

Detail-oriented with outstanding organizational and time-management skills.

• Excellent problem solving and critical thinking skills.

Ability to use applicable computer programs and databases and adept at learning new tools.

Ability to work collaboratively and diplomatically with students, parents, faculty, staff, and administration in support of the mission of the school.

Additional preference for candidates with previous testing coordination experience.

Physical Requirements and Work Environment

• Ability to sit, stand, talk, hear, and interact with students, parents, staff and visitors, sometimes for extended period of times.

• Generally, work in standard office conditions and climate.

• Works in a fast-paced environment dealing with a wide variety of challenges, deadlines, and a varied and diverse array of contacts.

• Works at a desk on a telephone and/or in front of a computer screen for extended periods of time.

• Positive energy, patience, and a sense of humor to work effectively with high school students and their families, especially during potentially stressful situations.


• Be able to occasionally lift up to 30 pounds.


• Standing, bending, reaching, and moving about to coordinate work.

• Ability to walk up and down three (3) flights of stairs daily.

• Ability to drive and/or ride in school-owned vehicles, including a 14-passenger bus.

This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by an employee in this position. Employees are required to follow other job-related instructions and to perform other job-related duties requested by those authorized to give instructions or assignments.