Director Financial Aid

Overview

The Director of Financial Aid is responsible for overseeing campus financial aid operations, including loan default management and student account activities. This role ensures compliance with federal, state, and institutional policies while delivering a student-centered experience that supports retention and success. Leads a high-performing team, the Director provides guidance to students and families on financial aid options, collaborates with internal departments and external agencies, and develops and delivers strategies to enhance financial aid delivery and operational excellence.


What We Offer

Pay Range: $80-107K

Location: Long Beach, CA

What We Offer:

• Competitive Insurance : Health, vision, and dental coverage for you and your dependents
• Health Plan Enrollment : Eligibility starts first of the month following completing one full month of employment
• Paid Time Off : Competitive paid time off programs for employees (Vacation, Sick, Flexible)
• Retirement Matching : 50% match on the first 6% of your contributions after 90 days
• Paid Parental Leave : 4 weeks of paid leave for both birthing and non-birthing parents to bond with a new baby
• Pet Insurance : Competitive coverage for your furry family members through ASPCA
• Tuition Waiver : Enjoy a tuition waiver after 6 months of employment for you AND your immediate family offered

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage campus financial aid operations, ensuring compliance with federal, state, and institutional regulations
• Hire, train, supervise, and evaluate financial aid staff, fostering a positive, student-focused environment
• Oversee the financial aid and student account administration of funding programs, including grants, loans, scholarships, and work-study opportunities
• Provide financial aid and literacy guidance to students and families throughout the student journey.
• Collaborate with Admissions, Student Services, Registrar, and other departments to effectively support students
• Drive a culture of integrity and accountability to ensure compliance with internal policies and external agency regulations
• Focus on increasing student satisfaction through streamlined and effective financial aid operations
• Continually improve operational efficiencies to ensure accuracy and compliance with all regulations
• Prioritize optimizing delivery mechanisms to support seamless financial aid processing and administration
• Facilitate regular, meaningful two-way communication to achieve productive agreement and solution by defining objectives, addressing issues, and removing potential obstacles for all parties
• Determine trends and key metrics to evaluate effectiveness of initiatives and support to business goals and adjust strategies accordingly
• Identify complex problems and review related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions

• Establish/maintain a high performance team of professional, motivated and engaged staff utilizing effective training, performance management and career-development activities while leading them to achieve established business results and performance metrics
• Recognizes and rewards employee contributions and achievements
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications

Education / Experience
• Bachelor's degree in finance, accounting, business or a related field (required) - Master's in related field (preferred)

• Ten (10) years' professionally relevant experience within a post-secondary school (required)
• Five (5) years in a supervisory role (required)
• Title IV proprietary education experience (required)

• Five (5) years' experience in Title IV Administration (preferred)
• Must not currently be in default on any Federal Student Loans or go into default on any Federal Student Loans while employed

Skills
• Proficiency in managing financial aid programs and budgets
• Proficient in financial aid management software and systems
• Strong knowledge of federal and state funding programs, including Veterans Affairs, loans, grants, and scholarships
• Change management skills and able to lead the team through continuous process improvement
• Exceptional listening and conflict resolution skills
• Understand the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making

Abilities
• Ability to stay current with best practices and trends in federal and state financial aid regulations, particularly Title IV compliance

• Communicate, think, learn, and reason
• Use computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to process transactions, store documents, enter data, or perform assigned tasks
• Safely ambulate and/or maneuver when on-site at Company locations
• Demonstrate and utilize active listening, inductive reasoning, information ordering and category flexibility
• Ability to use good judgment, problem-solving and decision-making skills
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and manage sensitive information with discretion
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment where deadlines are essential and multiple projects are worked simultaneously
• Ability to gain, understand and apply information and data as it relates essential functions of the position
• Ability to foster long-term relationships with stakeholders

About Us
It's all about the reputation. 55+ years of experience, trusted by 35+ industry leading brands, 16 campuses, 5 technical schools. But it's not all about the numbers. Here at Universal Technical Institute and its family of schools, we care about YOU. We care about making a change in the lives of our employees and our students. We're on a mission to expand our reach and increase our impact, one life at a time and that starts with yours...Come and be a part of our legacy!