Associate Director, Investments

Role Description

As the Associate Director of Investments, you will play a critical role in shaping the College Board’s long-term business strategy. Your work will directly influence how we expand access to education for millions of students. You will work on important strategic initiatives and develop financial analysis that supports key decisions related to investments, M&A transactions, and strategic partnerships. You will also be responsible for growing the College Board’s impact investment fund.

This role offers long-term upward mobility at College Board, but also positions you as a strong candidate for a top MBA program after 2-3 years (many former Associate Directors have gone this route).

• Advance our M&A strategy that we hope will yield tremendous impact not only for the organization but for our members and students. (60%)
• Research education sectors, develop landscape assessment, and analyze and understand trends to identify new areas of growth for the College Board.
• Analyze potential acquisition targets and develop preliminary strategic rationale and risk assessment.
• Develop analytical frameworks and complex financial models, including company projections, customer analysis, company valuation, and financial return analysis.
• Participate in financial due diligence of target companies.
• Work closely with senior leaders from Finance, Strategy, Talent, Technology, and Legal to advance transactions through College Board’s approval process.
• Create effective presentation materials for senior management and Board members.
• Play a key role in the overall project management and execution of acquisitions.
• Grow our Impact Investment Portfolio (40%):
• Source investment opportunities for the College Board’s growing impact investment fund via industry research and meetings with Edtech investors and entrepreneurs.
• Participate in due diligence process to evaluate mission impact potential, financial return, and strategic benefits of investments in early-stage education technology companies.
• Lead all aspects of the financial analysis to evaluate investment opportunities.
• Support portfolio management and reporting process for impact investment portfolio.
• Prepare investment memos and participate in Investment Committee approval meetings.
• Research sectors and companies in the education technology sector and prepare summaries of key insights and market intelligence for executive leadership.
• Collaborate with Strategy and Program leadership to drive partnership opportunities that advance the College Board's mission and strategic goals.

Qualifications

• A Bachelor's degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics or related technical field
• Minimum of 2 years of experience in financial analysis, in investment banking or a corporate development role
• Extensive experience in financial modeling
• Strong analytical and quantitative skills
• Ability to succinctly summarize complex financial analysis and present key findings to senior management
• Strong understanding of corporate finance and investments
• Exceptional attention to detail
• Strong communication skills and ability to interact with all levels of management
• Project management skills and ability to prioritize and independently manage multiple time-sensitive projects
• Proficient research skills
• Advanced MS Excel, Powerpoint, and Word skills
• Prior M&A experience is a plus
• A strong interest in expanding educational opportunity for all students
• The ability to travel 3-5 times a year to College Board offices or on behalf of College Board business

Requirements

• A passion for expanding educational and career opportunities and mission-driven work
• Authorization to work in the United States for any employer
• Curiosity and enthusiasm for emerging technologies, with a willingness to experiment with and adopt new AI-driven solutions and a comfort learning and applying new digital tools independently and proactively
• Clear and concise communication skills, written and verbal
• A learner's mindset and a commitment to growth: welcoming diverse perspectives, giving and receiving timely, respectful feedback, and continuously improving through iterative learning and user input
• A drive for impact and excellence: solving complex problems, making data-informed decisions, prioritizing what matters most, and continuously improving through learning, user input, and external benchmarking
• A collaborative and empathetic approach: working across differences, fostering trust, and contributing to a culture of shared success

Benefits

• A meaningful career, a supportive team, and a comprehensive package designed to help you thrive
• A Thoughtful Approach to Compensation
• The hiring range for this role is $85,000–$130,000/year
• We adjust salaries by location to ensure fairness, no matter where you live
• Open, transparent conversations about compensation, benefits, and what it’s like to work at College Board throughout your hiring process