Director, Career and Experiential Learning

Since 1920, Mount St. Joseph University has provided an education that is based on interdisciplinary liberal arts and professional curricula emphasizing mission, values, integrity, and social responsibility. Faculty and staff deliver high-quality academics, hands-on experiential learning, and personalized attention to support student success. Join our award-winning team, recognized as a 'Best College to Work for,' and be part of a vibrant culture that places a premium on collaboration and belonging.

Purpose: The Director of the Career & Experiential Education Center (CEEC) develops, administers, and evaluates the policies and programs of the Career & Experiential Education Center, including the functional areas of career development, cooperative education, prior learning assessment, study abroad and study away, service learning, and civic engagement. The Director oversees and provides support to faculty, staff, students, employers, and community partners.

Reporting to the Vice Provost, the Director is responsible for building and sustaining a campus-wide career ecosystem, one that integrates career development into the student lifecycle, connects students and alumni meaningfully with employers, faculty, and each other, and positions the institution as a leader in demonstrating and communicating postsecondary value.

The Director leads a team of five staff members and oversees a portfolio that includes career advising, cooperative education, experiential learning, service learning and civic engagement, study abroad and study away, alumni and graduate student career services, employer relations, faculty relations, prior learning assessment, and strategic data collection and outcomes reporting. The Director serves as the institutional lead for study abroad and study away programming. The Director may maintain a direct caseload of career services clients and/or teach credit-bearing career courses as needed.


This is a leadership role for someone who brings both a deep knowledge of career development theory and practice and the ability to translate that knowledge into institutional strategy, staff development, and measurable outcomes.

Detailed Explanation:

Strategic Vision and Leadership:

• Determine short-term, annual, and long-range planning initiatives in consultation with the Vice Provost, administration, and CEEC staff members; lead and facilitate the CEEC's strategic plan in partnership with key institutional stakeholders.
• Implement a multi-year strategic vision for the CEEC grounded in career ecosystem principles, integrating career development across the curriculum, advising, experiential programs, and employer and alumni engagement.
• Champion a collaborative leadership culture within the CEEC, empowering staff to lead within their areas of expertise while maintaining shared accountability for institutional goals.
• Serve as the institutional voice for postsecondary value, representing the CEEC in conversations with senior leadership, faculty, boards, and external audiences about the career outcomes and ROI of a Mount St. Joseph University education.
• Build and sustain meaningful partnerships with academic departments, student services, faculty, and other key stakeholders to embed career development across the student lifecycle.
• Develop and implement a year-by-year undergraduate career advising framework that outlines developmentally appropriate milestones, activities, and touchpoints for students from first year through graduation, ensuring intentional, progressive career development is embedded across the undergraduate experience.
• Represent the CEEC and the University at regional and national professional associations, conferences, and convenings in career services, international education, and experiential education.
• Stay current with trends in career development, higher education, labor markets, and artificial intelligence as they affect career services delivery and student outcomes.
• Submit an Annual Report documenting CEEC activities, outcomes, and areas for continuous improvement.
• Serve on University committees as assigned and contribute to team effort by welcoming new and different work requirements and helping others accomplish related job results as needed.

Operational Management and Supervision:

• Provide direct supervision, mentorship, and professional development for five full-time staff members (Associate Director, three Assistant Directors, and an Administrative Assistant) and indirect oversight of student workers; initiate and encourage staff growth and development.
• Maintain supervisory responsibilities including hiring, performance management, and job description review; collaborate with the Vice Provost and Human Resources on personnel decisions.
• Conduct annual goal setting and performance evaluations for all CEEC staff members; establish clear performance expectations and facilitate regular one-on-one supervision.
• Assure financial viability of all programs; develop and administer an annual budget for all programs; write proposals supporting funding requests.
• Oversee and monitor CEEC grants to ensure goal attainment as well as accurate and timely reporting.
• Manage the CEEC budget, including allocation of resources across programming, technology, travel, and professional development.
• Oversee all CEEC use of technology systems, including Handshake, MountConnect, and related platforms, ensuring effective and efficient use for student engagement, employer relations, and data collection.
• Manage office operations, policies, and procedures to ensure equitable, accessible, and high-quality services for all student populations.
• Provide to administration and the university community current information about employment trends, developing career opportunities, impact on curriculum planning, and feedback concerning students' professional achievement.
• Serve as the strategic lead for alumni career engagement, building systems that connect alumni to current students as mentors, employers, and experiential learning partners.
• Oversee and supervise special projects as needed.
• Provide career coaching and advising to students and alumni as needed.

Experiential Learning, Co-op, Service Learning:

• Provide oversight for the University's service learning and civic engagement initiatives while supporting staff in the development and implementation of service learning programs and partnerships.
• Collaborate with the Assistant Director in developing partnerships with faculty, staff, and community organizations to expand curricular and co-curricular service-learning opportunities, community engagement experiences, and campus-wide service initiatives.
• Oversees the experiential education, co-op, and CED courses, providing strategic direction and operational support
• Assigns caseloads of students to relevant assistant directors for purposes of experiential learning processes
• Acts as lead data manager for cooperative education data which includes salary data, co-op site information, student information, etc.

Employer Relations:

• Serve as a senior institutional contact for employer partners, cultivating and maintaining relationships with regional, national, and global employers across industries relevant to Mount St. Joseph University's academic programs.
• Develop and nurture employer relationships via strategic marketing and relationship management efforts; oversee the development and execution of employer engagement strategies, including on-campus recruiting, career fairs, hiring events, employer information sessions, and co-op and internship partnerships.
• Convene meetings of the Employer Advisory Board at least annually; develop agendas, recruit members, and solicit input and involvement.
• Collaborate with the Assistant Director to build and sustain a robust employer relations program that connects students and alumni to meaningful employment and experiential learning opportunities.
• Develop and maintain partnerships with industry advisory boards, professional associations, and community organizations to expand the CEEC's employer network and support the institution's workforce development goals.
• Maintain partnership with professional organizations (e.g. NACE, NCDA, SOCHE) and contracted partners or vendors.
• Track and report on employer engagement activity and outcomes as part of the CEEC's broader data and outcomes strategy.

Faculty Relations:

• Build and sustain a structured faculty outreach approach that partners with faculty across disciplines to equip them with support resources, language, and tools to integrate career development into their courses, advising relationships, and departmental programming, serving as a bridge between academic and career education.
• Develop and lead a Faculty Career Champions program, recruiting and supporting a network of faculty representatives from across academic departments who serve as embedded advocates for career development, co-curricular engagement, and employer and alumni connections within their programs.

Study Abroad and Study Away:

• Serve as the institutional lead and primary administrator for study abroad and study away programming, including faculty-led programs, exchange agreements, and third-party provider partnerships, with direct oversight of a dedicated staff member responsible for day-to-day study abroad operations and student advising.
• Manage relationships with external study abroad providers, partner institutions, and relevant accreditation and compliance bodies.
• Integrate study abroad and study away experiences into the CEEC's career ecosystem framework, ensuring that global and domestic travel experiences are connected to students' career and professional identity development.
• Collaborate with faculty, the Registrar, Financial Aid, and other key campus partners to support seamless student participation in study abroad and study away opportunities.
• Oversee student advising, application processes, pre-departure preparation, re-entry programming, and risk management protocols for all study abroad and study away participants.
• Develop and oversee programming, including pre-departure and re-entry courses or workshops that support reflection and career integration.
• Oversee study abroad risk management and compliance, including emergency response, insurance, and travel safety, in coordination with campus partners, with clearly defined roles for program approval and crisis management.

Prior Learning Assessment:

• Serve as the institutional coordinator for Prior Learning Assessment (PLA), overseeing policies, processes, and student support for the evaluation and recognition of college-level learning acquired outside of traditional academic settings.
• Collaborate with the Registrar, Bursar, academic departments, and faculty to ensure consistent, equitable, and academically rigorous PLA review processes.
• Advise students on PLA pathways, including portfolio assessment, standardized exams, and military and professional training credit, connecting PLA to broader career development and degree completion planning.
• Track and report on PLA participation and outcomes, and contribute to institutional efforts to expand access to PLA as a tool for student success and degree attainment.
• Position PLA as a strategy to improve access, reduce time-to-degree, and support diverse learner populations while maintaining academic rigor.

Strategic Data Collection and Reporting:

• Develop and maintain a comprehensive outcomes data strategy that tracks student participation in experiential learning, co-op, study abroad, career advising, and employer engagement across the student lifecycle.
• Establish and assess student learning outcomes that flow from participation in CEEC programs and services; conduct ongoing assessments to identify areas of strength and weakness and submit assessment data as requested.
• Lead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of the CEEC's First Destination Survey (FDS) program, in alignment with NACE standards and institutional reporting requirements.
• Translate career outcomes data into compelling, accessible narratives for multiple stakeholder audiences, including students and families, faculty, academic leadership, boards, and external partners, to advance institutional conversations about postsecondary value.
• Collaborate with Institutional Research, Academic Affairs, Admissions, and Marketing & Communications to integrate career outcomes data into broader institutional reporting and storytelling.
• Track and report on alumni outcomes as part of the CEEC's broader longitudinal outcomes data strategy.
• Synthesize career-related research, gather data, and produce reports to share with administration and the university community (e.g., employment trends, co-op employer updates, salary reports, trends in AI, etc.).
• Use data to drive programmatic decision-making, resource allocation, and continuous improvement within the CEEC.
• Contribute to national and regional career services research and benchmarking efforts, including participation in relevant surveys and consortia.

Primary Contacts: CEEC staff; Vice Provost; employers; faculty; staff; students; university-wide staff; vendors; student workers; and other members of the broader university community.

Supervision Exercised: Professional staff and support staff members, cooperative education students, and student workers.

Supervision Received: Works under general direction toward broadly defined objectives; refers specific problems to the Vice Provost when clarification or interpretation of organizational policies is involved.

Required

• Master's degree in higher education administration, student affairs, counseling, international education, or a closely related field.
• Minimum of five (5) years of related experience, including at least two (2) years of supervisory or team leadership experience.
• Certification in career counseling or career coaching (e.g., CMCS, BCC).
• Demonstrated experience in both career services and education abroad administration.
• Demonstrated knowledge of career development theory, first destination survey methodology, and ROI and outcomes reporting practices in career services.
• Experience with career services technology platforms (e.g., Handshake or equivalent) and proficiency in the use of Microsoft Office and Canva.
• Strong written and oral communication skills, including the ability to present data-informed narratives to diverse audiences and demonstrated strength in public speaking.
• Experience teaching career development courses at the undergraduate or graduate level.
• Experience in strategic planning within a higher education environment.
• Commitment to the mission of Mount St. Joseph University.

Preferred

• Terminal degree (PhD or EdD) in educational leadership, higher education, student affairs, career development, international education, or a related field - or a minimum of fifteen (15) years of relevant professional experience in lieu of a terminal degree.
• Demonstrated proficiency in designing and using data collection and reporting systems for career outcomes, including longitudinal tracking of graduate employment and further education.
• Familiarity with cooperative education program administration and NACE standards.
• Experience building employer relations programs.
• Experience with study abroad or study away program administration, including risk management, provider partnerships, and compliance.
• Familiarity with Prior Learning Assessment policies, practices, and student advising.
• A publishing record on topics related to career services, experiential learning, postsecondary value, or international education, demonstrating scholarly engagement with the field and the ability to represent Mount St. Joseph University as a scholar-practitioner at the local, regional, and national level.

Benefits
Mount St. Joseph University offers a wide array of benefit options, to meet the financial, educational, health, and wellness needs of you and your family. Eligibility varies by position and FTE.

• Tuition Remission for you and your family.
• 403b Retirement
• Excellent benefits including medical, employer HSA contributions, dental, vision, life, parental leave.
• Generous PTO.
• 16 paid holidays.
• Competitive salaries.
• Opportunity to work in a dynamic and collaborative educational environment.
• Professional development opportunities.

To apply, please upload a cover letter, resume, and contact information with three professional references via Paycom.

A review of resumes will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled.

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Mount St. Joseph University is an Equal Opportunity Employer