College Affordability Advisor Succeed

Position Summary

uAspire College Affordability Advisors work directly with young people to help them navigate the process of finding and financing an affordable path to college. We primarily support students who are low-income and/or first generation college students. Currently, we are seeking to hire an advisor for our postsecondary (Succeed) team in the Greater Boston area. We support students through a combination of text message advising, Zoom meetings, and in-person/virtual events.

All advisors receive in-depth training on college affordability to successfully support students in key tasks such as financial aid form completion, understanding loans, and reviewing financial aid offers.

• Provide text-message and virtual meeting support based on uAspire’s college affordability curriculum to young people in our postsecondary program.
• Assist students in on-time completion of state, federal, and institutional financial aid forms.
• Maximize texting platform capabilities to foster strong advising relationships and rapport with students.
• Work collaboratively with staff from partner schools and community-based organizations to share pertinent information and strategize about student progress.
• Advocate for and coach students to engage with relevant individuals, offices, and resources to support their individual needs.
• Develop and implement creative approaches to drive student engagement with program text messages.
• Identify and maximize opportunities to engage students via other tech and communication means.
• Organize financial aid events with students and families in collaboration with school and community partners, and participate in several evening events per month (both in-person and virtual).

• Maintain detailed records in uAspire’s Salesforce database and texting platform to track student data and progress to program goals.
• Regularly review advisor performance data to monitor own progress to goals and pull pertinent Salesforce student data reports to inform outreach to students.
• Complete survey collection and other administrative responsibilities.

• Contribute to regionally specific research and resource gathering to improve training and knowledge for staff and promote efficiencies in our direct service to students.
• Facilitate occasional college affordability presentations and student events in collaboration with regional and program partners, and participate in several evening events per month (both in-person and virtual).
• Maintain positive and collaborative working relationships.
• Support Program leadership by assisting with special projects as assigned.

• Effective Communicator – Able to quickly process dense amounts of information and turn it into clear action steps for students, and translate student experience to best influence program design.
• Relationship Builder – Positively engages with students, teammates, and partners both internal and external to uAspire.
• Comfort with Technology – Comfortable learning and/or using platforms such as Salesforce, in addition to daily platforms such as Google Sheets, in order to efficiently and accurately complete work.
• Learning Orientation – Excited to become an expert on college affordability and contribute to a learning environment in both formal and informal ways with proactive enthusiasm.
• Mission-Driven – Knowledge of barriers faced by low-income, first generation college-bound students, and a successful track record of supporting high school and/or college populations.
• Postsecondary Degree or Equivalent Professional Experience – Some college-going experience is required; degree attainment is optional.

• Knowledge of local community desired (Greater Boston Area).
• Possess strong oral and written communication skills.
• Organizational skills and ability to plan in a fast-paced environment.
• Energetic, enthusiastic, and interested in learning within a growing, entrepreneurial organization.
• Ability to work flexible hours that will occasionally include some evenings and weekends.
• Proficiency with fundamental professional software:
  Google Mail/Docs, and Microsoft Office Suite –…