Academic Advocate

Unleash YOUR Potential With Us

As a next-generation public research institute and Forbes-ranked top employer in Florida, we are an inclusive community of thinkers, doers, creators, innovators, healers, and leaders striving to shape the future and solve the world’s most challenging problems. No matter what your role is, when you join Knight Nation, you’ll play an integral role in pushing us forward to become among the most impactful universities in the country. You’ll be met with opportunities to connect and collaborate with uniquely talented faculty, staff, and students across 13 colleges and multiple campuses and regional locations. That means greater challenges to tackle, more meaningful opportunities to grow, and rewarding experiences that go beyond a paycheck. We’re seeking qualified, motivated individuals who will help UCF fulfill its mission in unleashing the potential of every individual, enriching the human experience through inclusion, discovery, and innovation; and propelling broad-based prosperity for the many communities we serve.

Student Success and Advising:

Student Success and Advising creates opportunities for undergraduate students to thrive by providing a system of support to foster academic success, retention, and timely degree attainment. Driven by equitable outcomes for all students, innovation, and excellence, we assist students in achieving their academic and personal goals. Working collaboratively with the colleges and campus partners, a holistic student-centered approach is utilized to empower students to strive for academic achievement and individual growth.

The Opportunity:

The Academic Advocate’s main role is to enhance persistence, progression, and completion of undergraduate students, aligned with the university’s strategic goals and targeted metrics. The Advocates will contribute to the implementation and improvement of policies and processes, analyzing data to identify obstacles to student retention and academic advancement.

The Advocates will engage in outreach efforts to support at-risk students, collaborate with university colleges and academic advisors along with various university departments such as the Registrar, Financial Aid, and Housing. The Academic Advocate will work directly with undergraduate students, offering assistance with academic plans, course schedules, major selection, and career goals. Their focus will be on students facing challenges related to persistence, academic probation, or students at risk of not graduating.

Responsibilities:

• Serves as the case manager for a specific cohort of undergraduate students. Develops and implements effective retention programs and early outreach plans to enhance persistence and completion of students. Responds to student referrals and researches student cases that are referred by campus parties, and collaborates with and coordinates among academic and non-academic departments to provide information on and targeted intervention strategies for students identified as “at-risk” of not persisting or completing.

• Resolves individual student issues that involve coordination between multiple offices at the university. Assists students with understanding institutional policy and processes, reviewing available options, and resolving issues. Maintains student files, facilitates updated to student academic records, and monitors progress of students to ensure ongoing satisfaction, successful persistence, and completion.

• Uses analytical and evidence-based decision-making skills to develop and interpret reports. Serves as data liaison and helps analyze and understand trends, and create actionable information drawn from multiple sources, to inform outreach plans, enhance persistence and completion programs, and focus efforts on student populations where greatest needs exist.

• Monitors and makes recommendations for changes in academic policy, procedures, and processes related to enhancing undergraduate student persistence, retention, and completion across UCF departments and colleges. Leads ad-hoc teams or groups in undertaking coordinated efforts across colleges and units. Assess and makes recommendations for improvements to enhance the effectiveness of persistence and completion programs across the university.

• Serves as the coordinator of the Peer Advocate Program and as a liaison and resource for the university on all academic information related to retention and communicates academic requirements to students, faculty, and staff. Presents at meetings, workshops, and other venues of internal and external audiences to disseminate and enhance UCF’s retention strategies. Conducts professional development sessions, workshops, and trainings for staff, advisors, and students addressing areas where misinformation or new information causes issues with persistence.

• Other duties as assigned including the potential to supervise undergraduate and/or graduate students as they pertain to specific cohort responsibilities.

Minimum Qualifications:

Bachelor’s degree and 2+ years of relevant experience, or a Master’s degree; or an equivalent combination of education and experience pursuant to Fla. Stat. 112.219(6).

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master’s Degree.

• Knowledge of EAB Navigate platform.

• Three progressive years of academic advising, coaching, or experience working with high-risk students in a higher education setting.

• Demonstrated experience or knowledge of first-year retention, transfer student success, student completion/graduation efforts, and student success strategies and initiatives.

• Experience working with High-Risk students

Are Benefits Important to You?

Working at UCF has its perks!  In addition to helping drive change and having a positive impact by supporting our students, staff, and faculty, UCF offers:

• Benefit packages, including Medical, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, Flexible Spending, and Employee Assistance Program

• Paid time off, including annual and sick leave and paid holidays

• Retirement savings options

• Employee discounts, including tickets to many Orlando attractions

• Education assistance

• Flexible work environment

• And more…For more benefits information, go to the UCF Employee Benefits page click here .

Who Are We?

Founded in 1963 to fuel the region’s talent pipeline and support the growing U.S. space program, UCF is built to make a better future for our students and society. It’s one of the reasons U.S. News & World Report ranks UCF among the nation’s top 20 most innovative colleges, while Forbes, Kiplinger, and The Princeton Review rank us a best-value university. UCF is one of 14 universities nationwide designated as both a Hispanic-Serving Institution and a Research 1 university. With 13 colleges, including a fully accredited College of Medicine, UCF offers more than 220-degree programs between its main campus, downtown campus, hospitality campus, academic health sciences campus, and 11 UCF Connect centers located throughout the region. In addition, UCF extends its reach to communities in and beyond Central Florida by offering complete, online programs leading to bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees, Ph.D.’s., certificates, and more.

Unless explicitly stated on the job posting, it is UCF’s expectation that an employee of UCF will reside in Florida as of the date the employment begins.

#LI-ONSITE

Department

Student Success and Well-Being (SSWB) – Student Success & Advising

Work Schedule

Monday – Friday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

Type of Appointment

Regular

Expected Salary

$56,000.00 to Negotiable

Job Posting End Date

02-15-2024-12-00-AM

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement:

The University of Central Florida is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer including Disabled/Vets.  Click on UCF’s Equal Opportunity Statement to view the President’s Statement.

The UCF affirmative action plans for qualified individuals with disabilities and protected Veterans are available for inspection in the Office of Institutional Equity, Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., upon request.

As a Florida public university, UCF makes all application materials and selection procedures available to the public upon request. 

The University of Central Florida is proud to be a smoke-free campus and an E-Verify employer.