Working Title: Career Advisor, Liaison to Student & Cultural Communities

State Role Title: N/A

Position Type: Administrative & Professional (Non-teaching Faculty)

Position Status: Full-Time

College/Division: Student Life and Involvement

Department: 100358 - University Career Center

Pay Rate: Pay Range

Specify Range or Amount: $45,000 - $47,500

Is this a JMU only position? No

Is this a grant-funded position? No

Is this a Conflict of Interest designated position? No

Beginning Review Date: 10/14/2024

About JMU:

Mission
We are a community committed to preparing students to be educated and enlightened citizens who lead productive and meaningful lives.

Vision
To be the national model for the engaged university: engaged with ideas and the world.

Who We Are
Located in the heart of Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley, the city of Harrisonburg is approximately 120 miles from Washington, D.C. and Richmond, VA. With a population of just over 53,000, Harrisonburg is one of the most diverse communities in the Commonwealth of Virginia. JMU is a selective, public institution with a growing national reputation for offering experiences that lead to an outstanding education and inclusive environment for students, faculty and staff. The student body includes approximately 20,000 undergraduate and 1,900 graduate students, with over 1,000 full-time instructional faculty.

JMU offers thriving programs in the liberal arts, science and technology, and professional disciplines at the undergraduate, master’s and doctoral levels. The university is committed to expanding diversity, fostering equity and inclusion, and supporting superlative teaching and scholarship. JMU has achieved national recognition for the high quality of its academic programs, focus on maintaining strong student/faculty interaction, and innovative faculty research.

General Information:

Career Advisors work in the University Career Center (UCC) to empower students to design their career journey and support them through that journey. They do this by:

• Assisting students individually and in groups with career exploration, job and internship search, resume/CV and cover letter writing,
• interview skills, and graduate school preparation.
  
• Developing knowledge about their assigned Career Communities and paths and collaborating with the Employer Services team to meet the needs of all students at any point in their career journey.
  
• Facilitating career-related connections between faculty, employers, students, and alumni.
  
• Tailoring career-related programs, services, and resources for their Career Community and designated academic unit(s).
  
• Educating themselves on how student identities impact career journeys and decision-making.
  
  

We serve students and recent alumni both in person and online. The UCC works predominately in person with a varied remote schedule that averages out to one remote day per week. This position will serve on the Career Advising Unit within the UCC and report to the Associate Director for Career Advising.

Learn more about the Career Center’s mission, vision, and values here- www.jmu.edu/career/about/mission.shtml. 

Duties and Responsibilities:

#1: Career Advising: Provide comprehensive career advising to students and recent alumni affiliated with student organizations and the general student population. Advise students individually and in groups both in person and through virtual platforms.  Empower students to explore careers and develop effective search strategies for their career goals. Coach students to effectively articulate the value of their JMU education and build connections between their academic and co-curricular activities and their career path. Provide career resources regarding the job/internship search and graduate school search. Administer and interpret career assessments with students as needed. Be able to discuss with students and recent alumni how their social identities impact or are impacted by their job search, graduate school search, or post-graduate careers. Seek continued learning about one’s social identities and how potential biases may show up when working with students and in programming.  

#2: Career Community Engagement & Programming:  Present on a variety of topics to help students with career readiness goals, including resume writing, cover letters, interviewing, job/internship search, graduate school preparation, evaluating jobs offers, etc. Tailor career-related programs, services, and resources for student organizations including but not limited to student organizations and culturally affiliated student groups and offices that support them, including developing a minimum of two programs per semester associated with their Career Community (i.e. networking event, career panel, career trek or experiential learning opportunities). These events should be designed to create opportunities for students to connect with employers and alumni. Collaborate with media team to provide and support promotion of content related to student communities. Collaborate with Employer Services to assist with employer development and employer relations related to student communities.

#3: Course Instruction:  Teach a career decision-making/career exploration course once a year, complying with all JMU protocol and deadlines for instructional faculty. Participate in ongoing professional development to inform curricular choices and incorporate academic and career development effectively into course.

#4: Outreach to Students, Faculty, Staff:
Cultivate and maintain collaborative partnerships with stakeholders including administrators and faculty. Collaborate with faculty and student affairs partners to provide specific programs as requested. Presentations may take place in workshops, classrooms, online, and other settings. Identify and respond to trends related to student needs and employer engagement trends through services, resources, and programs for assigned academic area. Serve as an information resource on career-related topics related to liaison area for students, faculty, employers, and University Career Center colleagues.

#:5 Collaboration: Actively participate in departmental meetings, contributing to discussions and decision making in a professional manner. Demonstrate support for office events and programs by being flexible and contributing assistance with time available to occasionally include weekend and evening hours for presentations, events and evening appointment hours. Support departmental career fairs through preparation events and day of implementation. Show collegial courtesy by responding to requests in a timely manner. Share information and communicate regularly with supervisor and larger University Career Center team.  Develop relationships with faculty, staff, employers, and alumni with the common goal of increasing access to career-related networks for all students, regardless of background or social capital.

#6: Professional Development: Stay current on higher education, career-related and industry trends specifically focused on assigned Career Community, and student development theory through research, conferences, articles, webinars and collaboration with peers in the field. Demonstrate the ability to work with diverse populations by seeking additional training in topics such as identity, social justice, equity, communication, emotional intelligence, etc. 

Qualifications:

Required:

• Masters degree
• Experience mentoring or advising on career related goals
• Experience presenting workshops or educational programs
• Demonstrated ability to build rapport, engage, and communicate with multiple stakeholders

Preferred:

• At least two years of experience working with students in a higher education or related setting in an advising, coaching or counseling setting
• Experience and ability creating and sustaining collaborative relationships with other departments or organizations
• Experience developing educational programs for large and small audiences
• Familiarity with student development or career decision making framework or theories
• Ability to work in a team

Additional Posting Information:

JMU’s Dual Career and Community Resources Program is available for candidates that will be relocating to the area. For more information, please visit https://bit.ly/2OTF1NG.

Conditions of Employment:  

Employment is contingent upon the successful completion of a criminal background check.

E-Verify Notice: After accepting employment, new hires are required to complete an I-9 form and present documentation of their identity and eligibility to work in the United States. James Madison University uses the E-Verify system to confirm identity and work authorization.

EEO Statement:

James Madison University is committed to creating and supporting a diverse and inclusive work and educational community that is free of all forms of discrimination. This institution does not tolerate discrimination or harassment on the basis of age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, genetic information, national origin, parental status, political affiliation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or veteran status.

We promote access, inclusion and diversity for all students, faculty, staff, constituents and programs, believing that these qualities are foundational components of an outstanding education in keeping with our mission. The university is interested in candidates whose experience and qualifications support an ongoing commitment to this core quality.

Anyone having questions concerning discrimination should contact the Office for Equal Opportunity: (540) 568-6991.

Reasonable Accommodation:

If you are an individual with a disability and need assistance searching or applying for jobs please contact us at (540) 568-3597 or jobs@jmu.edu. You may also visit the JMU Human Resource Office, located at 752 Ott Street, Harrisonburg, VA 22807 and we will be happy to assist you.