• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Bargaining Unit:
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• End Date if Temporary:
• Hours Per Week:
• Standard Work Schedule:
• Building:
• Salary Range: 76,000 - 80,000

Position Summary

The Columbia University School of General Studies (GS) is the finest liberal arts college in the United States dedicated to making Ivy League education accessible to nontraditional students. GS was founded in 1947 on the mission of expanding access to elite higher education, and it remains the most diverse college in the Ivy League, with many transfer, first-generation, and international students. GS students are fully integrated with Columbia’s broader undergraduate population and are taught by Columbia’s celebrated faculty.

The Assistant Director of Communications has a significant role in key sectors of the school of General Studies, working with staff and students to support and extend the excellence of undergraduate education at Columbia. This individual is a member of the team that handles all communications and outreach for the School of General Studies, including publications, advertising, media relations, social media, email marketing, event communications, and the website.  

Responsibilities

• The Assistant Director of Communications will work closely with the Director of Communications on all marketing and communications efforts for the School of General Studies striving to extend recognition of the college’s brand and educational mission to internal and external audiences.
• Interface with the School of General Studies Offices of Academic Affairs, Educational Financing, Operations, Student Life, and Dean of Students as well as the University Office of Public Affairs, and the Office of Alumni Relations and Development, in order to ensure that an integrated communications strategy exists across all forms of media.
• Work on the production of all existing GS online marketing outlets and provide project management for any additional online publications. In conjunction with the Director develop and manage the overall online communications plan for the School and ensure the successful execution of this plan. 
• Under the guidance of the Director, as needed the incumbent will maintain and upgrade content of the GS website; edit articles written by staff and freelancers; write and edit for GS admissions recruitment publications; participate in photography and photo editing of GS publications; participate in the general design implementation of GS publications; manage the college’s online profiles and online-community and social media presence.
• Working closely with the Director, they will function as a subject matter expert on all communications to current students and will be responsible for ensuring consistency in and improving the user experience and outcomes of all communications to this audience, including email, website, social media, web portals, and print materials.
• With support of student assistants, work with the Dean of Students Office, Offices of Student Life, Educational Financing, and Academic Affairs to support and promote key academic deadlines and opportunities via integrated email marketing campaigns, including weekly student email newsletters.
• In collaboration with the Dean of Students Operations team and GS Tech, regularly review and suggest improvements to the Columbia GS Student Success portal for current students.
• With support of student assistants, ensure the School’s website is accurate and current, including all essential information for current students.
• Maintain and strengthen collaborative working relationships with internal departments and teams, including but not limited to Academic Affairs, Dean of Students Office, and Academic Resource Center.
• In collaboration with other members of the Communications Team, provide event communications support, including, but not limited to, email invites, print program design, and event photography management.
• Serve as the primary liaison and brand manager for the Postbac Premed Program.
• In addition to supporting key communications to all current students, they will be the primary point of contact for all communications needs for the School’s veteran students.
• In collaboration with the Office of Student Life, advise and offer communications support for student leaders, including the General Studies Student Council, Postbac Premed Student Council, and Military Veterans of Columbia University (Milvets).

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in experience required. 
• Minimum three to five years related experience.
• Demonstrated ability to handle all situations with excellent communication and diplomatic skills as well as balance attention to detail with strategic vision.
• Work independently and plan and lead projects to completion. Attention to details a must.
• An instinct for sales and marketing preferred.
• Organizational, analytical, and interpretive skills.
• Excellent writing, communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work under changing priorities and manage multiple tasks and deadlines. 
• Experience with email marketing platforms, MS Office, Adobe Creative Suite (Acrobat, InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator, and Dreamweaver), online social networking and media practices, and Content Management Systems (e.g. Drupal).
• Experience with Salesforce and Marketing Cloud highly preferred. A writing and/or email editing exercise may be conducted during the interview process.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.