Whitman College

WHITMAN COLLEGE

Located in the historic community of Walla Walla, Whitman’s vibrant and beautiful tree-lined campus is home to an intellectually diverse, dynamic, welcoming and supportive community of some 500 staff and faculty serving approximately 1,500 students from the local region and across the globe.  With exceptional students, accomplished faculty and staff, and a fiercely loyal and growing number of engaged alumni, Whitman College continues to build on its national reputation for academic excellence as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country.  

 

Whitman College is cultivating a community built on inclusion and belonging. We recognize the value of those who can offer historically underrepresented perspectives and encourage applications from those whose background, knowledge, and insights from lived experience can add to the college’s working and learning environment. Whitman College is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer (EEO) .

Whitman seeks to hire an Assistant Director of Off-Campus Studies. We believe that immersion into other cultures and academic viewpoints afforded by study abroad or study in a different US community is an invaluable component of undergraduate education—leading to significant academic and personal growth, development of intercultural communication skills, and a greater understanding of the range of professional and personal possibilities. We encourage all Whitman students to take advantage of the broad range of off-campus study opportunities available through Whitman—semester, academic year, and summer options—as part of their undergraduate education. To that end, the college strives to reduce financial barriers by providing need-based aid and merit scholarships to eligible participants. Historically 45% of Whitman students participate in at least one an Off-Campus Studies program prior to graduation. More information about Whitman's Off-Campus Studies program can be found here. 

POSITION PURPOSE  

The Assistant Director of Off-Campus Studies (OCS) shares with the Director the responsibility of helping to achieve the College's mission of providing engaging and challenging international and domestic off-campus study opportunities for our students to augment their undergraduate studies on campus and to learn about the world from a new, more critical perspective.  The Assistant Director assists with advising students, monitoring program quality, publicity and promotion of study abroad, and orientation and re-entry activities.  Whitman College has a very active study abroad program and strives to achieve equity in access to education abroad for all students.  Before the pandemic, nearly one half of all Whitman juniors studied off campus for at least one semester on programs administered either by third-party providers or directly by Whitman College.  

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES

Advising (50%)

• Share the responsibility with the Director to advise Whitman students interested in semester and summer study abroad programs and domestic off-campus programs about program options, application process, admission criteria, cost of particular programs, transfer credit, accommodations for special needs abroad, etc.
• Track OCS advisees’ interests and application progress through the Terra Dotta software system
• Monitor requirements for student visas and advise OCS students accordingly
• Assist students seeking outside scholarship funding by identifying funding sources (such as the Gilman and Boren) and help guide them through the application process
• Advise students prior to departure about disability accommodations and medical resources abroad related to their Health Disclosure Form responses

Transfer Credits (15%)

• Process OCS program transcripts by notating how credits will transfer in collaboration with the Registrar
• Advise Whitman students already overseas regarding transfer credit questions and non-academic matters
• Maintain and regularly update the OCS Transfer Credit Database, including liaising with faculty in various departments about their preferences for transfer of major credits

Publicity/Events (15%)

• Provide organizational support and make presentations at promotional events, such as the Annual Study Abroad Fair, First Step Info Meetings, and Admission Visitors Days 
• Support Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Antiracism (DEIA) goals via outreach efforts to diverse student populations to encourage OCS participation among students who may not traditionally study away
• Select and supervise a team of OCS Student Interns who will provide a student-centered approach to publicity, OCS presentations, and peer advising
• Oversee the OCS Social Media pages (Facebook and Instagram) updated by OCS Interns
• Select and supervise OCS Bloggers each semester
• Assist the Director with monitoring the accuracy of the OCS website, including the program e-brochures in Terra Dotta and the OCS Advising by Major pages

Orientation and Re-Entry Programming (5%)

• Share responsibility with the Director for organizing and presenting at Predeparture Orientations each semester for all students going abroad
• Expand current re-entry program activities to help students with the transition back to the U.S. and to provide venues for them to share about and process their experiences abroad 

• Develop an OCS Digital Stories event with OCS returnees

Monitor Programs (5%)

• Assist the Director in monitoring and evaluating affiliated study abroad and domestic off-campus programs by reviewing student Program Evaluations and conducting post OCS debriefing meetings with students
• Visit overseas and domestic programs and attend some national study abroad meetings/conferences, typically one international site visit trip and at least one professional conference in the U.S. per year

General Responsibilities (10%)

• Serve on and take minutes for the Off-Campus Studies Committee, a faculty and staff Committee that oversees OCS matters, and serve on other college committees as needed
• Review student applications for Whitman OCS approval
• Provide general assistance with composing emails to students and parents
• Supervise staff and oversee the workings of the OCS office when the Director is out of town 

REQUIRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES

Individuals must be able to explain and/or demonstrate that they possess the knowledge, skills, and abilities to safely perform the essential functions of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation.

• Experience in advising and/or working with college students
• Strong interpersonal and intercultural skills for working with various constituencies--students, parents, faculty and staff colleagues
• Excellent writing and verbal communication skills
• High standard of discretion in handling confidential information
• Excellent judgment for finding solutions to complex problems either independently or in collaboration with colleagues
• Excellent attention to detail
• Ability to work well as a team
• Ability to work independently on projects, manage multiple priorities, and meet deadlines
• Ability to travel both domestically and internationally
• Demonstrate commitment to advancing the College’s core values of diversity, equity, inclusion and antiracism
• Knowledge of Google apps, Microsoft apps, Terra Dotta software, and/or Zoom conferencing preferred

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree
• At least three years experience in the field of education abroad or a related field
• Experience living outside the United States (such as studying or working abroad)

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Masters degree 
• Working knowledge of at least one foreign language

BENEFITS

Whitman offers competitive employee benefits, including medical, dental, vision and life insurances, a generous 10% matching contribution to the Whitman College 403(b) Defined Contribution Retirement Plan, and paid time off including 13 paid holidays for full-time staff vacation and sick leave.  Learn more about benefits eligibility here. 

COVID-19 PROTOCOLS

At Whitman College, we take seriously the safety of our community. Whitman is a fully vaccinated campus, requiring all employees and students to be up to date with their COVID-19 vaccinations or have an approved exemption. More information can be found here.

DISABILITY ACCOMMODATION FOR JOB CANDIDATES

Contact Human Resources regarding requests for disability accommodation in the employment application process.

APPLICATION REVIEW

Application review will begin on May 31 and continue until the position is filled.

START DATE

July 20, 2022