Associate Director, Employer and Experiential Partnerships

Full Time • 12 months per year • Onsite – Seattle

About the Role

The Associate Director provides leadership for the development, management, and stewardship of employer and industry partnerships that expand access to internships, employment, experiential learning, mentorship, recruiting programs, and other career‑connected opportunities for Seattle University students and recent alumni. Reporting to the Executive Director of Career Engagement, the Associate Director translates the university’s institutional employer‑engagement strategy into coordinated outreach, partnership development, recruiting activity, and measurable student opportunities. The position manages the full lifecycle of employer engagement from prospect identification and relationship cultivation through activation, stewardship, assessment, and renewal. The Associate Director works closely with Career Engagement colleagues, the Albers Career Center, faculty, experiential‑learning partners, Alumni Engagement, Advancement, Student Employment, and other campus stakeholders to support an integrated university‑wide career ecosystem. The successful candidate will demonstrate a commitment to Seattle University’s Jesuit Catholic mission, professional formation, social justice, equity, inclusion, cultural humility, and student success.

Core Competencies

• Effective Team Collaboration – works harmoniously with others toward a common goal, leveraging individual strengths.
• Emotionally Intelligent Communication – engages in skillful exchange of information, thoughts, and feelings, verbally and non‑verbally.
• Ethics and Integrity – demonstrates unwavering commitment to honesty, professionalism, and alignment with the Jesuit mission.
• Flexibility and Innovation – embraces change, approaches problems with curiosity and adaptability, and seeks positive impact.
• Mindful Inclusion – consciously creates a workplace that celebrates differences, embraces cultural humility, and empowers uniqueness.
• Outcomes‑Driven Orientation – sets clear objectives, pursues excellence, and delivers measurable outcomes while upholding Jesuit Catholic values.

Essential Functions

• Employer and Industry Partnership Development (35 %) – Develop and maintain a diverse portfolio of employer, industry, government, nonprofit, and community partnerships aligned with student interests, academic programs, workforce trends, and institutional priorities. Identify and cultivate new employers for internships, entry‑level employment, project‑based learning, mentorship, job‑shadowing, career treks, classroom engagement, and other experiential opportunities. Build employer pipelines across sectors with strong regional demand. Meet with employers to understand workforce needs and create customized engagement strategies. Advise employers on recruiting practices, internship program development, employer branding, campus visibility, and inclusive talent attraction. Proactively cultivate organizations committed to equitable access for first‑generation students, students of color, students with disabilities, international students, veterans, and other historically underrepresented populations. Maintain awareness of labor‑market conditions, emerging industries, workforce trends, recruiting practices, and changing employer expectations. Represent Seattle University and Career Engagement at employer meetings, professional associations, chambers of commerce, workforce‑development conferences, and community events.
• Employer Stewardship and Partnership Activation (20 %) – Manage the full employer relationship lifecycle, including cultivation, onboarding, activation, stewardship, assessment, renewal, and expansion. Develop engagement plans for priority employers and ensure consistent communication and follow‑through across the university. Translate employer interest into specific opportunities such as internships, jobs, mentoring relationships, sponsored projects, career events, classroom presentations, site visits, and experiential‑learning partnerships. Coordinate with academic colleges and campus partners to connect employer opportunities with appropriate students, programs, faculty, and student organizations. Support college‑based career and professional‑formation leaders by providing access to employer relationships, labor‑market insights, and external partnership opportunities. Strengthen employer retention through responsive service, feedback gathering, impact communication, and identification of deeper‑engagement opportunities. Develop resources and pathways that simplify employer connection to Seattle University.
• Recruiting and Career‑Connected Programming (25 %) – Provide strategic and operational leadership for employer‑facing recruiting programs and career‑connected events. Collaborate with the Career Education team to ensure employer programming complements students’ career‑readiness preparation and learning needs. Partner with the Albers Career Center and other university offices to coordinate employer outreach, reduce duplication, and create a consistent experience for employer partners. Recruit employers and industry professionals for mock interviews, résumé reviews, mentorship programs, classroom presentations, career‑education workshops, and other student‑learning activities. Support development of micro‑internships, project‑based experiences, job‑shadowing, and other lower‑barrier opportunities for students still building professional experience. Ensure employer programs and recruiting activities comply with university policies, applicable employment regulations, ethical recruiting standards, and National Association of Colleges and Employers guidance.
• Institutional Collaboration and Experiential Learning (10 %) – Serve as an employer‑facing resource for university initiatives related to internships, experiential learning, mentorship, workforce development, AI career readiness, and professional formation. Help identify gaps in experiential opportunity by academic program, student population, career interest, and industry. Support development of scalable practices for connecting academic learning with employer‑sponsored projects, internships, research, service, and other applied experiences. Participate in cross‑campus committees and working groups related to employer engagement, experiential learning, student outcomes, and workforce readiness. Ensure employer engagement efforts complement specialized career services within the Albers School of Business and avoid unnecessary duplication.
• Data, Systems, Assessment, and Reporting (10 %) – Establish measurable goals for employer outreach, partnership development, opportunity creation, employer retention, and student engagement. Maintain accurate employer relationship, recruiting, and opportunity data within Handshake and other approved university systems. Develop dashboards, reports, and summaries that communicate employer‑engagement activity and impact to Career Engagement leadership and university stakeholders. Assess employer satisfaction and use feedback to continuously improve services, programs, and partnership practices. Monitor internships, jobs, recruiting activity, employer participation, and other indicators of partnership effectiveness. Collaborate with Career Engagement colleagues to connect employer‑engagement data with student participation and post‑graduation outcomes. Perform other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in business, higher education, human resources, communications, marketing, public relations, nonprofit leadership, or a related field, or equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience.
• At least five years of progressively responsible experience in employer relations, university recruiting, talent acquisition, business development, workforce development, corporate relations, alumni relations, career services, or a related field.
• Experience translating relationships into programs, opportunities, partnerships, or measurable outcomes.
• Strong written, verbal, interpersonal, presentation, and relationship‑management skills.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple partnerships, projects, events, deadlines, and priorities.
• Ability to work collaboratively across organizational boundaries and with stakeholders who have varied goals and responsibilities.
• Demonstrated commitment to equity, inclusion, social justice, cultural humility, and serving diverse student populations.
• Ability to use data and technology to manage relationships, assess performance, and inform decisions.
• Availability for occasional evening or weekend programs and local travel to employer and community sites.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in a college or university career center, employer‑relations operation, talent acquisition function, workforce‑development organization, or corporate partnership role.
• Knowledge of university recruiting, internship development, experiential learning, mentorship, early‑career hiring, and employer engagement practices.
• Familiarity with customer relationship management systems, career‑services technology, or employer relationship‑management platforms.
• Experience using labor‑market information and employer data to guide strategy.
• Familiarity with National Association of Colleges and Employers standards, career‑readiness competencies, and ethical recruiting principles.
• Understanding of the Seattle and Puget Sound employer, nonprofit, government, and workforce‑development landscape.
• Experience supporting fundraising, sponsorship, corporate engagement, or related initiatives.