Director of Full-Time MBA Recruiting and Admissions

About the Role

Rice Business, a top‑ranked graduate business school, seeks a Director of Full‑Time MBA Recruiting and Admissions. Reporting to the Assistant Dean for Recruiting and Admissions, the Director will lead a small enrollment‑management team, design and execute the enrollment strategy, co‑lead the Admissions Committee, and serve as a senior advisor and active recruiter to achieve enrollment targets for the Full‑Time MBA program.

Responsibilities

• Design, execute, and continuously refine a holistic Full‑time MBA recruitment and evaluation strategy, using data‑driven approaches for market expansion, travel planning, and targeted sourcing.
• Serve as a core member of the RAO Senior Leadership Team, providing actionable intelligence, risk assessments, high‑touch relationship management, and strategic recommendations to the Assistant Dean.
• Represent Rice Business with executive presence during domestic and international travel, delivering high‑impact recruitment presentations and engaging elite candidate pools, corporate partners, and alumni networks.
• Own the end‑to‑end candidate lifecycle, driving sourcing, high‑touch relationship management, and cohort‑yield strategy to meet enrollment goals.
• Chair and lead the Full‑Time Admissions Committee, acting as the primary final application reader and evaluator, and make evidence‑based recommendations for admissions decisions and scholarship awards.
• Direct, mentor, and build a high‑performing recruitment and admissions team, managing workload allocation for travel and candidate engagement while setting elevated standards for conversion and evaluation workflows.
• Pioneer AI fluency and advanced assessment technology to modernize candidate assessment, streamline evaluation, and enhance data‑driven selection frameworks.
• Drive quantitative decision‑making, predictive yield modeling, and data integrity within the Slate CRM, translating pipeline metrics into strategic updates for leadership.
• Own candidate conversion and melt‑mitigation strategy, nurturing admitted students from decision release to matriculation through personalized, high‑touch sales strategies.
• Collaborate on macro yield, melt‑mitigation, and retention operations, orchestrating high‑impact events and targeted touchpoints to convert admitted candidates into enrolled cohorts.
• Manage unit resource allocation and budget spend across recruitment travel, external vendors, and candidate‑experience touchpoints to ensure maximum ROI.
• Implement creative engagement strategies to maintain a robust candidate pipeline, establishing strong relationships with prospective students through consistent, personalized communication.
• Partner with the Assistant Dean and senior RAO leaders on scholarship matching, ensuring donor‑funded scholarships align with incoming students’ fit and supporting elevated scholarship experiences.
• Conduct evaluative interviews to curate a high‑caliber, diverse MBA cohort aligned with institutional standards and strategic enrollment goals.
• Commit to continuous learning about graduate management education trends and competitive market landscapes to keep Rice Business at the forefront of recruitment innovation.
• Represent Rice Business with key strategic partners, aligning efforts with the evolving needs of the global business workforce.
• Perform all other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree (no substitutions permitted).
• Four or more (4+) years of higher‑education and/or relationship management/recruiting professional experience. Equivalent education may be substituted on a year‑for‑year basis.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated supervisory experience with concrete examples of holding teams accountable and coaching staff.
• Strong process and project‑management skills; ability to develop staff to manage work areas independently.
• Experience developing and implementing innovative solutions in admissions.
• Familiarity with the graduate management education prospective‑student market.
• Data‑informed decision‑making: ability to use enrollment data for strategic goals, measurement, and practice revision.
• Excellent diplomacy, organizational, and interpersonal skills; ability to collaborate across functional teams and build internal/external partnerships.
• Executive presence and confidence in high‑stakes presentations and stakeholder engagements.
• AI fluency and comfort with modern assessment technologies.

Skills

• Knowledge of modern admissions office functions: CRM systems, reporting & analytics, recruitment, candidate evaluation, marketing, on‑campus programming, staff training, budget management, and staff development.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint).
• Strong analytical and quantitative skills for predictive yield modeling and data integrity.
• Exceptional presentation and facilitation abilities.
• Experience with Slate or comparable CRM systems.
• Ability to develop partnerships with internal and external constituents.
• Strategic, outcomes‑oriented mindset with a solutions‑oriented approach.
• Professional business attire for events; flexibility to shift to business‑casual for non‑event interactions.

Workplace Requirements

The role is exclusively on‑site at McNair Hall, requiring a 5‑day in‑office schedule (8:30 am – 5:00 pm). Remote work is limited and may be approved after the probationary period on an as‑needed basis. The position involves a high volume of professional events, many occurring evenings and weekends, as well as extensive domestic and international travel. Business‑professional attire is often required.

Pay

Minimum salary $80,000, commensurate with experience. This is an exempt (salaried) position and is not eligible for overtime.

Benefits

Comprehensive benefits information is available at Rice University Benefits.