Financial Aid Counselor

We need to output HTML fragment with sections: headings

for sections like About the role, Responsibilities, Requirements, Qualifications, Skills, Benefits, Pay, Schedule. Only include sections that have real specific content. We need to parse the job description. Key parts: - Job Description paragraph: "The Financial Aid Counselor is part of a team..." This is about the role. Could be "About the role". We'll put that in a

under

About the role

. - Education and Experience: "Bachelor’s Degree preferred or equivalent combination of education and related experience. Two (2) plus years of Customer service, Counseling, Financial aid experience preferred, though counseling experience in other higher education student services area could be a reasonable substitution." This could be under Requirements or Qualifications. We'll treat as Requirements. - Skills and Knowledge: long paragraph about knowledge of regulations, communication, etc. Also includes "Experience with PeopleSoft or other student information systems, OnBase or other imaging systems, and Microsoft software products. Availability for overtime during peak award season." This could be Skills. - Responsibilities: a big block starting with "Responsibilities". We'll put that under

Responsibilities

with

• items. - Physical Requirements: "Not Applicable" - we should not include a section if it's just placeholder. So skip. - Tools/Equipment: "Not Applicable" skip. - Application Instructions: we should remove application instructions per instruction: "Remove cookie/navigation/legal/EEO/equal-opportunity/scam-warning boilerplate, duplicated lines, and application instructions." So drop that. - About Syracuse University: This is company info, not required? The instruction says to preserve all substantive information; but we should not include boilerplate like EEO etc. However "About Syracuse University" is descriptive about the employer; could be considered substantive. But the instruction says to include sections only when posting has real specific content for it. It does have content. Should we include a section like "About the employer"? Not in the list of allowed headings. The allowed headings are: About the role, Responsibilities, Requirements, Qualifications, Skills, Benefits, Pay, Schedule. So we cannot add a custom heading like About Syracuse University. We could fold that info into About the role? Probably not appropriate. The instruction says: "use

  for section headings (e.g. About the role, Responsibilities, Requirements, Qualifications, Skills, Benefits, Pay, Schedule)." It gives examples but not exclusive? It says "use

  for section headings (e.g. About the role, Responsibilities, Requirements, Qualifications, Skills, Benefits, Pay, Schedule)." Likely they expect only those headings. So we should not include About Syracuse University as a separate heading. We could incorporate that info into About the role? Might be okay but could be considered stray. However they said preserve ALL substantive information; do NOT invent or summarize away detail. If we drop the About Syracuse University paragraph, we lose substantive info. But maybe it's considered boilerplate? It's not EEO etc. It's a description of the university. Might be considered relevant but not part of the standard headings. The instruction says "Prefer a few substantive sections over many thin ones." Could we put it under About the role? The About the role currently is about the job; we could extend it to include info about the university as part of the role context. That would preserve the info. Let's do that: combine the initial job description paragraph with the Syracuse University description into About the role. Similarly, "About The Syracuse Area" could also be folded into About the role or maybe omitted? It's also substantive. We'll incorporate into About the role as well. We need to ensure we don't include EEO statement etc. So we will drop EEO, Commitment to Supporting and Hiring Veterans, Commitment to a Respectful and Welcoming Community. Now we need to parse Responsibilities into bullet list. Let's extract responsibilities paragraph: "Responsibilities Counsel students and parents, both prospective and currently enrolled, on all aspects of financial aid including federal, state, and institutional programs via in person or virtual appointments, phone appointments, and email communications, all of which are very heavy during the admission and returning award seasons. Each counselor has a population of approximately 2,000 students receiving some type of financial aid and provides advisement to that population using principles that are sensitive to the challenges of students in their assigned cohort while adhering to the ever-changing U.S. Department of Education and University policies and procedures. Each counselor also monitors the aid eligibility of their student population weekly and adjusts aid as necessary throughout the year. Counselors also participate in multiple community outreach programs as well as on campus Admissions programs during the Fall and Spring semesters.Review and respond to a high volume of student/parent appeals for additional scholarship and need-based funding. Perform in-depth analysis of students’ current financial situation in comparison with the situation presented on their financial aid applications and use professional judgment to adjust applications to more accurately reflect students’ present day special circumstances. Professional decision-making skills and discretion used to award approximately 80% of appeal funding on an individual basis with more complex appeal recommendations (approximately 20%) presented to committee and supervisor for approval.Perform institutional needs analysis review for approximately 150 applicants/current students to calculate an institutional expected family contribution. Balance the stewardship of institutional, state and federal aid funds with the needs of the family, as well as the goals of the university, while carefully analyzing each family’s situation.Using the verified/reviewed applications as a starting point, perform further research/analysis on the additional data fields provided on the CSS Profile and on supporting documentation submitted by the family.Utilize knowledge of the University’s needs analysis calculation, established needs analysis guidelines, experience, and professional judgement to evaluate whether the calculation is reflective of the family’s ability to contribute, and adjust eligibility calculations as appropriate.Present, as well as participate in, a variety of professional development opportunities including webinars, professional organization conferences, local/regional meetings, and university offerings. Share learnings obtained at these professional development opportunities by presenting to and training colleagues and campus partners.Participation in professional development activities is critical to stay current with changes to federal and state regulations as well as institutional policies regarding the awarding of financial aid.Other duties as assigned." We need to split into sensible bullet points. We'll create

  • items for each distinct duty. Potential bullets: - Counsel students and parents (prospective and enrolled) on all aspects of financial aid (federal, state, institutional) via in-person/virtual appointments, phone, and email (high volume during admission and award seasons). - Manage a caseload of approximately 2,000 students receiving financial aid, providing advisement sensitive to cohort challenges while adhering to changing federal and university policies. - Monitor aid eligibility weekly for assigned population and adjust aid as needed throughout the year. - Participate in community outreach programs and on-campus admissions events during Fall and Spring semesters. - Review and respond to high volume of student/parent appeals for additional scholarship and need-based funding. - Conduct in-depth analysis of students’ current financial situation vs. aid application, using professional judgment to adjust applications to reflect special circumstances. - Award approximately 80% of appeal funding individually; more complex recommendations (≈20%) presented to committee/supervisor for approval. - Perform institutional needs analysis review for ~150 applicants/current students to calculate expected family contribution. - Balance stewardship of institutional, state, and federal aid funds with family needs and university goals, analyzing each family’s situation. - Using verified applications, research/analyze additional CSS Profile data fields and supporting documentation. - Apply University’s needs analysis calculation, guidelines, experience, and professional judgment to evaluate family contribution and adjust eligibility as appropriate. - Present and participate in professional development opportunities (webinars, conferences, meetings, university offerings); share learnings by training colleagues and campus partners. - Stay current with federal/state regulation changes and institutional policies via professional development. - Perform other duties as assigned. Now Skills and Knowledge section: we need to extract. Original: "Skills and Knowledge Knowledge of regulations in interpreting and administering federal Title IV, state and University financial aid programs to ensure compliance.Excellent communication and counseling skills as well as the ability to use professionalism, tact, discretion, and compassion in advising. Must possess a flexible attitude and be able to function well as a team member in a high-volume, fast paced environment while paying close attention to detail and prioritizing workload to meet numerous deadlines crucial to meeting the University enrollment goals.Commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion for students and staff. This includes but is not limited to: fostering an office environment that allows students and staff of different backgrounds and identities to feel safe, accepted, and understood; helping students with financial aid and financial literacy education to overcome barriers to college attainment; and helping develop and further initiatives in this area.Experience with PeopleSoft or other student information systems, OnBase or other imaging systems, and Microsoft software products.Availability for overtime during peak award season." We need to turn into bullet list under Skills. Potential bullets: - Knowledge of regulations for interpreting and administering federal Title IV, state, and University financial aid programs to ensure compliance. - Excellent communication and counseling skills; ability to use professionalism, tact, discretion, and compassion when advising. - Flexible attitude; ability to function as a team member in a high-volume, fast-paced environment while paying close attention to detail and prioritizing workload to meet deadlines. - Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion: fostering an inclusive office environment; helping students overcome barriers via financial aid and literacy education; contributing to DEI initiatives. - Experience with PeopleSoft or other student information systems, OnBase or other imaging systems, and Microsoft software products. - Availability for overtime during peak award season. Now Education and Experience (Requirements). We'll list as bullet list. - Bachelor’s Degree preferred or equivalent combination of education and related experience. - Two (2) plus years of customer service, counseling, or financial aid experience preferred; counseling experience in other higher education student services areas may be a reasonable substitution. Now Benefits, Pay, Schedule: Not provided. So we omit those sections. Now About the role: combine initial job description paragraph plus Syracuse University description plus Syracuse area description. Let's craft a concise paragraph that preserves all details. Initial: "The Financial Aid Counselor is part of a team that supports Syracuse University’s effort to attract and retain qualified students by advising a diverse population of prospective and enrolled students and their parents on matters pertaining to financial aid and scholarships. Each counselor is responsible for a population of approximately 2,000 students. Counselors assist students and families in navigating financial aid eligibility, sensitive family financial situations, financial planning strategies and payment options, and academic progress. They work in a high-volume and fast-paced environment to apply knowledge of swiftly changing federal regulations and institutional requirements to each student they advise. Counselors also perform needs analysis to determine federal and institutional eligibility and use professional judgment as appropriate to adjust calculations. Counselors represent the office at both on and off campus events throughout the year." Syracuse University description: "Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings, and an undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic heart of New York State, with a global footprint, and over 150 years of history, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience. The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors, 100 minors, and 200 advanced degree programs offered across the University’s 13 schools and colleges; over 15,000 undergraduates and over 6,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries." Syracuse Area description: "Syracuse is a medium-sized city situated in the geographic center of New York State approximately 250 miles northwest of New York City. The metro-area population totals approximately 500,000. The area offers a low