Student Support Advisor

Hagerstown Community College · Hagerstown, MD · 2 wk ago

OTHRFull-time

About the Role

The Student Support Advisor works directly with students, providing proactive and intrusive advising, course selection guidance, educational planning, and assistance with career and transfer possibilities. This role plays a significant part in the onboarding process for new students and is responsible for retaining assigned students through outreach to those at risk of dropping out. The advisor also provides general academic advisement via walk-ins, appointments, and virtual advising.

The Student Support Advisor reports to the Director of Advising, Registration and Student Support and collaborates closely with students, other advisors, registration assistants, faculty, staff (including Student Financial Aid, Records, Finance, Admissions, Disability Support Services, Veterans, CPA, BIT, CARE team, Developmental Education, and the Testing Center), Washington County Public High Schools, and outside social service agencies.

Responsibilities

Provides proactive college onboarding and academic advisement for new students, initiating contact shortly after acceptance and guiding them through the onboarding process.
Interprets standardized tests, high school transcripts, and assesses college and career readiness standards.
Explains degree, certificate, and program requirements as outlined in the college catalog, as well as college policies and procedures.
Assists students in scheduling, registration, and understanding the transfer process.
Guides students in career planning and development, including exposure to non-credit programs.
Helps students navigate online academic advising resources, including student email, the Student Information System (SIS), and Learning Management System (LMS).
Develops academic plans with students based on their career/major choices and assists in uploading plans to the SIS.
Reviews student financial aid eligibility, provides updates, and explains financial aid rules and regulations.
Encourages students to connect with faculty throughout their academic journey and refers them to appropriate campus offices as needed.
Provides general academic advising and retention support on a walk-in basis for all majors.
Documents advising visits and student interactions in the appropriate database(s).
Serves on the CARE team, providing targeted support, interventions, and outreach to students at risk of dropping out.
Facilitates one-to-one sessions to help students identify concerns and build academic success strategies.
Monitors degree audits and student progress, intervening when challenges arise by providing resources and assistance.
Conducts proactive outreach to students who have not registered for a given semester, documenting issues and problem-solving as needed.
Responds to, assists with, and monitors student cases submitted via the college’s early alert processes, documenting interactions confidentially.
Assists students with registration questions and navigating HCC’s SIS registration functions.
Serves as a liaison for one or more academic divisions, providing updates on retention and registration initiatives.
Participates in special committees, staff meetings, and division meetings as requested.
Performs other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree, preferably in Psychology, Education, or Social Work (or willingness to obtain the degree if hired). Master’s degree preferred.
Experience working with students in a higher education setting is preferred.
Knowledge and experience working with a student database system (e.g., Colleague) is essential.
Ability to develop relationships and maintain best practices for proactive and intrusive student success guidance.

Skills

Strong interpersonal skills to guide students in academic decision-making.
Excellent organizational and planning skills for advising the career and transfer student population.
Effective communication skills to interact with students, faculty, staff, coaches, and community leaders.

Schedule