Director Career Services at Harrisburg University – Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

GENERAL ROLE DESCRIPTION: The Director of Career Services & Experiential Learning provides vision and leadership for aligning academic programs with career development, workforce readiness, and high-impact experiential learning opportunities. This role advances institutional goals through collaborative partnerships, innovative programming, and a strong commitment to student success. The Director ensures students are equipped with the skills, experiences, and support necessary to thrive in a competitive workforce, while maintaining alignment with academic standards and university priorities.

KEY ROLE ACCOUNTABILITIES:

• Set the strategic vision for experiential learning across all campuses, including internships, applied research, apprenticeships, industry fellows programs, and project-based learning.
• Lead the Career Services & Experiential Learning team, aligning career readiness, student employment, employer engagement, marketing, and events under a unified strategy that ensures consistency, quality, and results.
• Oversee the design, instruction, and assessment of experiential learning seminar courses, promoting academic integration and instructional excellence.
• Maintain oversight of key operational processes and data systems, including learning contracts, outcomes reporting, assessment, and compliance with institutional and external requirements.
• Foster collaboration across departments and divisions to embed career readiness and experiential learning into the fabric of the university’s strategic initiatives.
• Deliver high-quality support for students and alumni through individualized career coaching, professional development programming, and integrated classroom instruction.
• Provide leadership and serve as the primary ambassador for Career Services & Experiential Learning in university-wide committees, cross-functional initiatives, and external partnerships - setting direction, ensuring alignment with institutional goals, and empowering team members to represent the office in appropriate settings.
• Develop strong relationships and collaborate with faculty to align experiential learning opportunities with academic goals, co-develop programming, and support integration into curriculum and instruction.

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MANAGERIAL LEADERSHIP PRACTICES

• Regularly meets with subordinate associates (weekly one-to-one, weekly or bi-weekly with teams) to: discuss overall business context, plans, and problems; build understanding of how their roles connect to the organization’s mission and vision; and seek feedback.
• Develops and executes plans and budgets for achieving departmental/unit goals.
• Assigns tasks so associates know what is required of them (quality and quantity), by when and what resources are available.
• Appraises how effectively associates use their judgment and discretion in role accountabilities; creates an ongoing dialogue with them about the appraisals.
• Coaches associates to increase their effectiveness and develop strengths in their role.
• Continuously improves systems and processes; identifies new project opportunities.
• Recommends team additions and dismissals; solicits, screens and selects candidates for consideration.
• Effectively orients and trains new associates into role requirements, working relationships, company requirements and culture.
• Identifies developmental opportunities for associates-once-removed.

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REQUIREMENTS OF ALL ASSOCIATES:

• Applies best efforts and full capability each day to the work assigned by own manager.
• Advises manager when:
  1. An assignment is not understood.
  2. An assignment conflicts with knowledge of the circumstances, current skills or available time/resources.
  3. Obstacles to completing the assignment exist or are likely to occur.
  4. Opportunities to better complete or improve the assignment exist or may occur.
• Understands and demonstrates our cultural expectations.

MINIMUM ROLE REQUIREMENTS (Duties may vary and other duties may be assigned.):

• Master’s degree in business, leadership, human resources, higher education, counseling, or related field or the equivalent work experience in career services, career theory, corporate recruitment and/or corporate/external relations
• Minimum of 7 years successful program management experience with an emphasis on programs connected to higher education and workforce training.

Experience working in a non-profit/fund-raising environment preferred