College Advisor

About ScholarMatch

Founded in 2010 by author Dave Eggers, ScholarMatch began as a scholarship crowdfunding platform and has since evolved into a full-service college access and persistence organization.

At ScholarMatch, we are committed to supporting first-generation college students from low-income backgrounds earn a bachelor’s degree within five years. We’re working towards realizing our vision where all students have access to higher education, support to persist to graduation, and opportunities to succeed in fulfilling careers.

Education opens doors to opportunity and social mobility by allowing students a chance to build fulfilling careers. However, the road to higher education is paved with challenges that can be particularly daunting for first-generation college students. We strive to change this scenario for young people from low-income backgrounds by offering them comprehensive support services focusing on individualized college and career advising, targeted scholarships, and ongoing mentorship from high school to college graduation and the launch of their careers.

Our ultimate goal is to nurture a community of young people who can successfully navigate the higher education landscape, confronting its challenges, breaking barriers, and redefining success on their paths to graduation and beyond. Learn more at ScholarMatch.org.

Position Description

ScholarMatch is seeking a full-time, non-exempt College Advisor to play an important role in our growing non-profit. The College Advisor will join a dynamic team of virtual advisors based in California. The College Advisor will work virtually for a new pilot program serving students from Southeast Los Angeles through group advising sessions and one-on-one meetings. This position reports to the Advising Manager.

This position is ideal for a candidate who has a passion for our mission, group advising sessions and one-on-one meetings., excellent group facilitation and individual counseling skills, and an interest in using data to improve effectiveness and advance our mission. This position is remote, but candidates must reside in greater Los Angeles. Occasional travel and in-person event attendance is required.

This is a union position and is contracted until June 2027 with a possible extension based on program needs and funding opportunities.

Primary Responsibilities

Your primary responsibilities are to manage and support a caseload of ScholarMatch students successfully to promote college persistence and graduation -- providing expertise and mentorship, helping them navigate the often confusing and unfamiliar terrain of college life, and providing documentation, follow-up, and administrative support necessary to the success of our students and organization.

• Establish and build relationships with the assigned caseload of college students (attending various colleges) through monthly group sessions and one-on-one meetings.
• Implement college persistence curriculum through facilitating group sessions
• Coordinate with a near peer mentor to refine, deliver, and assess monthly curriculum
• Hold drop-in office hours to allow students to seek additional support
• Advise students on academic strategies, financial aid, and money management, engagement on campus and in the community, and career exploration
• Provide ongoing support around situations commonly faced by first-generation, low-income college students by helping students navigate challenges, focus on problem-solving techniques, and encourage them to locate campus resources
• In collaboration with the program manager, responsibly navigate significant persistence issues and career concerns facing our students
• Participate in program-wide events which may occur on evenings or weekends, and may require in-person presence
• Record student information and detailed case notes from interactions to provide personalized coaching conversations
• Support the collection and review of student documentation for assigned caseload of students
• Review and approve student payment requests
• Perform all other duties and tasks as assigned with an “all hands on deck” mindset

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree required, preferably in a counseling/social work-related field
• Professional experience or expertise and knowledge around issues facing first-generation, low-income college students, and comfort in engaging in direct communications with students
• Advanced proficiency in Office Suite, GSuite, and database management
• Must have excellent written communication skills
• Must be able to to hold sensitive information confidentially, and navigate urgent and/or sensitive student issues with care, maturity, and responsibility
• Must be able to perform all functions of this position within what would be deemed to be reasonable accommodations
• Must be able to communicate effectively with a variety of personalities throughout the organization
• Must be comfortable working in an anti-racist organization with a diverse group of external callers and visitors and internal staff at all levels

Preferred but not Required

• Bilingual (e.g. Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Tagalog)
• Knowledge of Basecamp and Airtable
• Professional experience in either college counseling, career counseling, or student coaching

Compensation and Benefits

Starting salary is commensurate with experience, and regional location, and is based on a competitive public interest salary scale.

ScholarMatch practices a transparent, negotiation-free salary process. While starting salary is commensurate with experience, regional location, and is based on a competitive public interest salary scale, ScholarMatch aims to provide a living wage to all staff by bringing them in at a starting salary of $50,000/year.

The salary range for this position is: $50,000 - $59,009

As a growing organization, ScholarMatch prides itself in offering a competitive benefits package:

• 100% paid medical, dental, vision, and Basic Term Life for full-time employees
• 401k retirement plan with 4% employer automatic contribution, 100% vested on day 1
• 20 accrued PTO days per year
• 13 paid holidays every year, Birthday off, plus a staff-wide 'winter break' with reduced workload
• “Summer Fridays” (half days)
• Annual retention bonus that increases with every year
• Eligibility for a one-month paid sabbatical after your 5th anniversary
• Pre-tax commuter benefits and FSA
• Phone and internet stipend
• Staff and dependent EAP access

How to Apply

Apply online through the career page: scholarmatch.org/careers

ScholarMatch does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors.

ScholarMatch is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.

Please join us!