College Counselor

Mercy High School, Burlingame

Position Description Job Title: College Counselor Department: Counseling

Reports To: Counseling Department Chair and Assistant Head of School for Academics FLSA Status: Exempt/Salaried Employee Prepared By: Natalie Cirigliano-Brosnan

Preparation Date: February 2024 Summary: Within the context of the tradition and charism of the Sisters of Mercy, supportive of the Mission and Values of Mercy High School and Catholic Church teachings and doctrine, the College Counselor reports to the Assistant Head of School for Academics and the Counseling Department Chair and is responsible for supporting the college counseling needs of our community by providing a program which focuses on the major aspects of the career counseling and college planning/placement process. With a goal of 100% college acceptance, the College Counselor works in coordination with various stakeholders to assist students in discovering their strengths and interests and finding institutions of higher learning that will meet these interests, strengths, and values.

The College Counselor designs and directs a program of activities to assist students with college planning, including academic preparation for college, meeting both graduation and college acceptance requirements, college searches, school and financial aid applications, scholarship searches, testing, recommendations, and transition to college. Qualifications: The College Counselor should provide leadership and college counseling oversight. To perform the job successfully, the individual should be able to lead with a gentle firmness, displaying compassion and empathy while treating all stakeholders with dignity. The individual should be a strong colleague who communicates with warmth and transparency, honors confidentiality and sees great value in the parent-school partnership. The College Counselor must enjoy working with teenagers, have a desire to support young women through tremendous life experiences and growth opportunities, have a passion and ability to build meaningful relationships with students and parents and have the ability to vision and develop college programming for young women. The College Counselor must possess the ability to perform as part of a team and have excellent interpersonal skills; have excellent written and verbal communication skills and the ability to work with a wide range of audiences; needs strong organizational skills and be detail-oriented, with the ability to multitask and meet multiple deadlines; meet challenges with a sense of humor and a “can do it” attitude. To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. In addition, the person should have the following experience and/or education to perform the job successfully: An individual must have related administrative experience in a high school setting, a combination of high school and college experience within the college application experience, and/or other related areas of the job description. The ideal candidate will have at least three years of experience in independent school college counseling or college admissions.

A Bachelor’s degree is required. Essential Duties and Responsibilities include the following: ● Exhibit a passion for counseling students with a variety of academic and extracurricular talents ● Commit to treating all students and their families with dignity and compassion ● Work with the entire student body on the college acceptance process, with the greatest emphasis on the junior and senior classes ● Work collaboratively with the counseling team to ensure students are knowledgeable of how to be strong applicants for various college and career pathways; Supports academic counselors, Assistant Head of School, and AMES with course selection and college eligibility ● Oversee college recommendation and transcript process via Naviance; work collaboratively with the faculty and staff to ensure students are receiving strong recommendations ● Complete high-quality letters of recommendation for each senior student ● Be well-versed on the college admission landscape and current trends; be comfortable with data analysis and data management platforms ● Supervise a college visit series for all students; Build and maintain strong relationships with college representatives and officials ● Attend various conferences to maintain professional growth ● Oversees data collection and acknowledgment of awards, scholarships, etc. ● Update NCAA portal with transcripts and course lists. ● Host parent college informational workshops ● Ensure a strong and informative college counseling program is offered to parents and students, educating them on the various college application pieces over the four-year high school experience ● Serves as the primary resource for college information for students, parents, and faculty, and staff ● Serve as Testing Coordinator for AP, SAT, and ACT ● Respond to the many less tangible needs students and parents have to learn and grow within the college admissions process ● Additional duties that arise and are deemed necessary Computer Skills: To perform the job successfully, an individual should have a working knowledge of Google Suite and comfort in using academic apps and technological tools such as NoRedInk, PearDeck, etc.

Physical Demands: The physical demands described are representative of those that must be met by an individual to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the job duties, the individual is regularly required to talk or hear. The individual is frequently required to walk, sit, use hands to finger, handle, or feel, and reach with hands and arms. The individual is occasionally required to stand, stoop, or kneel. The individual needs to move from the main school building to lower campus. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close and distance vision.

Work Environment: The work environment characteristics described are representative of those an individual encounters while performing the job's essential functions. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the job duties, the individual is occasionally exposed to outside weather conditions while walking from the main building to the lower campus. The noise level in the work environment is usually quiet. Must also be able to attend occasional meetings in late afternoons or evenings.

Salary is commensurate with experience and education of the applicant (Range $75,000-115,000).

Send resume and cover letter to: Lynn Beal at lbeal@mercyhsb.com. If emailing, please use the subject line “ College Counselor.”

STATEMENT OF NON-DISCRIMINATION All school staff of Catholic schools of the Archdiocese of San Francisco shall be employed without regard to race, color, sex, ethnic or national origin and will consider for employment, qualified applicants with criminal histories. (Administrative Handbook #4111.4)

Job Type: Full-time

Pay: $75,000.00 - $115,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• 401(k)
• Dental insurance
• Health insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision insurance

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

Ability to Relocate:

• Burlingame, CA 94010: Relocate before starting work (Required)

Work Location: In person