Job Title
Financial Aid Advisor I - Advising

Agency
Texas A&M University

Department
Academic Affairs Recruiting Office

Proposed Minimum Salary
Commensurate

Job Location
College Station, Texas

Job Type
Staff

Job Description

Our Commitment

Texas A&M University is committed to enriching the learning and working environment for all visitors, students, faculty, and staff by promoting a culture that embraces inclusion, diversity, equity, and accountability. Diverse perspectives, talents and identities are vital to accomplishing our mission and living our core values .

Who we are

The mission of Scholarships & Financial Aid is to provide students and their families with information and financial resources to attend Texas A&M University, along with support programs that promote higher education and developmental opportunities. We administer scholarships and financial aid, which include the following programs: grants, student loans, student employment, veteran educational benefits, athletic aid coordination, short-term loans, and emergency tuition and fee loans. In addition our office provides advising on the programs listed above. Our office also assist students in gaining financial literacy knowledge through our Money Education Center. Our office is responsible for processing student aid and veteran educational benefits for College Station, Galveston, all Health Science Center sites and Qatar which totaled approximately $836 million in financial aid assistance for the prior academic year.

The Academic Affairs Recruiting Office assisted with the creation and posting of this job requisition for Scholarships & Financial Aid .

What we want

We are looking for an individual who enjoys learning and helping students find solutions to pay for college. The ideal candidate is innovative, pays close attention to detail and has experience supporting, advising or working with college students. The successful candidate is analytical, strives to see the big picture, works well independently to complete tasks and fosters relationships with team members. If you enjoy thinking of new ideas to provide excellent service to customers or better ways to complete a project, we invite you to apply to be considered for this position.

The Financial Aid Advisor I is responsible for counseling and providing scholarship and student financial aid information to currently enrolled or prospective students and their parents via in person, phone, email and/or appointment. Serves as back up walk-in Advisor and a call center agent as needed providing financial aid and scholarship information. Learns to use professional judgment to solve financial aid problems and refer students to University resources.

Required Education and Experience:

• Bachelor's degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience

Required Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Ability to meet deadlines and maintain a high level of accuracy, professionalism and a customer service orientation.
• Working knowledge of word processing and spreadsheet programs.
• Ability to work individually or as a team in a dynamic organization.
• Good interpersonal communication skills.
• Must be literate in the English language and able to comprehend, give and follow both written and verbal instructions.
• Ability to organize and make decisions.
• Ability to relate well with a diverse student population.
• Ability to work well under pressure.
• Ability to use tact, diplomacy and judgment in dealing with all customers.
• Ability to multi-task and work cooperatively with others.

Other Requirements:

Must comply with Texas A&M System Policy 07.02 Texas Higher Education Fair Lending Practices. Must be in good standing on all Federal Student Loans. The U.S. Dept. of Education will not grant access to student loan data for any individual who is in default status. Access to such information is a necessity for this position. Must be able to rectify default status within three months of employment. Good standing must be maintained for continued employment.

Preferred Education and Experience:

• Some experience in processing, customer service, planning, organizing, or in higher education

Preferred Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Knowledge of current versions of Microsoft products, including Windows and Office
• Knowledge of Financial Aid or Student Information Systems
• Bilingual in Spanish
• Knowledge of financial aid counseling, verification, rules and regulations
• Background in general office conditions with much time spent in contact with students
• Ability to develop and make presentations
• Knowledge and experience in an enrollment management area focusing on outreach and/or retention

Salary Range: $17.31 hourly

Responsibilities:

• Uses discretion and independent judgment to advise and counsel students, parents, and/or prospective students in solving their educational financial questions through scholarships, loans, grants, employment and financial counseling
• Learns to serve as an Advisor for in person and/or phone appointments, as well as back up for the walk in Advisor
• Assists students and their families with inquiries regarding federal, state, and institutional financial aid forms, records, procedures, and policies
• Learns to respond to questions and counseling needs via phone, in-person, and by email means from currently enrolled students, prospective students, and parents
• Learns to assist outreach staff with prospective students and in their transition to current TAMU students
• Learns to assist with reviews for professional judgment of student files, making adjustments as needed
• Learns to review Satisfactory Academic Progress appeals and makes decisions regarding the validity of these appeals
• Learns to provide loan and indebtedness counseling to students on an individual and group basis as needed
• Learns to award, revise, and/or approve the awarding of financial aid through the specific controls of program policy and guidelines
• Learns to make adjustments if necessary for compliance issues and submits the corrections through mainframe correction process or submits through FAA Access
• Learns to interpret and maintain knowledge of current federal, state, and institutional policies, procedures, and regulations pertaining to financial aid, student employment, and scholarships
• Attends departmental and other training
• Understands how outreach and early awareness staff interact with CS staff and works with outreach staff to transition students from prospective to currently enrolled TAMU students
• Learns to use independent judgment to provide support to colleges and departments as needed
• May be assigned as a liaison to a college or department
• Learns to assist in developing and revising financial aid consumer information material, publications, and brochures for currently enrolled students, prospective students and their parents, colleges, departments, and university use
• Learns to participate in review, revision, and interpretation of complex rules, regulations, procedures, and policies relating to general financial aid, scholarships, and team specialty area(s)
• Participates in and may lead departmental work groups
• Performs other duties as assigned

Instructions to Applicants: Applications received by Texas A&M University and TAMHSC, must either have all job application data entered or a resume attached. Failure to provide all job application data or a complete resume could result in an invalid submission and a rejected application. We encourage all applicants to upload a resume or use a LinkedIn profile to pre-populate the online application.

All positions are security-sensitive. Applicants are subject to a criminal history investigation, and employment is contingent upon the institution's verification of credentials and/or other information required by the institution's procedures, including the completion of the criminal history check.

Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action/Veterans/Disability Employer committed to diversity.


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