Financial Aid Counselor - Traditional

Job Summary
The Financial Aid Counselor acts as an educational financial planner and guides students in creating a financial plan for account coverage during students’ educational tracks through outreach and thorough communication. Additionally, they are tasked with ensuring students have an understanding of billing and aid processes and concepts.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Provide information and outreach (in person, on the telephone, and through electronic methods) to prospective and current students regarding student financial aid, account balance, and registration status - working primarily with the WWU Traditional population.
• Provides information regarding available financial aid opportunities, eligibility requirements, and the application process. Assist in students’ completion of these task in conjuncture with the other financial services staff.
• Organize and maintain financial clearance records to ensure goals are achieved on the number of students with approved clearance prior to the start of their courses each term.
• Maintains informational sources (websites/brochures/etc) available to students, parents, and/or other interested parties on financial aid policy and procedure.
• Responds to inquiries and researches and resolves problems related to account billing or financial aid.
• Works with other campus departments to ensure new and continuing students are progressing from term to term as desired.
• Other duties as assigned.

Position Requirements:

Education & Experience: Professional experience in higher education financial services and a bachelor’s degree are preferred, but not required.

Knowledge, Abilities & Skills:

• Excellent attention to detail
• Demonstrated ability to work within a team environment
• Set priorities and deadlines, ensure projects are completed and respond to questions/problems in a timely manner, organize resources to meet program goals, reason logically, evaluate complex data, and recommend effective courses of actions
• Demonstrated experience working effectively with diverse populations and in conjunction with other professionals, as well as knowledge of counseling/advising techniques and standards and practices of student services within institutions of higher education
• Excellent interpersonal, written, and oral communication skills
• Ability to work with students in solving problems and planning a strategy for success in achieving the academic goals
• Ability to work independently under general supervision
• Ability to update, revise and develop new procedures related to changing tasks
• Ability to perform complex assignments under the pressure of pending deadlines
• Ability to maintain confidentiality in accordance with FERPA and financial aid ethics

Preferred Qualifications:

• Increased levels of professional responsibility and involvement in the delivery of financial aid programs to students, i.e., development of written procedures to comply with federal and state laws and regulations, as well as university and division policies
• Knowledge of federal, state and institutional financial aid regulations
• Experience with the use of integrated software for financial aid programs
• Knowledge of StudentAid.gov and other US Department of Education systems and websites.

Pay: $17.00 - $18.00 per hour

Benefits:

• Dental insurance
• Employee assistance program
• Flexible spending account
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Paid time off
• Referral program
• Tuition reimbursement
• Vision insurance

Work Location: In person