Director, Enrollment Management
A Director of Enrollment Management leads recruitment teams toward enrollment goals while owning budgets, forecasts, and team development across programs and campuses. This is a sample job description from Excelon Associates, modeled on a health sciences graduate school role, that you can adapt as a template for your own enrollment leadership hire.
What does a Director of Enrollment Management do?
Under minimal supervision, the Director manages, coaches, and develops Enrollment Managers and their teams toward meeting goals within defined programs and campuses. The role carries real ownership: meeting and exceeding departmental budgets, accurately forecasting team goals and targets, and managing the team to forecast results.
The Director ensures clear communication across all university teams, including Business Development, Marketing, Student Services, Academics, and Clinical Education. They bring strategic thinking to upper management on new initiatives and process improvements, and earn respect and confidence at every level of the organization through clear communication, vision, and direction.
Enrollment management is the coordinated set of strategies a school uses to attract, recruit, and enroll qualified students. A Director of Enrollment Management leads the people and processes behind that effort, combining pipeline forecasting and budget discipline with the leadership needed to build high-performing recruitment teams.
Where does this role sit?
What are the primary duties and responsibilities?
- Provide strategic oversight to enrollment advising teams to nurture leads, improve brand awareness, and increase enrollment of qualified students, and develop budget plans to meet and exceed organizational goals.
- Develop and implement strategies for growth and identify new activities to promote growth in assigned areas, including programs to counter competitive activity.
- Provide leadership, motivation, and direction for student recruitment.
- Recruit, train, and develop Enrollment Managers and Enrollment Advisors.
- Ensure a successful partnership between inside enrollment and field teams and meet company strategic objectives.
- Develop a culture of team and individual accountability to ensure high-quality, consultative relationship building with potential students.
- Execute performance reviews for each manager and approve reviews for representatives, and coach, train, and counsel team members.
- Work with leaders to develop best practices, and act as a key partner to administration, faculty, and staff.
- Serve on assigned committees and teams within the organization.
- Drive clear communication among all internal teams and communicate new policies and changes that impact the business.
- Assist in assigned business reviews and provide information for the budgeting process.
- Calculate and analyze business operations, including management of the enrollment pipeline, to accurately predict future enrollments, with profit and loss moderation and budget planning required.
- Manage 100 percent compliance with all regulatory requirements.
What qualifications are required?
Education. Bachelor’s degree required; master’s preferred. Prior fiscal budget responsibility and proven performance managing and directing remote teams.
Experience. Minimum 5 to 7 years in customer service, consultative relationship building, and management, with at least 3 years at the director level and a record of strategic planning and process improvement.
- Prior experience with strategic planning, process improvement, and guiding teams to exceed goals.
- Strong leadership, organizational ability, and communication skills.
- Excellent project management skills with the ability to work in a fast-paced environment.
- Prior experience with CRM systems used to build, predict, and manage accurate forecasts and pipelines.
- Working knowledge of the Microsoft Office suite and internet applications.
What leadership competencies matter most?
Collaborates
Building partnerships and working collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.
Being Resilient
Rebounding from setbacks and adversity when facing difficult situations.
Instills Trust
Gaining the confidence and trust of others through honesty, integrity, and authenticity.
Drives Results
Consistently achieving results, even under tough circumstances.
Innovation
Creating new and better ways for the organization to be successful.
Customer Focus
Building strong customer relationships and delivering customer-centric solutions.
Drives Engagement
Creating a climate where people are motivated to do their best for the organization.
People Leadership
Leading by example in finding and developing talent and setting clear performance targets.
A hiring note from Excelon
The best enrollment directors understand that their team is not selling seats; they are guiding people toward decisions that will shape their careers. That perspective, paired with operational discipline and genuine leadership ability, is what separates the directors who hit their numbers from the ones who build something durable.
Strong enrollment leadership lives at the intersection of accurate forecasting and the human judgment to coach a team through it.
Frequently asked questions
What experience is required for a Director of Enrollment Management?
This sample role calls for 5 to 7 years in customer service, consultative relationship building, and management, with at least 3 years at the director level. Strategic planning and process improvement experience are expected at this level.
Is a master’s degree required?
A bachelor’s degree is required and a master’s degree is preferred. Prior fiscal budget responsibility and a proven record managing and directing remote teams matter as much as the credential.
How much travel does the role involve?
Up to 50 percent travel to US campuses. Enrollment leadership is relationship-driven, so regular in-person time with field teams and campus partners is part of the job.
Who does the Director of Enrollment Management report to?
The Director reports to the Vice President of Enrollment Management and supervises Enrollment Managers, Enrollment Outreach Coordinators, Enrollment Advisors, and an Enrollment Operations Specialist.
What makes a strong enrollment management director?
The strongest directors pair operational discipline, such as accurate pipeline forecasting and budget management, with genuine leadership ability. They treat recruitment as guiding people toward a career decision rather than filling seats.
Need to hire a Director of Enrollment Management?
Excelon Associates recruits enrollment management and student recruitment leaders for higher education institutions and health sciences graduate schools nationwide. Retained executive search since 2007, headquartered in Asheville, NC.
Excelon does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, marital or veteran status, disability, age, or any other characteristic protected by law.
More Sample Job Descriptions
Templates you can adapt for your own roles.