Head of Admissions

Stanford's Graduate School of Business (GSB) has built a global reputation based on its immersive and innovative management programs.
We provide students a transformative leadership experience, pushing the boundaries of knowledge with faculty research, and offering a portfolio of entrepreneurial and non-degree programs that deliver global impact like no other.
We are committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in service of our mission of developing innovative, principled, and insightful leaders who change lives, change organizations, and change the world.
We invite you to be part of this mission.
The Graduate School of Business seeks a Head of Admissions to oversee the MBA and MSx Program Admissions and the GSB financial aid.
This role with be overseeing the strategy and vision for the MBA and MSx Program Admissions process, which includes establishing overall objectives and developing long range plans for a critical organization within the school.
The Head of Admissions will lead the MBA and MSx Admissions teams to attract, recruit, select, and enroll high-potential MBA and MSx students each year.
This leader will build classes for the next generation of leaders globally which will include a class of approximately 400 students for the traditional GSB MBA program and 80 for the MSx program (FKA Sloan).
This includes marketing the school's MBA and MSx programs to prospective applicants, leading the process of selecting students to be admitted to the programs, overseeing activities to attract accepted students to enroll in the school, and all aspects of financial aid at the GSB.
The job also involves liaising with other GSB leaders, cross-functional areas, and other Stanford schools to implement this vision and strategy.
The ideal candidate will have a passion for professional education, understand the prospective applicant and student experience, and will be inclined to passionately nurture a well established and high performing team to sustain our deliberate standards of excellence.
This is a highly visible role and the second most public face for Stanford GSB behind the Dean.
It will be important for this candidate to exhibit strong communication skills and executive presence.
Your primary responsibilities* will include: Provide strategic direction for MBA and MSx Admissions and GSB Financial Aid, including responsibility for supporting programs, budget, facilities, and staff.
Serve as Ambassador for the GSB, developing marketing strategy and communications to a broad group of stakeholders, including prospects, applicants, admitted students, current students, faculty, staff, and press.
Direct outreach activities, empowering the admissions team to deliver hundreds of events for thousands of prospects globally.
Serve as senior advisor to the dean on programmatic and policy development.
Provide counsel and collaborate with senior leadership in long range planning and policy development for the school.
Recommend new internal policies, guidelines and procedures.
Direct and manage the work of 25-40 continuing and contingent staff.
Develop those in leadership positions and their talent pipeline: make hiring decisions, provide coaching and mentoring, manage performance, determine staffing needs, develop and ensure succession.
In the financial aid process, optimize fellowship funding across GSB programs and provide exceptional financial support to students.
Ensure compliance with legal, financial, university, academic and administrative policies and external regulations.
Manage exceptions to university / school policies and procedures; determine appropriate response to settle grievances.
Partner with key individuals from across the organization to determine new and ongoing business and technology initiatives.
Direct complex, high-visibility process redesign and innovation projects.
Champion major initiatives, develop and drive implementation.
Lead Admissions Committee, providing strategic direction and guidance for selecting the class.
This includes developing evaluation criteria, training admissions committee members and conducting over 1,000 interviews in aggregate.
Similar to financial aid, there are ongoing regulatory developments that require consideration.
Lead enrollment efforts, empowering alumni, students, staff, and faculty to welcome and educate admitted students.
Other relevant duties may also be assigned.
To be successful in this position, you will bring: Bachelor’s degree and ten years of relevant experience, or combination of education and relevant experience.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities: Communications Excellence: At ease with being the “on camera” representative of the institution, able to clearly and effectively communicate information to a wide array of internal and external audiences.
Able to present data in a manner that enables clear understanding of interests and options.
Ability to facilitate candid discussion of details and adjust thinking.
Analytical Strength: Proven success and rigor in reviewing and analyzing complex marketing, talent and financial data to inform strategy and decisions.
Includes experience with significant and complex budgetary / financial management.
Understanding of underlying technological needs and requirements.
Operational Leadership: Proven success as an inclusive leader and managing complex operations.
Ability to establish credibility and effective working relationships across the organization.
Superior ability to exercise judgment, discretion, and initiative in managing multiple broad-impact projects.
Success creating processes that accelerate decisions and bring initiatives to closure.
Relationship Skills: Extensive interpersonal, negotiation and political acumen with the ability to cultivate strong collaborative relationships.
Knowledge of protocol and careful attention to detail when handling sensitive topics with members of academia, business, and the public.
Institutional Affinity: Knowledge of policy development and processes in academia and able to maneuver its complexity.
Understanding and appreciation for regulatory compliance.
Ability to foster a collaborative and inclusive environment that is respectful of people and encourages and values diverse points of view in the service to our core mission of education and research.
Flexibility: Energy, resilience and good humor.
Ability to commit to seasonal schedules requiring evenings and weekends, and flexibility to travel regionally and internationally.
The expected pay range for this position is $175,000 to $275,000 per year.
Stanford University provides pay ranges representing its good faith estimate of what the university reasonably expects to pay for a position.
The pay offered to a selected candidate will be determined based on factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the qualifications of the selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal equity, geographic location and external market pay for comparable jobs.
At Stanford University, base pay represents only one aspect of the comprehensive rewards package.
The Cardinal at Work website (https://cardinalatwork.
stanford.
edu/benefits-rewards) provides detailed information on Stanford’s extensive range of benefits and rewards offered to employees.
Specifics about the rewards package for this position may be discussed during the hiring process.
Why Stanford is for You Stanford’s dedicated 16,000 staff come from diverse educational and career backgrounds.
We are a collaborative environment that thrives on innovation and continuous improvement.
At Stanford, we seek talent committed to excellence, driven to impact the future of our legacy, and improve lives on a global sphere.
We provide competitive salaries, excellent health care and retirement plans, and a generous vacation policy, including additional time off during our winter closure.
Our generous perks align with what matters to you: Freedom to grow.
Take advantage of career development programs, tuition reimbursement, or audit a course.
Join a TedTalk, film screening, or listen to a renowned author or leader discuss global issues.
A caring culture.
We understand the importance of your personal and family time and provide you access to wellness programs, child-care resources, parent education and consultation, elder care and caregiving support.
A healthier you.
We make wellness a priority by providing access to world-class exercise facilities.
Climb our rock wall, or participate in one of hundreds of health or fitness classes.
Discovery and fun.
Visit campus gardens, trails, and museums.
Enviable resources.
We offer free commuter programs and ridesharing incentives.
Enjoy discounts for computers, cell phones, recreation, travel, entertainment, and more! We pride ourselves in being a culture that encourages and empowers you.
How to Apply We invite you to apply for this position by clicking on the “Apply for Job” button.
To be considered, please submit a cover letter and résumé along with your online application.
*The job duties listed are typical examples of work performed by positions in this job classification and are not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, tasks, and responsibilities.
Specific duties and responsibilities may vary depending on department or program needs without changing the general nature and scope of the job or level of responsibility.
Employees may also perform other duties as assigned.
Consistent with its obligations under the law, the University will provide reasonable accommodation to any employee with a disability who requires accommodation to perform the essential functions of his or her job.
Stanford is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer.
All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.