Senior Manager, Communications and Outreach

Senior Manager, Communications and Outreach

George Mason University, University Career Services (USC), seeks a Senior Manager, Communications and Outreach. George Mason University has a strong institutional commitment to the achievement of excellence and diversity among its faculty and staff, and strongly encourages candidates to apply who will enrich Mason’s academic and culturally inclusive environment. 

About the Department:
University Career Services (UCS), a unit within the Division of University Life (UL), is the centralized career center serving 40,000 undergraduate and graduate students. UCS is dedicated to helping students identify and pursue opportunities where they can make a positive impact in a complex and quickly evolving world. In partnership with our strong network of employers, alumni, and faculty, we are able to break down barriers and successfully connect students with meaningful opportunities in their industries of interest to help them reach their full potential and advance not only themselves socio-economically, but their families too. Existing services and programs include one-on-one appointments, career exploration, industry specific programs, career fairs, experiential learning opportunities and graduate school preparation.

UCS core values: 1) Put students first, 2) Collaborate as a team, 3) Provide excellent service, 4) Embrace diversity and inclusion, 5) Educate and empower one another and 6) Demonstrate flexibility.

About the Position:
This position works closely with UCS leadership and program/event managers, as well as the University Life central marketing and communications team. The Senior Manager will supervise 2-4 part-time student employees supporting social media presence and outreach efforts. This position reports to the Associate Director, Programs and Outreach.

Responsibilities:
The Senior Manager of Communications and Outreach (Senior Manager) is responsible for the creation and distribution of effective career related communications to a diverse student body of ~40,000 students and the broader Mason community. Duties specifically include promoting events, services, resources, and career readiness concepts via targeted emails, social media campaigns, the careers.gmu.edu website, print materials and the Career Readiness Guide (annual publication) to current students and alumni. This role leads the UCS efforts to motivate undergraduate and graduate students to attend hiring events, career related workshops and use our job search resources, particularly first generation, non-traditional and BIPOC students.

The ideal candidate will enjoy both copy and content writing, seek a collaborative and dynamic work environment and be passionate about connecting students with vital career readiness information and resources. Experience and interest in writing for diverse audiences or creating inclusive content is a must. This position is eligible for telework for 1-2 days per week after 90 days and with supervisor approval. University Career Services offers a welcoming and flexible work environment that prioritizes staff well-being in a variety of ways and is strongly committed to equity and inclusion in the workplace.

Specific duties:

• Act as a subject matter expert to create, improve and maintain relevant copy and content across platforms and communications delivery modes: email, social media, web content and Career Readiness Guide (career/job search workbook);
• Write and edit copy for customized, targeted marketing emails (4-6 each week) sent to Mason students through our career management system (i.e. Handshake) promoting UCS events, services and key messages;
• Develop and manage sustainable improvement strategy for content on a large, information-rich website (careers.gmu.edu), including search engine optimization (SEO) for landing pages;
• Manage (hire, train, supervise and evaluate) 2-4 student employees responsible for social media/outreach;
• Manage and direct traffic for the UCS email marketing calendar and social media schedule, prioritizing as needed;
• Develop and maintain an assessment strategy for web content (e.g. Google analytics), email marketing (within Handshake) and social media platforms (Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn);
• Perform content audits and gap analyses as needed;
• Develop relationships with communicators across the university to leverage opportunities for cross-promotion;
• Collaborate with vendors for graphics/printing of Career Readiness Guide, including sponsors/advertiser; and
• Support staffing needs for large-scale events (e.g. career fairs, orientation), both in person and virtually.

Required Qualifications:

• Master’s degree or equivalent combination of relevant education and experience (BA/BS/BFA + 5 years);
• Considerable (generally 3-5 years) professional experience, and some experience (generally 2-3 years) related to marketing, communications, writing, editing, outreach, membership services or constituent relations;
• Demonstrated copy writing experience, including ability to write and edit email and web-based targeted marketing communications that produce results;
• Experience with various social media platforms (e.g. Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.), scheduling tools (e.g. AirTable, Hootsuite) and social media assessment strategies;
• Experience with search engine optimization and SEO writing techniques;
• Proven ability to design and implement targeted marketing campaigns across platforms;
• Familiar with Google analytics and/or other mechanisms to evaluate outreach effectiveness;
• Previous experience successfully collaborating with cross-functional teams and colleagues with limited experience/understanding of marketing concepts and practices; and
• Proficient in Microsoft Office, AP style, grammar and efficient writing practices.

Preferred Qualifications:

• 2-3 years of experience marketing events and services to higher education students, particularly first generation, non-traditional and BIPOC students;
• Ability to learn or further develop best practices for writing for diverse audiences and contributing to an inclusive work environment;
• Extreme attention to detail with respect to content accuracy and grammatical correctness;
• Interest and confidence in serving as the main communications professional within a department of 20+ employees;
• Previous experience managing or supervising undergraduate or graduate student employees;
• Known for anticipating needs and being solution-oriented;
• Comfortable receiving feedback and addressing changes through both written and live edits;
• Demonstrated effective and advanced organizational skills and proven ability to keep teams of collaborators on schedule; and
• Experience with Drupal, WordPress, and/or Handshake.

Special Instructions to Applicants: 

For full consideration, applicants must apply at https://jobs.gmu.edu/ complete and submit the online application; and upload a cover letter, resume, several writing samples (e.g., copy for marketing emails, web content, outreach messages, etc.), and a list of three professional references with contact information.

Equity Statement: 

George Mason University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, committed to promoting inclusion and equity in its community. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any characteristic protected by law.