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I moved from NY to NC about a year and a half ago.

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Anonymous

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I moved from NY to NC about a year and a half ago. While in NY, I worked at a local community college. I was a Program Assistant for seven years and I loved my job. Although my role was primarily viewed as Administrative Support, I had many opportunities to work with the students in my department. Since I moved to NC, I have been trying to get another position working directly with college students. Ideally, as an Advisor or Student Support Services, but I would even be willing to start in Financial Aid or Registration. Despite having applied for several similar positons, I have not been able to land a position. Since I can't change my career history, is there anything else I can do in the meantime to make me a more desireable candidate? (I forgot to mention, I have a Bachelor's Degree in Social Work.)

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  1. Anonymous

    Are there counseling certifications you could complete?

  2. Susanne Thomas

    There are actually programs in higher education counseling. Maybe you could look into that.

  3. Bosslady593206

    I would suggest looking at the various online universities that serve adult students. They are often work from home opportunities and still allow you to serve a student population.

  4. Anonymous

    I work at a university as well. The roles you are applying to generally require a Master's degree in higher ed. Although you have the background, universities in my area are getting more and more strict about having a Master's degree and the appropriate background. You might have to apply for lower level jobs to get your foot in the door.

  5. S.

    Have you thought of taking any relevant courses on Coursera or Udemy? There are many options out there that could help give you the boost you need.

  6. Sue Gordon- retired Career Coach

    Many advisor positions require a masters, and even if they don't, you'll be competing with those who do have a masters or above.
    Look into higher ed administration masters programs. It will help in the long term- and perhaps in the short term when employers see that you are enrolled. Many programs are online, plus NC is university heavy-perhaps there are even in-person programs near you.

    An option is to focus your search on schools with tuition remission and a relevant masters- get the bachelor's level job, then get the masters to advance. Keep at it- it does sound like you have good experience so it may just be a matter of time.

  7. Anonymous

    Thank you. I will look into that. :)

  8. Anonymous

    Hi! I’ve worked at 2 universities in NC (opposite ends of the state) as an academic advisor. I will say that both schools have required masters for the advising positions. Since you don’t have a masters, I would look at Student Support Specialist roles within UNC system schools. Sometimes these are housed in academic departments, student services departments, etc. If you are a permanent full-time employee of an UNC system school, you will have the opportunity to get 3 tuition waivers an academic year and can use that to get your masters. I know Appalachian State has an online program in higher ed that is relatively “affordable”. The Student Support Specialist role will give you direct experience while you get your masters (usually about half paid for!) and then you can move into an advisor type role.

  9. Anonymous

    I wanted to also add that the Student Support Specialist roles do not usually require a masters. I would encourage you to apply to as many roles as you think would be a good fit. After being on hiring committees, pools can be very strong or super weak and there’s no rhyme or reason as to when it happens. Best of luck!

  10. Anonymous

    Thank you!

    I will definitely look into that.

  11. Mara Jevera Fulmer

    Have you thought about completing your MSW? Many institutions are adding more wrap-around services that require an MSW to lead. And, as others have said, Academic Advisors in higher ed more often than not have graduate degrees. You could become more familiar with the field by reviewing NACADA's website and their resources: https://nacada.ksu.edu/Resources/Clearinghouse/profdev.aspx

    As for counseling, that's not the same as advising in higher ed. You'll need to be a licensed professional counselor.

  12. Jacqueline McDowell

    I live in Pilot Mountain.

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