For more than 150 years, the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) has been a leader in educating the world’s most influential artists, designers and scholars. Located in downtown Chicago with a fine arts graduate program consistently ranking among the top four graduate fine arts programs in the nation by U.S. News and World Report, SAIC provides an interdisciplinary approach to art and design as well as world-class resources, including the Art Institute of Chicago museum, on-campus galleries and state-of-the-art facilities. SAIC’s undergraduate, graduate and post-baccalaureate students have the freedom to take risks and create the bold ideas that transform Chicago and the world—as seen through notable alumni and faculty such as Michelle Grabner, David Sedaris, Elizabeth Murray, Richard Hunt, Georgia O’Keeffe, Cynthia Rowley, Nick Cave, and LeRoy Neiman.

• Collaborate with Admissions and departments in helping incoming graduate students select courses.
• Prepare and discuss degree-audits and requirements, course add/drops, course withdrawal, transfer of credits, graduation requirements as well as course and/or instructor concerns.
• Where needed, advise students on personal, health, financial and academic issues related to their overall experience and satisfaction.
• Work directly with faculty and department representatives as well as staff throughout campus to support students in realizing their academic and personal goals.

• Run reports through EAB Navigate, determine which students have not been retained and/or graduated, verify with Department Chairs. Identify reasons a students has not re-enrolled and serve as a conduit between graduate students and Student Affairs, Student Financial Services, and other SAIC administrative offices.

• Meet with students who are considering taking a Leave of Absence (LOA) or returning from a LOA to explain policies and procedures.
• Manage the Grad Student LOA process by reviewing requests from students, connecting to the appropriate department to determine if the student is eligible to return and processing the Leave or Reinstatement in PeopleSoft and other systems.

• Assist Student Affairs with Graduate Academic Standing; including term-by-term processing, reporting, and sending communications to students.

• Work with students holistically, understanding there are many barriers to academic success. Connect students to appropriate resources including but not limited to: Dean on Call, Student Affairs, Wellness Center, Student Financial Services, and financial resources such as the Food Pantry. Follow up with students who identify these types of concerns to make sure they have connected to resources. Work with SAIC’s Care Manager and other staff to liaise with faculty when a graduate student is hospitalized or have other personal/emotional concerns that impact their ability to attend class and/or to be successful.

• Effectively communicate with students, including utilizing good listening skills. Be responsive to student emails and concerns, and appropriately involve others to assist with student communication. Maintain regular contact with appropriate resources to ensure effective delivery of academic advising for graduate students. Communicate student issues and crises to Graduate Dean and Graduate Associate Dean and/or Office of Student Affairs staff as appropriate. Work collaboratively with faculty and staff to ensure student success.

• Support the Graduate Division, Office of Registration and Records, and other key stakeholders in the oversight of graduate-specific policies and procedures, including review of existing procedures, revision to improve function, and implementing new policies and procedures which strengthen graduate education/graduate student experiences/outcomes. Collaborate with the Undergraduate Division, Academic Advising, and other institutional partners on School-level policies and procedures that impact graduate students.

• Assist with the operation of advising-related software/technology, especially PeopleSoft, Navigate, and be familiar with other tools as appropriate (e.g. Portfolium, SlideRoom, Canvas, etc.)

• Standing (25%), sitting (50%)
• Some evening work

• Master’s Degree
• Experience working in academic advising, student affairs, or related field
• Preferred candidate has experience working with and supporting graduate students
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively with a wide range of constituencies in a diverse community of artists, designers and scholars
• Strong communication skills – both verbally and in writing
• Ability to collaborate with faculty and staff as well as a strong sense of congeniality
• Sensitive to the needs of a diverse, urban, artist population
• Proficiency for using technology (e.g. Student Information Systems) as tools in advising and a willingness to develop additional proficiency in additional tools as needed

We offer a competitive, comprehensive benefits package:

• Generous paid time off
• Paid holidays (up to 14 days)
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Generous parental, caregiver, and medical leave benefits
• Competitive retirement plan (up to 9% matching contribution)
• Tuition remission and Tuition Exchange Program
• Great employee discounts
• Complimentary general admission to participating cultural institutions

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The Art Institute of Chicago requires all applicants to complete an online application to be considered for employment. 60 minutes are allotted for applicants to complete the employment application. The application will automatically time out after 60 minutes. If you are unable to submit the completed application at this time, please choose the "Save for Later" option to avoid losing the information you have entered so far.

The Art Institute of Chicago is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits, hires and promotes qualified individuals without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, national origin, ancestry, veteran status or citizenship. The Institute complies with federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, please contact the Department of Human Resources at apply_help@artic.edu.