Student Financial Services Operations and Counselor

About Alvernia University

Alvernia University was founded in 1958 by the Bernardine Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis. Through its main campus in Reading and locations in Philadelphia and Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, the university serves 3,000 students of diverse backgrounds from around the country.

Alvernia offers a unique blend of rigorous liberal arts core education for the development of the mind, strong technical training in many high-demand majors, experiential learning through study abroad and internship experiences, and engagement with the community through our Franciscan-based community service model. We call our model of transformational education the Alvernia Advantage, and we believe this style of education transforms students into ethical leaders with moral courage.

Alvernia University ranks in the top 100 among 2021 Best Regional Universities in the North by U.S. News & World Report, and we are recognized as a College of Distinction for our commitment to engaged experiential education.

Job Summary:

Reporting to the Senior Director, the SFS Operations & Counselor is a highly motivated professional who is responsible for maintaining knowledge base and of federal, state, university and institutional student aid funding as well as regulations and procedures. This individual must possess the ability to work well with students, faculty, and staff at all levels within a diverse, multicultural, and collaborative environment. This individual must possess excellent attention to detail, a process-improvement focus, good training, analytical and documentation skills, as well as the ability to provide systems and operational support to the SFS Office to assist with system oversite, including data integration, creating, and maintaining scheduled events in PowerFaids such as anticipated aid, aid disbursement. In addition, this individual will work collaboratively with the Associate Director of Student Financial Services and other staff members to counsel students and parents regarding financial aid awarding/packaging, verification, need analysis, and financial aid/financing options to assist with educational costs as well as evaluate and first year and returning student financial aid eligibility. This individual is also a liaison between the SFS Office and other departments on campus, including Undergraduate Admissions, Graduate and Adult Education, as well as Student Activities and Residence Life as necessary. Organizational skills as well as a demonstrated ability to protect confidential records and communications are a must, along with strong computer and software skills and some evening, weekend and travel will be required.

Essential Functions:

* Promote Franciscan ideals and adherence to the Mission of the University as demonstrated by the University Ideal Characteristics. As we are an equal opportunity employer committed to Franciscan values, all employees share responsibility for advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the performance of their roles while demonstrating service orientation, respect for all, intellectual curiosity, solution focus and innovation, and mutual accountability * Maintain strict confidentiality of all activities in the Office of Student Financial Services * Provide excellent customer service and support to the Office of Student Financial Services * Assure consistent application of office policy & procedure * Respond to questions, requests for financial aid, student account, and Registrar information in person, by phone & email * Financial Aid Counseling of prospective and current students/families regarding financial aid options * Responsible for responding to routine financial aid, student account, and academic questions and concerns * Assist with monitoring financial aid/student balance hold list each semester * Represent the University on and off campus at recruitment events, financial aid information sessions, open house events, accepted student's day, connection day, etc * Participate in professional development opportunities and professional organizations on the regional, state, and national levels including: PHEAA, PASFAA, NASFAA, PowerFaids, etc * Position requires some work nights, weekend, extended work hours, and travel to off-site locations

Additional Responsibilities:

1. Operations functions

* Assist Associate Director with importing and exporting of all financial aid files through EDconnect to the Department of Education, including student ISIRs and corrections, COD origination and disbursement files, as well as responsible for managing and correcting reject files * Oversees the Federal Aid Programs in relation aggregate limit reviews, Pell LEU and UEH reviews and student notification * Assist Associate and Senior Director with creating and maintaining custom reports, standard reports, selection sets, and other technical aspects of PowerFaids to help streamline processes within the SFS Office * Assist Associate Director with federal aid reconciliation both monthly and annually to ensure compliance with federal/state regulations and procedures. * Assist with system oversite, including data integration, creating and maintaining scheduled events in PowerFaids such as anticipated aid, aid disbursement * Responsible for approval student employment program eligibility and works closely with Human Resources with hiring of student worker and graduate assistants, and completion of student employment paperwork * Assists HR and Business Office in maximizing student employment budget, including federal, institutional and PA State Work Study funding, maximizing the awarding of federal/state work study funding * Maintains student employment data on the PowerFaids & annual reporting COD * Assists the Associate and Sr. Director with completion of annual reports and surveys including AICUP, Common Data Set, IPEDs, US News & World Report, and other internal reports as needed

2. Counseling functions

* Provide a high level of financial aid counseling including incorporation of Best Practices in SFS Counseling and providing holistic financial aid planning students' full college experience for traditional day and grad and adult undergraduate student populations * Use an integrated approach for student aid issues including working closely with staff from Student Services offices including Student Accounts, Registrar, Navigation, S.O.L.A.R, Residence Life, Admissions, GAE, and Holleran Center * Respond to all student inquiries from walk-ins, emails, phone, or Teams within a 24-48-hour time frame * Communication follow up from SFS team members such as missing documents, verification, and processing issues

3. Other duties as assigned

Qualifications/Education:

* Commitment to the mission statement, core values and goals of Alvernia University * Must provide exceptional customer service, specifically related to the mission of the university * Bachelor's degree required; master's degree preferred * Two or more years of progressive financial aid experience required * Thorough knowledge of federal and state regulations related awarding and processing aid * Experience with PowerFaids, Power Campus, Slate, NSLDS, COD, and EdConnect preferred * Demonstrate strong interpersonal and customer service skills across varied audiences such as students, families, staff, faculty, alumni, and the community * Ability to manage multiple projects with time-sensitive deadlines, working as part of a team as well as independently with little supervision and additional hours as needed * Ability to diffuse difficult or emotional situations with students and/or families * Excellent written and verbal communication skills * Knowledge of Microsoft Office products, including Outlook, Word, Excel, and SharePoint * Ability to work some evenings and weekends and travel to other campuses as needed

Physical Requirements:

* Attendance is required in order to perform the duties of this job. * Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer. * Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times.