Swarthmore College is a highly selective liberal arts college located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, whose mission combines academic rigor with social responsibility. Swarthmore has a strong institutional commitment to inclusive excellence and nondiscrimination in its educational program and employment practices and encourages candidates who will further advance the goal of fostering a diverse and inclusive community. As one of the nation’s finest institutions of higher learning, Swarthmore College is global in outlook and draws students from around the nation and world. The 425‐acre campus is a designated arboretum, complete with gardens, rolling lawns, a creek, wooded hills, and hiking trails in the Crum Woods.

Who We Are:

We are a team that administers off-campus study experiences (domestic and international) as part of a new global engagement initiative at Swarthmore College, a small, selective liberal arts college. Our off-campus study mission is to encourage meaningful engagement with the world beyond Swarthmore for our students by providing access and support for high-quality educational opportunities across the globe. Our global engagement initiative is committed to develop and promote thoughtful, socially responsible global awareness and interactions through international cooperation, programs, projects, and exchanges for all campus constituencies.                                                       

The opportunity:

Reporting to the Director of Operations, the Assistant Director is integral to our 5-member team supporting international opportunities at Swarthmore College. The Global Engagement Office serves a mission of connecting our community to larger global contexts through study, research, and work under the leadership of the Executive Director. Within this broader purview, the Assistant Director’s responsibilities largely center on support for our semester and year-long study abroad programs.

Essential Responsibilities

• Facilitate the transfer of academic credit from programs abroad.
  • Administer the Abroad Credit Evaluation System (ACES).
  • Maintain institutional expertise in departmental policies, sustaining relationships across academic divisions, and developing improvements to overall processes.
• Manage a portfolio of study abroad programs.
  • Counsel students regarding: program content, college requirements, and systems, as well as advises students on non-academic aspects of their participation (such as preparations for travel and living situations). This work also includes maintaining current knowledge of program details, updating records accordingly, and may require additional responsibilities related to program operations.
• Contribute to College initiatives for best practices for health, safety, and security of international travel, including crisis management issues.
  • Handle policy questions and dynamic situations with rapidly changing information.
  • Work cooperatively with a variety of administrative offices including Student Affairs, the Registrar, Financial Aid, Student Health and Wellness, Psychological and Counseling Services, and the International Travel Risk.
• Assist the GEO on developing short- and long-term projects. Maintains agendas and tracks deliverables for projects.
• Contribute to communication and outreach.
• Serve in a mandatory role as part of on-call rotation and response for international emergencies.
• Performs other job-related duties as assigned.

Who you are:

• You are an energetic professional with a high level of experience in supporting the operations of study abroad and global education that will strengthen the College’s mission, goals, and objectives and encourage faculty and student interest and participation in global education.
• You promote diversity, equity, and inclusion principles in all aspects of global engagement and demonstrate cultural competencies in such issues as racial, religious, sexual, and gender identities.
• You exhibit ethical standards for dealing with confidentiality.
• You have mature judgment, excellent interpersonal skills, and the ability to be a positive influence on the team.
• You have a proven ability to build effective and collaborative relationships with key campus partners to support global educational opportunities.
• You are flexible, show initiative, remain calm under pressure, and demonstrate excellent problem-solving, organizational, and project management skills.
• You have excellent written and oral communication skills.
• You are able to prioritize and attend to multiple projects at one time, pay close attention to detail, follow up, and meet assigned deadlines.

What you bring:

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree
• Minimum of 5 years of increasingly responsible experience in higher education administration with an emphasis on education abroad or an equivalent combination of education and/or experience.
• Prior experience working with academic departments on foreign credit transfer
• Ability to travel, including internationally, and has a valid passport.
• Knowledge of education abroad process, policies, and program procedures.
• Able to research and articulate country-specific regulations.
• Knowledge of essential elements of pre-departure and re-entry programming for students.
• Specific knowledge of databases and data management techniques
• Proficient with computer applications and programs associated with the position  (including Experience with Terra Dotta software for education abroad, Google Workspace, Microsoft Office suite) or willingness and ability to learn.
• Valid driver’s license to operate a motor vehicle while performing essential job- responsibilities.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree
• Prior experience working with best practices in risk management, crisis response, experience in study abroad crisis and risk management, and ability to be on call for emergencies.
• Prior experience working with passport and visa regulations and requirements.
• Advising experience at the college level, desirable; experience with a liberal arts environment highly desirable.
• Able to gather and analyze information and present data; experience using statistical software.
• Knowledge of and experience with computerized survey data collection and tracking (e.g.  SurveyMonkey, Qualtrics), as well as integration of survey data with files generated from other databases, desirable.

What You Will Get:

You’ll work at one of the world's most renowned liberal arts Colleges, with incredible benefits, a stunning 420-acre campus, and a collaborative work environment. Join a team of passionate, creative people who work hard and have fun supporting the College students, faculty, and staff.

We want to hear from you if you are excited about this role! For full consideration, submit applications with pay expectations, including a resume and cover letter, by April 8, 2024.

PA Criminal Required

Swarthmore College requires a PA Criminal background check for all staff positions prior to the start of employment.

Education Verification Required by Position

An education verification is required for this position because a college degree is a required qualification for this position.

Review the 2024 Benefits Flyer. We offer benefit plans starting at zero cost! Upon benefit eligibility, the College contributes 10% of an employee’s salary to their retirement account. Employees are 100% vested in their accounts on the date participation begins.

Swarthmore Benefits Guidebook

Retirement Plans

Tuition Grant Program

Tuition Reimbursement Program

Paid Time Off (Staff)

Holiday Schedule

Swarthmore College actively seeks and welcomes applications from candidates with exceptional qualifications, particularly those with demonstrable commitments to a more inclusive society and world. Swarthmore College is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply.