Director of Financial Aid

Job Title: Director of Financial Aid

Department: Enrollment Management

Reports to: Vice President of Enrollment Management

Location: Residential, In-person

Employment Status: Full-Time Exempt Staff

Salary Range:  $120,000 - $160,000

About Palo Alto University (PAU)

Palo Alto University is a private, nonprofit university dedicated to advancing human understanding through innovative education, groundbreaking research, and impactful practice in behavioral science.

Founded in 1975 and located in the heart of Silicon Valley, PAU offers graduate and undergraduate programs in psychology, counseling, social work, and behavioral science, including the PAU-Stanford PsyD Consortium with Stanford Medicine. Grounded in human dignity, PAU's scholars, clinicians, educators, and learners share a single conviction: that understanding how people think, feel, behave, relate, heal, and make meaning is among the most essential work of our time.

The university enrolls over 1,200 students, has a network of more than 4,200 alumni, and employs over 150 faculty and staff united by a mission-driven commitment to advancing human understanding. PAU enters its sixth decade at a defining moment: a new president, a new provost, a bold new vision and strategic plan, and an urgent opportunity to shape how behavioral science responds to the challenges of an increasingly changing world. You will join a mission-driven community with the ambition to make a measurable impact on the human condition.

The Role

Financial aid is more than a compliance function at Palo Alto University. It is a strategic instrument of access, equity, and enrollment. The Director of Financial Aid is the architect of how PAU makes its programs financially accessible to the students it most needs to serve, and how the institution deploys its aid resources to advance both mission and financial sustainability simultaneously.

Reporting to the Vice President for Enrollment Management, the Director leads the Office of Financial Aid with strategic vision, operational precision, and genuine commitment to the human beings behind every aid application. This is not a conventional financial aid role. PAU is building a modern, data-informed, mission-driven enrollment operation from the ground up, and the Director of Financial Aid will be foundational to that build.

The Director is responsible for the full financial aid lifecycle, from award modeling and packaging through disbursement, compliance, and student counseling, across all federal, state, institutional, and scholarship programs. The role demands a leader who understands financial aid as a lever for enrollment growth, thinks strategically about aid optimization and net tuition revenue, executes with regulatory precision, and never loses sight of the student whose educational path depends on getting this right.

Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership and Financial Aid Planning

• Develop and implement a comprehensive financial aid strategy aligned with PAU's enrollment goals, access and equity commitments, and long-term financial sustainability.

• Partner with the VPEM, Finance, and Institutional Research to build and maintain financial aid leveraging models, discount rate analysis, and net tuition revenue projections that inform institutional planning.

• Lead the strategic design of aid packaging policies that optimize yield, support student access, and advance the academic quality of incoming cohorts.

• Serve as a thought leader within the division on financial aid policy, federal and state regulatory trends, and emerging challenges in graduate and professional program financing.

Financial Aid Operations and Compliance

• Oversee all aspects of financial aid administration, including the application process, award packaging, disbursement to student accounts, and communication with students, families, and scholarship recipients.

• Ensure full compliance with all applicable federal and state financial aid regulations, University policies, audit standards, and reporting requirements, including Title IV administration.

• Establish and maintain effective policies, procedures, workflows, internal controls, and documentation practices that ensure accuracy, consistency, and accountability across the financial aid function.

• Monitor emerging regulations, professional standards, and best practices and lead the implementation of changes as needed to keep PAU current and compliant.

• Serve as a primary point of contact for problem resolution, regulatory guidance, audit response, and compliance inquiries across the institution.

Student Access and Financial Counseling

• Ensure every student and prospective student receives timely, accurate, and genuinely helpful financial aid counseling that supports informed decision-making and persistence toward degree completion.

• Counsel students and families on the full range of financing options, including federal aid, institutional scholarships, private loans, and employer sponsorship, ensuring every student has a clear, realistic financial plan to complete their degree.

• Develop proactive communication strategies that demystify the financial aid process, reduce barriers to access, and reflect PAU's commitment to equity and belonging.

• Collaborate with Student Success to identify students at financial risk and design early intervention strategies that support retention and completion.

• Partner with Admissions to integrate financial aid messaging into the recruitment and yield process, ensuring prospective students understand PAU's full value proposition from their first inquiry.

Technology, Data, and Systems

• Lead the strategic use of financial aid technology, including PowerFAIDS, Jenzabar, and related platforms, to drive efficiency, accuracy, and insight across the financial aid function.

• Ensure data integrity, reliable reporting, and effective system workflows, with particular attention to federal reporting accuracy, audit readiness, and enrollment forecasting.

• Develop and maintain standard operating procedures, training resources, and audit practices that ensure consistency, compliance, and continuous improvement across the team.

• Partner with Institutional Research and the VPEM to align financial aid data definitions, reporting standards, and dashboard development that support institutional decision-making.

Team Leadership and Collaboration

• Build, develop, and inspire a high-performing financial aid team, setting clear expectations for performance, accountability, professional growth, and student-centered service.

• Promote effective workload management, cross-training, and professional development across the financial aid team to ensure operational continuity and staff growth.

• Foster a team culture that is analytically rigorous, mission-driven, and genuinely invested in helping students navigate the financial dimensions of their education.

• Collaborate closely with Enrollment Management, Finance, Advancement, Academic Affairs, and other university offices to improve processes, share data, and advance the student experience.

• Represent PAU with external agencies, professional organizations, and accreditation bodies as appropriate, and actively engage with continuing education in the financial aid field.

Qualifications

Required

• Bachelor's degree required; master's degree preferred.

• Five or more years of progressively responsible financial aid experience, including experience with both undergraduate and graduate student populations.

• Five or more years of supervisory or people-management experience.

• Expert knowledge of federal and state financial aid regulations, Title IV compliance requirements, and financial aid administration.

• Demonstrated ability to use financial aid as a strategic enrollment lever, including experience with aid leveraging, discount rate modeling, and net tuition revenue analysis.

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, budget management, and project management skills.

• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex financial aid information for diverse audiences.

• Demonstrated commitment to equity, belonging, and student-centered practices.

• Ability to exercise sound judgment, maintain confidentiality, and manage sensitive information with discretion.

• Ability to work in person on campus as part of PAU's residential leadership culture.

Preferred

• Experience with PowerFAIDS, Jenzabar, or comparable financial aid and student information systems.

• Experience in graduate and professional program financial aid, especially within psychology, counseling, social work, behavioral science, or a related clinical field.

• Experience supporting financial aid strategy during periods of institutional transformation or regulatory change.

• Active engagement with NASFAA or other relevant professional organizations and continuing education.

Leadership Qualities

• Strategic and analytically grounded, with the regulatory expertise and operational discipline to execute.

• Committed to data-informed decision-making without losing sight of the human experience behind every aid award.

• High emotional intelligence, strong relationship-building skills, and genuine enthusiasm for PAU's mission.

• Comfortable with complexity and ambiguity, energized by building something that matters.

• Integrity, empathy, and an unwavering focus on student access and success at the center of every decision.

Work Hours and Location

This is a full-time, residential position based at PAU's campuses in Palo Alto and Mountain View, California. Regular in-person presence is expected and essential to the collaborative, student-centered culture the Director is responsible for building and sustaining. Occasional evening and weekend availability may be required during peak financial aid processing and enrollment periods. Remote work arrangements will not be accepted.

Equal Opportunity and Accommodations

Palo Alto University is an equal opportunity employer firmly committed to non-discrimination in its hiring and employment practices. In compliance with all applicable federal and state laws, employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, sex, marital status, citizenship status, military service status, sexual orientation, medical condition, disability, or any other status protected by law.

As provided by law, PAU will offer reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities who are otherwise qualified to perform the essential functions of the position without undue hardship to the university.

PAU is committed to building a high-quality work environment that attracts and welcomes employees from a wide range of backgrounds.