Senior Career Services Advisor

Senior Career Advisor, Career Engagement

USC Career Center

Application Procedure: 

To be considered for this position, candidates should include a cover letter with their resume during the application process.

About USC:

The University of Southern California (USC), founded in 1880, is located in the heart of downtown L.A. and is the largest private employer in the City of Los Angeles. As an employee of USC, you will be a part of a world-class research university and a member of the “Trojan Family,” which is comprised of the faculty, students and staff that make the university a great place to work. 

About USC Career Center:

Our office is here to provide career services to all members of the Trojan Family! Whether a student exploring career paths and internships or a recent graduate navigating the job search, our team is ready to support with one-on-one career advising, in-depth workshops, and exclusive recruiting events. The Career Center partners closely with employers to connect students with professional opportunities within the top industries where Trojans are pursuing jobs and internships.

About the Opportunity:

The University of Southern California Career Center is recruiting an experienced Senior Career Advisor to join the Career Engagement team. The primary responsibilities include leading innovative, scalable signature undergraduate career services that focus on wide-ranging disciplines, career interests, and career advising. This role is crucial to meet the high demand among students for graduate career advising and programming.  

The incumbent will develop and manage relationships with key stakeholders and campus partners with a focus on undergraduate student career programming. The Senior Career Advisor will also plan financial literacy programming, including the two-day Financial Literacy Conference and lead the faculty and staff certificate program, educating colleagues on career services resources. The individual will foster partnerships with the Council for Academic Advisors (CAA), undergraduate student government, Student Life, academic departments, and other student organizations. Additionally, this individual will collaborate with other school-based career services offices and critical departments to maximize undergraduate student outreach. The incumbent will also supervise student interns and partners with technology vendors.

The ideal candidate will have experience in benchmarking, researching, and advising undergraduate and graduate students. Have knowledge and interest in planning financial literacy educational events, developing original career content, and leading student engagement and programming for the Career Engagement team.

The incumbent will demonstrate professionalism and strong written and verbal communication skills while advising students and recent graduates on the following career-related topics:

• Financial literacy
• Investigating fast-growing career paths
• Developing competitive resumes, cover letters, and LinkedIn profiles
• Preparing for interviews and networking
• Leveraging AI as a tool for job searching and upskilling
• Negotiating internship and job offers
• Maintaining a professional online presence

Please note: 

• This position requires working some evenings and weekends during the academic year.

All applications must include a cover letter and a resume.

Job Accountabilities:

Career Advising:

• Understand challenges related to undergraduate students and educate students about the many career paths and exploration
• Advise undergraduate, graduate, and recent graduates, providing in-depth guidance on career-related matters and job search strategies
• Administer career assessments, including the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Strong Interest Inventory, and other career assessments
• Produce original content for presentations, professional development workshops, videos, web pages, digital handouts, social media, and other educational materials
• Write and update resume, curriculum vitae, resume booklet, and website content
• Create new presentations covering trending career topics for undergraduate students, recent graduates, and other key stakeholders
• Write, edit, and proofread precise, engaging, accurate, and compelling educational content and marketing copy in various styles appropriate to target audiences
•  Remain current with recruiting trends and collaborate with the employer community for undergraduate career opportunities
• May provide guidance to colleagues with less experience, as required
• Coordinate marketing with the Assistant Director for Marketing, delivering content and engaging more undergraduate students in appointments and programming
• Utilize good emotional intelligence with the team, interpersonal communication skills, including active listening, and collaboration skills

Program Development and Management:

Recruit, train, and supervise student interns and develop innovative undergraduate student programs/approaches to engage first-year students early in the career development process.

• Serve as the liaison to the CAA hosting in-person events on campus and collaborating with academic schools
• Plan and execute career events for small and large groups, including the Financial Literacy Conference, monthly financial literacy webinars, promote networking opportunities with students and alumni
• Representing the Career Center at undergraduate student events and professional associations
• Advise domestic and international undergraduate and graduate students and recent graduates through in-person, phone, and online appointments and enter advising notes into the career advising database
• Collaborate with the USC Student Life departments, Undergraduate Student Government, Registered Student Organizations (RSO, school-based career centers, professional associations, and other campus partners
• Representing the Career Center at undergraduate student events and professional associations

• May provide guidance to colleagues with less experience, as required
• Serve as a Career Center liaison to assigned school-based career centers
• Identify undergraduate student career resources and serve as liaison to the assigned educational technology platform
• Develop and conduct student and recent graduate career workshops, moderate panel discussions, and create structured activities for groups and individuals
• Stay current on career and hiring trends, relevant on and off-campus resources, and related technology by actively engaging and presenting at professional workshops, seminars, and conferences
• Possess strong project management and organizational skills
• Perform other related duties as assigned or requested

Preferred Qualifications:

• Education:

Master's degree in Humanities, Social Science, Education, or a related field

• Experience:

• Career services counseling/advising in a not-for-profit four-year college/university setting
• Strong working knowledge of career development is the best practice for first- and second-year students
• Experience recruiting, supervising, and leading student team members
• Ability to research and quickly develop knowledge of employer recruiting strategies, job market trends, and occupational, career, and personal growth for undergraduate students
• Willingness to work with an inclusive community, fostering mutual respect, wellness, inclusion, and a sense of belonging
• Skilled in communicating effectively and professionally using tact, diplomacy, emotional intelligence, and the ability to collaborate and lead effectively as an individual, a team member, and with various groups
• Provide excellent customer service to students and alumni populations
• Knowledge of virtual career center platforms, including Handshake, UConnect, Quinncia, CareerShift, Big Interview, Canva, and other platforms
• Strength in establishing and maintaining effective cross-campus collaborations, balancing competing priorities, implementing both large-and small-scale programs and events
• Ability to work as an intrapreneur to develop new and relevant career programming for a multi-generational student population
• Ability to handle confidential information following FERPA regulations
• In addition, the successful candidate must demonstrate, through ideas, words and actions, a strong commitment to USC’s Unifying Values.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Education:

Bachelor's Degree in Humanities, Social Sciences, Student Affairs, Human Resources, Education, Counseling, Social Work, or a related field

• Field of Expertise:

Related education and experience in counseling, career services, and advisement

• Experience:

Three to five years of experience in career advising, programming, and supervising student team members.

The annual base salary range for this position is $80,010–$87,619. When determining an offer, the University of Southern California considers factors such as the scope and responsibilities of the role, the candidate’s experience, education, training, key skills, internal peer alignment, applicable laws, contractual requirements, grant funding, and market conditions.

#LI-MN1

Minimum Education: Bachelor's degree
Minimum Experience: 3 years
. Ability to manage, balance, and prioritize different tasks and projects.
. In-depth knowledge of federal immigration employment regulations and processes, interpreting and providing guidance as to their pertinence to international students.
. Advanced knowledge of employer recruiting strategies, job market trends, and occupational, career, and employment information sources.
. Superior level of professionalism, exceptional attention to detail, and exemplary written and oral communication and interpersonal skills.
. Demonstrated experience interacting with diverse groups, exercising diplomacy, good judgment, and discretion.
Preferred Education: Master's degree
Preferred Experience: 5 years
Additional Preferred Experience:
. Experience working with government agencies concerning immigration.
. Advanced knowledge of California and multi-state employment law.
. Experience working with international students, faculty, and staff in higher education, and familiarity with academic medical center environments.
. Knowledge and understanding of employment issues affecting various groups (e.g., gender wage gaps, LGBTQIA
discrimination, ageism).
. Fluency In Spanish, American Sign language (ASL), and/or other languages In addition to English.
. Demonstrated experience with office management communication software/tools (e.g., Google suite, Slack, Skype)
and social media management.
. Proficient with Microsoft Office and Adobe Creative Suite software.
. Demonstrated experience managing multi-platform communications and marketing plans Involving publications,

                                                  

USC is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law or USC policy. USC observes affirmative action obligations consistent with state and federal law. USC will consider for employment all qualified applicants with criminal records in a manner consistent with applicable laws and regulations, including the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for employers and the Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, and with due consideration for patient and student safety. Please refer to the Background Screening Policy Appendix D for specific employment screen implications for the position for which you are applying. 

We provide reasonable accommodations to applicants and employees with disabilities. Applicants with questions about access or requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process should contact USC Human Resources by phone at (213) 821-8100, or by email at [email protected]. Inquiries will be treated as confidential to the extent permitted by law.

• Notice of Non-discrimination
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• Read USC’s Clery Act Annual Security Report
• USC is a smoke-free environment
• Digital Accessibility

                                                  

If you are a current USC employee, please apply to this  USC job posting in Workday by copying and pasting this link into your browser:

https://wd5.myworkday.com/usc/d/inst/1$9925/9925$150879.htmld