Academic Coach

Overview of the Academic Coach Role

The Academic Coach serves as the primary contact for learners from matriculation (orientation) through the completion of their program. This role involves managing a pipeline of learners by coaching, motivating, mentoring, removing barriers, owning issues through resolution, providing strategies for completion, and monitoring progress. Academic Coaches help learners clarify key decision-points and identify solutions and alternatives that align with their motivations and goals. Utilizing strong relationship-building and influencing skills, the coach drives positive learner behaviors and outcomes, contributing to overall learner success and persistence.

The Academic Coach is responsible for providing personalized interactions to assist learners in successfully navigating their educational path. They conduct outreach at key milestones and based on identified behaviors to keep learners on track and help overcome obstacles. Each interaction includes exploration of needs and personalized solutions to prepare learners for long-term success.

Additionally, Academic Coaches collaborate with faculty and other University partners to address learner concerns and collaboratively define options to help learners achieve academic success.

Essential Duties

Academic Planning & Engagement

• Assist learners in developing an academic plan that includes all program requirements, ensures the most direct path to completion, and aligns with their educational and career goals.
• Leverage tools, systems, and software applications to optimize advising engagement.
• Build relationships with learners to encourage success and engagement.
• Utilize program analytics and outreach protocols for purpose-driven and transformational conversations.
• Help learners navigate program changes and understand Capella-initiated adjustments.
• Explore alignment of learner’s educational and financial plans in relation to degree completion.
• Provide resources and refer learners to university support services.
• Assess learner needs to help them make informed decisions and challenge them to progress toward goals.

Progress Monitoring & Academic Risk Mitigation

• Proactively reach out to learners identified as at-risk due to lack of engagement, academic standing, pace of progress, course completion, or competency development gaps.
• Highlight and address potential barriers impacting persistence, success, and completion.
• Encourage learners to develop skills for direct resolution of challenges; coordinate with faculty, academic leadership, and learner-facing teams for issue resolution.
• Coach learners through disruptive life events and challenges, providing tailored options.
• Respond to learners using various communication tools including phone, voicemail, chat, email, casework, and social media.
• Collaborate with faculty, chairs, and university leaders in escalated learner situations and conflict resolution.

Communication & Interaction

• Respond to learners via a wide variety of communication tools and systems, including phone, voicemail, chat, email, casework, and social media.
• Maintain appropriate and accurate documentation of all learner interactions in accordance with departmental best practices.

Program, Process, and Policy Subject Matter Expertise

• Serve as University Subject Matter Experts concerning programs, processes, and policies in meetings, committees, and informal sessions.
• Monitor and communicate trends impacting learner persistence, success, and completion; discuss obstacles and challenges with learners.
• Support development and training for faculty and/or staff regarding programs, processes, and policies.
• Proactively and respectfully identify and provide insight into program, process, and policy opportunities and gaps.
• Participate in creating solutions in partnership with key stakeholders once areas of improvement are identified.
• Build trusted professional relationships across the business.
• Participate in projects or initiatives that support departmental goals.
• Support and participate in departmental and cross-functional training.
• Research and stay abreast of issues and trends in other institutions of higher education.

Job Skills

Driving Results:

• Ability to understand key metrics and utilize self-service reporting and tools to monitor and share data.
• Ability to drive results in a team-based environment.
• Ability to influence positive learner behaviors and outcomes.

Thinking and Judgment:

• Fundamental understanding of business acumen to balance learner and University needs.
• Ability to exercise keen discretion and ethical judgment in responding to complex learner situations.
• Ability to adapt quickly and thrive in a fast-paced, changing professional environment.
• Ability to innovate with the purpose of accomplishing key objectives; willing to take risks.
• Ability to respond positively to consistent change.
• Ability to think critically to build plans of action and personalized solutions.
• Comfortable representing a complex program requiring in-depth, specialized knowledge.
• Ability to manage sensitive and confidential information.

Working with Others:

• Ability to prioritize the needs of the learner and committed to providing an excellent learner experience.
• Ability to quickly understand problems and provide proactive solutions.
• Ability to form positive working relationships, foster an effective team atmosphere, and promote a collaborative environment with learners, faculty, staff, and leadership.
• Ability to work effectively and efficiently with a diverse population.
• Ability to manage conflict; motivated and engaged by frequent and occasionally challenging interactions.
• Ability to develop trust and hold others accountable to commitments.
• Ability to assess challenging situations and effectively communicate with leadership.
• Ability to maintain departmental guidelines for interacting with and responding to learners and Capella stakeholders.

Managing Self:

• Ability to manage time effectively by prioritizing and evaluating work to handle a variety of daily activities.
• Ability to effectively juggle multiple tasks and handle competing priorities.
• Ability to demonstrate resilience and respond appropriately to stressful situations.
• Ability to be self-aware and behave appropriately with a commitment to continuous self-improvement.
• Ability to self-direct and follow through on assigned tasks while working both independently and collaboratively.
• Motivated in a fast-paced, high-intensity environment driven by deadlines.

Technical Functions and Skills:

• Ability to maintain best practices for learner interaction: discovering needs, understanding the situation, recommending options, customized solutions, determining a way forward, and always engaging and listening.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to communicate through a variety of channels/systems.
• Foundational understanding of the advising discipline– both from educational and career perspectives.
• Ability to evaluate and learn new computer software applications quickly.
• Proficiency in the Microsoft Office Suite, including Word, Excel, and Outlook.

Work/Location Requirements

• Must be able to spend significant time working at a computer and on the phone using a headset.
• Must be flexible in work hours/schedule to accommodate learner needs.
• Position may require work above and beyond 40 hours per week during peak periods.

Work Experience

Prefer two to four years of professional experience using advanced coaching, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Experience working with adult learners and/or faculty is preferred.

Education

Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution required. Master’s degree from an accredited institution preferred. Doctoral degree from an accredited institution preferred for Doctoral Advisors. Degrees in student development, college student personnel management, education psychology, counseling psychology, social work, student affairs, or higher education are preferred.

Key skills/competency

• Coaching
• Mentoring
• Student Success
• Academic Planning
• Relationship Building
• Problem-Solving
• Communication Skills
• Risk Mitigation
• Program Analytics
• CRM Software