College Financial Aid Counselor - Commonpoint Queens
Jamaica, NY 11432
About the Job
Within our framework of a holistic, strength-focused, and family-supported practice, an individual hired as a FAFSA Completion Advisor will report directly to the Director of the Youth Opportunity Hub. This role will be virtual and in-person and involves working with students and their families to ensure the completion of the financial aid applications including FAFSA, TAP, Excelsior, and Dream Act.
Qualifications
- Master’s Degree in Psychology, Social Work, School Counseling, or a related course of study with a Bilingual - Spanish extension is strongly preferred.
- At least three years experience working with adolescents in an urban environment, providing services that reduce barriers and facilitate educational success and social-emotional well-being.
- Demonstrated ability to establish a strong rapport with an urban adolescent population and their families.
- Prior workshop/seminar development and implementation experience is preferred; prior college counseling experience is strongly preferred.
- Strong ability to create engaging and relevant activities for students and their families connected to college.
- Ability to work evenings, as needed.
- Must have excellent organizational, teamwork, verbal, and written communication skills.
- Must have a commitment to work from a strength-based and/or youth development perspective.
- Experience working with a diverse group of students and ability to support students and hold them accountable as appropriate.
- Strong relationship-building and group facilitation capabilities, incorporating cross-cultural sensitivity.
- Deep understanding of positive youth development, education learning standards, and issues facing immigrant and first-generation youth in the U.S.
- College guidance experience and strong knowledge financial aid, and scholarship process.
Responsibilities
- Provide both individual and group advisement to assist in the successful completion of FAFSA applications: FAFSA, TAP, Excelsior, and Dream Act.
- Facilitate workshops to educate students and parents/guardians of the FAFSA application, answer questions, and provide guidance around common questions and concerns
- Provide additional support to any families with special or complex circumstances and/or who are having difficulty assembling the required information or understanding the process
- Manage a caseload of students through consistent outreach
- Follow up with participants to ensure FAFSA completion, and address any challenges that may be keeping families from completing it
- Maintain documentation of session attendance and number of applications completed/submitted.
- Participate in staff training and meetings, including professional development.
General Tasks of Commonpoint Staff
- Promote and implement the Core Values of the Community Center.
- Participation in all staff meetings and staff training seminars.
- Participation in agency-wide programs and program committees, as assigned.
- Active involvement as a supervisee in the supervision process.
- Support the mission of Commonpoint
- Other tasks appropriate to Commonpoint’s staff, as assigned.
Commonpoint Queens reserves the right to revise or change job duties and responsibilities as the need arises.
Commonpoint Queens and the Samuel Field Y are equal-opportunity employers/programs. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities.
To Apply: Please submit a cover letter and résumé, as a Word or PDF document only, to Emma Kubinski at ekubinski@commonpoint.org. Please indicate “FAFSA Completion Advisor” in the subject line. Due to the high volume of applicants, only qualified candidates will be contacted.
Salary Range: $28/hr, 19 hours a week
Source : Commonpoint Queens