Jobs UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO BOULDER

The Office of Financial Aid is committed to helping students pay for college by building innovative programs to support access and graduation, empowering students to make healthy financial decisions, investing in the development of our staff, and engaging lawmakers and partners to improve aid policy! We coordinate over $425M in grants, scholarships, work-study and loans for over 20,000 students each year. Our staff consists of 38 full-time professional employees and 50-60 student employees.

Financial Aid Compliance:

• Ensure compliance with current rules, regulations, laws, etc., associated with the management of the federal, state, and institutional aid programs.
• Research and interpret financial aid compliance issues and questions using appropriate resources from the campus, U.S. Department of Education, National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA), Colorado Department on Higher Education (CDHE), etc. to determine appropriate course of action. Make recommendations to the Director.
• Ensure CU Boulder remains eligible to participate in the federal and state financial aid programs through the accurate and timely submission of official documents. Coordinate and report updates and changes to E-Apps, ECARS, and Program Participation Agreements.
• Oversee the development, revision, and annual update of the OFA policy and procedure manual.
• Collaborate with other campus departments to ensure Title IV compliance.
• Consult with University Counsel on fraud cases, subpoenas, policy interpretation, and other issues where legal guidance is necessary.
• Design and facilitate annual financial aid specific trainings, such as navigating the FAFSA, packaging, verification, etc., with a focus on maintaining compliance with state and federal regulations and University guidelines.
• Collaborate with other areas in the office to develop staff expertise to implement program requirements.
• Provide support and guidance to subject matter experts who are also tasked with training responsibilities.

Staff Training Design and Facilitation:

• Prepare and present workshops and trainings to a variety of key constituents.
• Lead office-wide trainings and annual retreats.
• Develop training plans tailored to onboarding new staff, strengthening an employee's existing skills, and/or developing new competencies.
• Develop and maintain training manuals, employee handbooks, and other training materials.
• Assist in the management of the office knowledge base including guidance on organizing, updating, and archiving procedures, desk guides, tools, templates, and other resources.

Quality Assurance:

• Collaborate with other areas in the Office of Financial Aid to develop and document quality assurance initiatives and assessment.
• Develop and monitor key compliance metrics.
• Identify areas of risk and/or non-compliance and coordinate development of appropriate solutions.

Office Leadership:

• Foster a creative, success-oriented, and accountable environment that attracts and retains top-notch professional and student staff who are passionate about providing the highest quality of work. Facilitates a safe space for feedback and constructive criticism in support of positive and ongoing dialogue and nurtures collaborative relationships that enable quality work to be produced.
• Provide leadership as part of the OFA management team.
• Proactively identify and track proposed and required changes and updates to federal and state rules, regulations, and guidance, and assess implications.
• Respond to regulatory compliance issues sent from Government Relations.
• Identify, analyze, and implement financial aid, Enrollment Management, and office policy.
• Lead office-wide projects by using project management techniques.
• Represent the Office of Financial Aid on campus initiatives.

Professional Development:

• Collaborate with immediate supervisor to determine areas for professional growth. Identify and request appropriate training opportunities.
• Engage in continuous professional development to maintain current knowledge of Higher Education compliance, including industry best practices.
• Attend staff meetings, retreats and other meetings as assigned.
• Assist in the development and implementation of trainings for all staff as needed.

• Final candidate must successfully pass a criminal and financial background check and cannot be in default on a student loan either upon hire or while employed in this position.
• A fingerprint-based background check may be required for this position.

The annual salary for this full-time position is $74,400 – 80,000.

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university is required or an equivalent combination of education, training, and experience from which comparable skills can be acquired may substitute.
• Five years of financial aid experience in a higher education setting.
• At least four years of progressively responsible financial aid or training experience.
• Experience with designing and facilitating trainings.
• Experience providing customer service.
• Working knowledge of a student information system and/or scholarship management software.
• Strong computer skills including software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other presentation software), email communication tools, and web-based applications.
• Knowledge of Federal Title IV financial aid programs and regulations.

• A strong commitment to providing an extraordinary student experience.
• Ability to gain confidence and trust of others through honesty, authenticity, and acceptance of responsibility.
• Ability to exemplify excellence by creating a welcoming environment that increases the success of all students, staff, and faculty.
• Ability to create new and better ways for the organization to be successful.
• Ability to build partnerships and work collaboratively with others to meet shared objectives.
• Ability to communicate key and critical information in a timely fashion.
• Ability to interpret and apply federal, state, institutional, donor rules, regulations, policies, procedures, principles, and practices.