Associate Director - Career Coaching and Stakeholder Engagement

Role Overview

This position supports the Dato' Kho Hui Meng Career Centre (DKHMCC) by delivering comprehensive career coaching services, managing employer relationships, administering internship programs, and contributing to strategic planning and operations to maximize student employability.

Key Responsibilities

• Conduct individualized career coaching sessions to help students clarify goals, assess strengths, and develop tailored career plans responsive to evolving job markets.
• Partner with industry experts to develop and lead skill-building workshops including resume crafting, interview prep, networking tactics, aligned with SMU's curricular offerings.
• Forge and sustain strong connections with employers, HR teams, other university departments, and government bodies to cultivate a robust channel for internship and employment opportunities.
• Organize career fairs, networking forums, and employer panels to connect students with leading professionals and corporations.
• Prepare, curate, and disseminate career resources such as job postings, guidance documents, and industry analyses tailored to student needs.
• Track, analyze, and report on student career outcomes to continually enhance strategies and impact in collaboration with academic units.
• Administer internship postings, processing, documentation, grading, and evaluation to ensure alignment with degree requirements.
• Support graduate placement initiatives, monitor employment trends, and implement interventions to optimize student placement success.
• Manage the DKHMCC Advisory Council activities, facilitating information exchange on employment developments and receiving strategic guidance.
• Assist the DKHMCC Director in tactical project delivery, inter-departmental collaboration, resource planning, and achieving departmental objectives.
• Liaise with university career offices to coordinate employment engagement strategies, leverage technology for impact assessment, communication, and branding.
• Lead assigned team members, oversee career centre operations including event planning, resource allocation, and service delivery to students and stakeholders.
• Perform additional duties as assigned.

Candidate Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree with 10–12 years’ relevant experience in a student-facing university role or client-facing stakeholder engagement in corporate/public service settings.
• Career coaching credentials are highly advantageous.
• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to thorough planning, accurate documentation, and consistent processes.
• Demonstrated dedication to service excellence with practical customer service strategy implementation experience.
• Deep understanding of higher education systems and organizational structures; experience managing corporate accounts is beneficial.
• Effective time management and resilience to handle multiple cases efficiently.
• Strong commitment to student development and awareness of current trends and nuances in student affairs.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, interpersonal, and stakeholder management skills.
• Highly motivated, adaptable, results-oriented, with capacity for rapid learning and embracing change.
• Self-driven with strong analytical, critical thinking, and problem-solving capabilities, able to independently discover and implement operational improvements.
• Collaborative team player who performs well in dynamic, results-driven, ambiguous environments.
• Exercises discretion and sound judgment when managing sensitive information.
• Proficient in multi-project management in fast-paced contexts.
• Strong problem-solving aptitude based on structured inquiry, research, and analysis.
• Culturally aware and sensitive, able to engage effectively across diverse backgrounds.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Office suite including Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and Access.
• Experience with social media for stakeholder engagement and brand development is advantageous.
• Skills in Microsoft Power Automate for workflow automation and digital form/survey creation, and Power BI for dashboard development and data-driven decisions.
• Career coaching certifications further strengthen candidacy.

Additional Information

Applicants lacking the stated qualifications but having relevant professional experience are encouraged to apply. Salary and appointment conditions will correspond to qualifications and experience. The university reserves discretion to alter the terms of appointment as necessary.