Financial Aid Counselor

Central Washington University is recruiting a Financial Aid Counselor or Financial Aid Counselor 2 to join our Financial Aid team in Ellensburg, Washington. This role is an important member of our team as they enhance the vision for the University. The role is a campus-based position, which means you get to see the lives you are impacting. We're offering a salary, depending on experience, from $40,333 - $43,000 annually (Financial Aid Counselor) or $44,367 - $48,000 annually (Financial Aid Counselor 2) plus the awesome CWU benefits.

Who we are:

We are a team of individuals committed to Changing Students' Lives. No matter what job, each of us plays a part in supporting and empowering our students to fulfill their dreams.

Working in higher education provides career growth and career choice. Think of a university campus like a mini city, operating across 380 acres. You'll find diverse academics, libraries, athletics and sporting events, full service and quick serve dining, conferences and events from small to large, recreation centers, housing, health services, police and public safety for the campus population of ~10,000 students.

Central Washington University has been named a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program Top Producing Institution for the 2022-2023 academic year. In addition, for the seventh time in eight years, CWU is a recipient of the prestigious Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. Come join us on our journey to encourage, inspire, and create spaces where all identities thrive on campus.

Tour our campus in Ellensburg here. www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjdhOegDa9A

What we offer:

Our investment in you begins the day you join our team, a healthy and successful future for you is important to us. We offer medical, dental, life and disability insurance, retirement and optional savings plans, tuition assistance for you and your dependents, discounts across town, an employee assistance program for individualized counseling, and a wellness incentive program. Learn more: Benefits, Perks, and Leave.

The Role:

Financial Aid Counselor
This position is located at the Ellensburg campus. The Financial Aid Counselor works with applicants, students, and parents regarding financial aid, scholarships, and work-study. The counselor is relied upon to correctly process applications, verify application data, determine eligibility, issue and/or revise awards, and monitor student progress for continued eligibility. In addition, they make professional judgement decisions for satisfactory academic progress, revision requests, and dependency overrides. This position delivers public financial aid presentations for recruitment and retention purposes, serving as an expert on federal, state, and institutional financial aid programs for all constituents.

Financial Aid Counselor 2
The FA Counselor 2 fills a leadership position on the financial aid counseling team. In addition to the regular duties and responsibilities of a financial aid counselor, they model best practices and excellent customer service while providing guidance and assistance to the Student Financial Services Department. The FA Counselor 2 is a subject matter expert, able to give presentations for both small and large events and provide individual counseling support. Their understanding of processes, policies, and procedures allows them to work efficiently and with minimal supervision. They are a resource for financial aid counselors, the Student Financial Services Department, the university, and the community.

All employees are expected to support CWU's commitment to diversity and to bring and support inclusion into the university environment.

Essential functions include, but not limited to:

Counseling:
- Financial Aid Counselors use significant and broad professional judgment and discretion in the awarding of available financial aid Situations require a thorough understanding of regulations as well as the personal issues involved. In many cases, the issues involved are complex and require involved discussions and excellent analytical skills to arrive at a decision. All exceptions must be fully documented and made within the limitations of statute/regulation.
- Bridging the gap between family expectations and the reality of limited financial aid resources can be stressful. Counselors regularly deal with dissonance between a family's perceived need and the help available to the student. Counselors are expected to remain supportive, calm, and professional during these difficult conversations.
- Financial Aid Counselors interact in-person, over the phone, virtually, and by email with students, families and support networks, and others seeking information and assistance with all aspects of the financial aid process. Counseling may include analyzing the student's circumstances for financial aid eligibility, explaining outcomes and consequences of actions or decisions, and referring students to other offices or resources as warranted by the student's situation.
- Determine when standard procedures may be inadequate to meet the student's situation and advocate for exceptions to policy within the office or with process partners.
- Counsel college and high school students, families and support networks, and other stakeholders on Federal, State, Institutional, and Third-party aid programs (such as College Success Foundation, CWU Foundation, and other organizations that fund scholarships) and explain how they may interact with one another.
- Counsel students and parents regarding educational loan options including federal student loans, private student loans, federal parent loans, and other possible sources of funding.
- Counsel students one-on-one and in groups about grants, scholarships, loans, work study employment, and financial planning.
- Articulate timelines to students and families and support networks. Assist students to secure the best financial package possible in their situation.
- Advise customers on a broad range of financial aid rules, regulations, policies, and procedures, including some U.S. income tax filing rules.
- Serve as team/committee member on review of appeals, special projects, and tasks.

File Processing and Program Management:
- Provide day-to-day support in all aspects of financial aid processing: process applications, verify application data, determine eligibility, issue and/or revise awards, add scholarships and other funds to student awards and adjust other aid according to policy and monitor satisfactory academic progress.
- Accountable for properly following procedures used to process and distribute funds. Analyze high amounts of detailed data and take corrective action under tight time constraints. Contribute to development of system solutions for recurring problems.
- Review a variety of reports, comparing new data to previously recorded data, analyzing data for reasonableness and consistency with other information, contacting outside parties or students when necessary for clarification, making determinations as to how this affects student eligibility, adjusting the aid package and notifying students of changes.
- Take appropriate action if conflicting information or evidence of fraud is discovered. Make corrections to the application and/or ask for additional information as needed and under tight time constraints.
- Utilize professional judgment to counsel students regarding special circumstances. Review special circumstances presented by the student in-person or by means of written requests. Make appropriate revisions to student eligibility, cost of attendance, or financial aid award to accommodate reasonable requests that are within the law, institutional policy, and funding guidelines. Document professional judgments and corrections, compiling documentation to support determinations.
- Award and revise financial aid in accordance with federal, state, and institutional regulations and guidelines. Verify or correct application information, track through automated correction process or enter data directly through FAAccess On-line.
- Responsible for an assigned program management area such as oversight of default prevention, consumer information, guaranteed sources, aid for study abroad, scholarships, or reconciling disbursements with program funding source. Serve as the expert on the specific program, train the assigned back-up staff member, and maintain the business process guides that outline the specific processes and procedures. Complete fund reconciliation regularly as required by the assigned program.
- Maintain access to the administrative system (PeopleSoft), and other Financial Aid systems such as Common Origination Disbursement system (COD), National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), Free Application for Student Aid (FAFSA), FAA Access, Central Process Service (CPS), WSAC secure portal, and ELM (private loan processing Center).

Presentations/Outreach:
- Counselors must be effective and knowledgeable in communicating to diverse groups and larger audiences the financial aid process and requirements, and willing to contribute whenever possible or needed to support CWU outreach activities.
- Perform community outreach at workshops using various types of presentation technology in a variety of settings, including on and off campus, day, evening, and weekend venues. Coordinate presentations with sponsoring groups and other presenters, determine in advance the appropriate equipment needed and handouts and materials to be provided. During peak times, financial aid counselors are conducting presentations at least once per week.
- Support the efforts of Student Engagement and Success by participating in weekday, evening and weekend events such as Wildcat Previews Days, Orientation, Welcome Week, etc.

Attend Training:
- Remain current in the field by attending training sessions, both in-person and virtually, provided by the U.S. Department of Education, Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC) and through research using professional publications, manuals, and internet resources
- Maintain expert knowledge of regulatory and institutional changes and utilize complex computer systems to meet job requirements. Specific assigned programs may be complex and require specialized training or skills.

- Other duties as assigned

(Additional duties assigned to Financial Aid Counselor 2. Complete list of duties available upon request.)

• Experience providing exemplary customer service in difficult or sensitive situations.
• Excellent written, verbal, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Experience interpreting, explaining, and applying financial aid laws, regulations, and complex policies for multiple or highly specialized programs
• Experience analyzing financial aid and student record data and researching a variety of sources to identify and resolve problems or issues
• Demonstrated experience interacting effectively with students and/or co-workers from a wide range of abilities, backgrounds, and experiences
• Demonstrated willingness and/or experience working with students and/or co-workers from a wide range of abilities, backgrounds, and experiences.
• OR applicable combination of education and/or experience which demonstrates the ability to perform the essential functions of the position.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree in counseling, higher education, or related field
• Progressively responsible work experience in higher education financial aid
• Bilingual - preferably Spanish
• Demonstrated participation in programs designed to promote inclusion.
• Demonstrated commitment to improving access to higher education for students through various activities

Competencies

• Accountability/Dependability: Accepts responsibility for quality of own work; acknowledges and corrects mistakes. Shows up on time, meets standards, deadlines and work schedules.
• Judgement: Makes timely, informed decisions. Analyzes options and determines appropriate course of action.
• Teamwork: Promotes cooperation and mutual support to achieve goals. Encourages participation and mutual support.
• Adaptability/Flexibility: Responds positively to changing business needs and responsibilities. Adapts approach and methods to achieve results; recovers quickly from setbacks and finds alternatives.
• Commitment to Diversity: Recognizes the value of diversity and helps create environment that supports and embraces diversity.

Don't meet every single requirement? At CWU we're dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you're excited about this role but your experience doesn't align perfectly with every requirement, we encourage you to apply anyway. This may be the job for you!

Salary: The Financial Aid Counselor position has a minimum annual salary of $40,333 and maximum annual salary of $56,467. The Hiring Department's expected hiring range is $40,333 - $43,000. The Financial Aid Counselor 2 position has a minimum annual salary of $44,367 and maximum annual salary of $62,113. The Hiring Department's expected hiring range is $44,367 - $48,000. In accordance with RCW 49.58.110, the above salary reflects the full salary range for this position. Individual placement within the hiring range is based on the candidate's current experience, education, skills, and abilities related to the position.

Schedule/Appointment: Monday - Friday, 8:00am-5:00pm (1 hour lunch) / Occasional evenings/weekends

Working Conditions: Work is performed in an indoor office setting with frequent in-person interactions. It is essential to be able to remain at a desk/computer workstation for prolonged periods of time, perform extensive data entry and other computer-related tasks and create/maintain filing systems for departmental records. Some evening or weekend work and/or occasional travel may be required.

Benefits: CWU offers a comprehensive benefits package including medical and dental insurance, retirement and optional savings plans, life and disability insurance, along with vacation and sick leave plans depending on employment classification. For additional information please visit Benefits, Perks, and Leave.

An employee of CWU may be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program if the employee has student loans. To learn more, visit: https://ofm.wa.gov/state-human-resources/public-service-loan-forgiveness-program.