The Opportunity:
Carolina Friends School seeks a full-time Upper School College Counselor. This is a twelve-month position, eligible for a full employee benefits package. We’re open to candidates who are able to start immediately or on or after July 1.
The Upper School College Counselor will be fully responsible for facilitating the college search process for Carolina Friends School students. In addition to annually counseling 40-50 seniors through the college application process and helping 11th-graders get started planning their next steps, the College Counselor will educate students and families about all aspects of planning and managing a college and career search process.
The College Counselor reports to the Upper School Head Teacher and works closely with the Head and the Student Support Team. The position generally includes teaching a Spring trimester Life After CFS class focused on the transition to college.
Responsibilities:
- Provides education and information about the college search process to families on both individualized and community levels. Manages appropriate programming and resources for students and parents at each stage of their Upper School experience.
- Works closely with each family starting in the spring of the junior year through college decisions in the spring of senior year.
- Maintains records of student applications, complete and in process; records and analyzes acceptance data, matriculations in SCOIR.
- Facilitates appropriate and effective use of SCOIR by CFS students and families.
- Writes a summary of narrative assessments and a counselor letter of recommendation for each student in addition to completing other relevant forms.
- Assists students with essay writing and interview preparation.
- Arranges for college representative visits to CFS.
- Works collaboratively with the Director of Athletics, coaches, and students regarding athletic recruitment.
- Assists advisors in course selection choices as necessary.
- Communicates to families about standardized testing options and dates.
- Guides staff in the writing of teacher recommendations and manages the collection of teacher recommendations.
- Helps students plan gap years and transitions to life after Upper School that do not include college.
- Attends weekly Upper School Staff Meetings and other duties as required by the Upper School Head Teacher or the Head of School.
- With school support, engages in professional development which could include college visits and participation in local, regional, and/or national professional organizations and conferences.
Requirements:
- Bachelor’s degree in education or academic subject area. Relevant advanced degree preferred.
- Teaching and/or college counseling experience at the secondary school level and/or experience in college and university admissions.
- A genuine love of adolescents and a visible joy in working with kids of widely-ranging ambitions and abilities.
- Strong knowledge of local, regional, and national colleges and universities and their academic programs.
- A desire and ability to be collegial, flexible, and joyful in an energetic work environment.
- A commitment to applying CFS’s student-centered Mission and Philosophy to the practice of college counseling.
- Superior communication, time-management and organizational skills.
- Understanding of and strong affinity for Quaker philosophy and the School’s mission.
- Understanding of how power and inequality influenced by factors such as race, class, gender, sexuality, and learning and physical disabilities impact our students, families and colleagues.
Who We Are:
The Upper School at CFS strives to be a learning community rooted in Quaker philosophy and values where teenagers can find and can help create a safe place for the exploration of themselves and the world. Students and teachers address one another without titles as an expression of the equality we see in one another. We believe that a child’s secondary education experience should challenge them to develop the critical thinking, reading, and problem-solving skills that not only prepare students for life beyond graduation, but also for participation in the world as active agents right now. We require students to have a wide variety of curricular experiences, from traditional academic requirements to extensive work in the arts and community service. Upper School students are asked to see themselves as stewards of the whole community.
How to Apply:
Interested candidates should submit, when possible in one complete PDF file, the following:
- Cover Letter
- Resume
- Statement of Educational Philosophy
- Names and contact information for three references
Please complete all these documents into one complete packet and submit to jobopenings@cfsnc.org. Please indicate College Counselor in the email subject line.
Review of resumes will begin immediately and continue until the position has been filled. CFS reserves the right to close the recruitment at any time. Candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as all materials can be compiled.
APPLICANTS: Please review the Who We Are, Commitment to Diversity and Inclusivity, and Important Information for All Applicants sections on the CFS employment opportunities page.
Carolina Friends School actively strives to be a community of staff, students, and families of diverse backgrounds. CFS does not discriminate based on age, race, color, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, disability, socio-economic background, family structure, national or ethnic origin, genetic information, or military service in the administration of its policies and program.
CFS is an equal opportunity employer in both policy and practice.