Postsecondary Education Administrator

I. JOB SUMMARY

Main Topic: Environment and Society
Secondary Topic: Places and Regions

Overview:  Postsecondary Education Administrators can work in a wide variety of roles that oversee the operations of a college or university. Their roles can range from working in the admissions office, where they review applicants, decide on how many students may be admitted for the school year, and analyze trends and data over both the current pool of applicants and existing student body. Other offices where they may work include Financial Aid and Scholarships, the Registrar’s office, Student Affairs, Athletics, Housing and Residential Life, amongst many others. Another important role a Postsecondary Education Administrator may posses is an academic dean or provost, where they act as heads of the different colleges and departments that fall within their discipline. They also help with advancing professors for tenure, manage budgets, and faculty research. Being able to recognize trends and patterns amongst the student body and prospective students is a pertinent skill to have in these roles in order to effectively plan for changes that may come. Applying a geographic lens to those skills would aid them in recognizing cities and states where a majority of new applicants are coming from, which would inform them that they should focus more energy on recruitment and marketing in those areas.

Geographers at work: Geographic Educators, Regional Geographers, Qualitative and Quantitative Researchers

Recommended College Courses: World Geography, Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems, Research Methods in Geography, Geography of a Specific Region (United States and Canada, Europe, Latin America, Japan and China, etc.), Fundamental Themes in Geography, Business Geography

Skills:  Qualitative and Quantitative Research, Geographic Education, Cultural Geography, Human Geography, Geospatial Technologies

Occupation Group: Management & Education, Training, and Library

Learn more about Postsecondary Education Administrators from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/postsecondary-education-administrators.htm