Manager, Student Success & Engagement

**Status:**Full Time

**Hours:**Monday – Friday, 35 hours/week

**Home Campus:**Fennell (hybrid work arrangements available)

**Rate of Pay:**Payband 11 ($100,363 - $125,453 per year)

**Vacancy Status:**1 vacancy available

**Posting Date:**March 23rd, 2026

**Closing Date:**April 3rd, 2026 at 7:00 pm EST

We believe the rich diversity among our students and the communities we serve should be reflected within our workforce. As educators, we believe it is important to act and show leadership in advancing the principles of reconciliation, equity, diversity, and inclusion in our community.

The Manager, Student Success and Engagement provides leadership and oversight for the Student Success Advisor (Academic Advising) team, ensuring advising services are delivered in alignment with institutional priorities, student needs, and the College’s advising model. The role supports coordinated approaches to proactive outreach, transition support, and early intervention, and holds sole accountability for the institutional retention strategy, contributing to broader student success and persistence outcomes.

The incumbent will provide leadership for the Black and Racialized Student Success Centre and the Social Inc. space, ensuring culturally responsive supports, programming, and engagement opportunities are available to students. This includes fostering inclusive environments that promote belonging, connection, and academic success, and ensuring services align with equity-informed and student-centered practices.

The incumbent will also oversee the Student Life programming that enhances student development and connection, including peer mentorship programs, leadership and employability skill development initiatives, first-year experience activities, and programming that increases awareness of campus workshops, clubs, events, and volunteer opportunities. Through these initiatives, the role supports early and sustained engagement and fosters a strong sense of connection to the College community.

What you’ll be doing:

Orientation, First-Year Transition & Student Engagement Strategy

• Leads the planning, delivery, and continuous improvement of the College’s orientation and transition framework, including Orientation Day, Welcome Back Week, academic orientations across all campuses, apprenticeship intake and welcome activities, and pre- and post-orientation supports for new students.
• Develops, implements, and oversees the College’s student retention strategy, including establishing annual priorities, monitoring key indicators, and adjusting approaches year over year to respond to emerging trends and student needs.
• Designs and implements First-Year Experience and student engagement initiatives that support early connection, belonging, and persistence, including leadership and employability skill development, peer mentorship programs, orientation volunteer initiatives, and targeted engagement activities.
• Applies student development theory, transition theory, and adult learning principles to ensure programming is inclusive, accessible, and responsive to the needs of diverse student populations.
• Introduces and embeds a proactive (intrusive) advising approach in collaboration with Student Success Advisors (SSAs), ensuring at-risk students are identified early and supported consistently throughout the academic term through coordinated outreach and intervention strategies.
• Maintains expertise in student engagement, advising, and retention practices, remaining current on emerging research, trends, and sector best practices to inform program design and delivery.
• Evaluates the effectiveness of orientation, engagement, and advising-related initiatives using participation data, feedback, and outcomes to support evidence-informed decision-making and continuous improvement.
• Collaborates with academic areas, Student Services and Supports, and student groups to ensure coordinated, campus-wide delivery of engagement, transition, and advising initiatives.
• Supports awareness of campus workshops, programming, clubs, events, and on-campus volunteer opportunities to strengthen students’ sense of connection to the College community.

Operations, Team Leadership & Service Delivery

• Oversees the day-to-day operations of Student Success and Engagement, including Student Life, the Black and Racialized Student Success Centre, and Academic Advising teams, ensuring high-quality, student-centred service delivery aligned with institutional priorities and the College Advising Model.
• Leads, supports, and develops full-time, part-time, and student staff through effective recruitment, onboarding, coaching, performance management, and professional development.
• Plans staffing models and allocates resources to support peak periods, large-scale orientation activities, proactive advising outreach, and annual engagement initiatives across campuses.
• Holds operational accountability for the Social Inc. space, ensuring it is effectively managed as a student-centred environment that supports workshops, programming, and drop-in engagement.
• Develops and manages annual operational plans, timelines, and workflows to support effective execution of orientation, engagement, and advising activities.
• Manages budgets and financial resources, including forecasting, monitoring expenditures, and ensuring the financial sustainability of programs and services.
• Tracks, analyzes, and reports on service utilization, student engagement, advising activity, and outcomes to demonstrate impact and inform planning.
• Identifies operational improvement opportunities and supports the effective use of technology, systems, and data to enhance coordination, communication, documentation, and reporting.
• Ensures that programs and services are consistently presented with a strong, positive image that reflects the College’s commitment to student success.
• As a member of the Student Services and Supports leadership team, contributes to the development of divisional business plans, priorities, and continuous improvement initiatives.

Planning, Collaboration & Continuous Improvement

• Contributes to divisional and institutional planning by aligning Student Success and Engagement and advising initiatives with College strategic priorities.
• Participates on College committees and working groups related to orientation, student transition, engagement, advising, and retention.
• Communicates effectively with internal stakeholders and partners to share information, gather feedback, and coordinate initiatives.
• Supports special projects and funded initiatives related to student engagement, transition, or advising, as assigned.

Other Duties

• As a member of the Student Services and Supports team, supports College-wide activities such as Open House, Day One, Orientation, and Convocation.

Other duties as assigned.

What you’ll bring to the role:

• A postsecondary degree in Education, Postsecondary Studies, Adult Education, Student Affairs, Student Development, College Administration, or a related field.
• Minimum of five (5) years of progressive leadership experience in a post-secondary educational setting, specifically within student services, with demonstrated responsibility for student engagement, orientation, advising, or first-year transition initiatives.
• Proven experience leading and managing staff (full-time, part-time, and/or student employees) within a unionized environment, including performance management, coaching, and team development.
• Demonstrated experience in the design, delivery, and evaluation of student engagement and success initiatives, including orientation, first-year experience programming, proactive advising, and peer-based supports.
• Applied experience using student development, advising, and engagement theories and practices to inform program design and service delivery.
• Experience with budget preparation, forecasting, monitoring, and accountability, ensuring effective and sustainable use of resources.
• Working knowledge of data tracking, program assessment, and performance measurement methods, with experience using participation data and outcomes to inform decision-making.
• Strong knowledge of student transition, engagement, and belonging practices, with the ability to apply student development and adult learning principles to orientation, first-year experience, and proactive advising initiatives.
• Proven skills in program planning, coordination, delivery, and evaluation, including managing multiple initiatives, timelines, and stakeholders across campuses.
• Highly developed communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to manage sensitive situations, support difficult conversations, and foster collaboration among diverse groups.
• Working knowledge of post-secondary systems, policies, and current sector issues, with the ability to quickly learn and apply institutional procedures and governance frameworks.
• Demonstrated commitment and understanding of human rights, equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility.
• The ability to communicate and work effectively with diverse students, employees, and communities.

What we offer:

• Progressive vacation plan starting with 22 vacation days per year plus holiday closure.
• Defined Benefit pension plan (CAAT) with contributions matched by Mohawk College.
• 93% top up of maternity and parental leave pay for 52 weeks.
• Annual employee performance incentive program.
• Comprehensive benefits package including health, dental, vision, paramedical services (massage therapy, acupuncture, naturopath, psychotherapy and psychology), short-term and long-term disability.
• Ability to take courses at a reduced rate for employees and dependents.

To find out more about working at Mohawk College, including our Employee Value Proposition, please visit https://www.mohawkcollege.ca/about-mohawk/careers-at-mohawk

We are committed to reconciliation and nurturing an inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible (IDEA) environment for everyone who learns and works at Mohawk College. We welcome applications from racialized persons, women, Indigenous people, persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQIA+ persons, and others who may contribute to the further diversification of ideas.

The College is committed to fostering inclusive and barrier-free recruitment and selection processes. If you require accommodation during any stage of the recruitment process, please contact Human Resources.

To learn more about Mohawk College’s commitments, please visit the Mohawk College strategic plan webpage: https://www.strategicplan.mohawkcollege.ca/