Vice President for Enrollment Management

New England Institute of Technology, a leader in non-profit technical career education in Southeastern New England, invites applications for the position of Vice President for Enrollment Management. Reporting to the Executive Vice President, the Vice President for Enrollment Management provides leadership to the areas of admissions, financial aid and marketing and leads the university’s comprehensive effort to maximize and sustain enrollments. Serving as the chief enrollment officer, the Vice President engages with a broad range of university leadership and external organizations to create, implement and influence policies, initiatives and services that positively impact student enrollment, retention, engagement and satisfaction. As a member of the President's Executive Committee, the Vice President plays an important role as a leader in the university's overall promotional efforts, working closely with faculty, staff and leadership to enhance the university's reputation in the region and nationally.

The successful candidate will:

• Develop and implement innovative initiatives to support the execution of a strategic plan, leverage New England Institute of Technology’s uniquely diverse academic program offerings to attract and enroll qualified students, and ensure optimum levels of enrollment growth across the university.
• Provide strategic leadership and operational management for undergraduate and graduate admission, including expanding the university’s enrollment market, regionally, nationally and internationally; administering financial aid; advancing marketing efforts; and managing complex recruitment processes that serve a variety of student populations and numerous academic programs. 
• Lead the development, implementation, and ongoing evaluation of a comprehensive enrollment management strategic plan; recommend strategic initiatives, actions, and policy considerations to the Executive Vice President and President.
• Participate in and network with local and regional organizations and associations to facilitate recruitment initiatives and establish relationships that lead to enrollment partnerships.
• Supervise all aspects of the recruitment funnel and recruitment pipelines including development of the prospect and inquiry pools, conversion and application processing, review and yield activities.
• Identify opportunities to develop and participate in a variety of recruitment and promotional events on and off campus.
• Build strategic partnerships with members of the university community and outside stakeholders to structure and execute university-wide enrollment recruitment and retention efforts.
• Possess knowledge of financial aid leveraging, and the effective balance of financial assistance for attracting and retaining students; understand and promote the importance of financial literacy and customer service.
• Demonstrate an understanding and in-depth knowledge of market trends and demographics.
• Lead, motivate, and empower a team of talented, loyal and hard-working professionals; foster and promote a civil, respectful working environment.
• Develop new strategies for marketing and communication in an effort to strengthen and refine the university’s marketing, recruiting, and outreach efforts; elevate the reputation and visibility of New England Institute of Technology by telling the story of its academic excellence, quality faculty, and successful students.
• Possess an ability to engage and collaborate with faculty, staff, students, and others across a complex, multi-campus structure that serves various populations; inspire the collegial community of New England Institute of Technology to support a culture of enrollment by emphasizing the important role each person plays in the process.
• Use strategic planning fundamentals, data reports, and predictive enrollment analytics, to direct efforts of the enrollment team to achieve short term enrollment growth increasing student population from approximately 2,600 to 3,000.

Qualifications and Characteristics

The successful candidate should have significant proven experience in higher education. A minimum of a bachelor’s degree is required; and an advanced degree is strongly preferred with at least ten years relevant experience in admissions, financial aid and/or recruitment. In addition, candidates for this position should demonstrate the following characteristics, skills, abilities and understanding:

• Significant direct supervisory experience and administrative leadership of a multifaceted enrollment operation.
• Demonstrated success in developing and refining integrated strategic enrollment and marketing plans.
• Well-versed in student recruitment of all populations, including undergraduate, graduate, and adult learners.
• An entrepreneurial spirit and appetite for change and innovation.
• Tech and data savvy and able to use those skills to advance the division and institution.
• Analytical skill in understanding financial aid, the discount rate, net tuition revenue and compliance in aid distribution in relation to the institutional budget.
• Excellent oral, written and interpersonal communication skills.
• Agile and compassionate professional who can operate in a fast paced, high tech and high touch environment.
• Innovative, strategic and visionary sense and creative approach to recruiting new students.
• Advanced understanding of modern student recruitment and marketing strategies.

The Institution

As a private, non-profit, technical university, New England Institute of Technology provides undergraduate and graduate degree programs for students from diverse educational backgrounds and with differing levels of ability. For 80 years, New England Institute of Technology has met the challenge of preparing its graduates to enter an increasingly competitive workplace.

Accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education, the mission of New England Institute of Technology (NEIT) is to provide specialized undergraduate and graduate degree programs which prepare students for professional and technical careers. Through the combination of professional and technical courses and an integrated liberal arts core, academic programs emphasize the relevance of continuous learning for personal and professional growth. Upon successful completion, graduates are prepared to enter the workforce or to continue their education. As an extension of the primary mission, NEIT offers the opportunity to pursue professional and technological studies to satisfy personal interests.

The university’s mission evolved from the principle that all persons should have access to career opportunities through a quality technical education. To achieve this purpose, New England Institute of Technology is first and foremost an institution committed to teaching with a hands-on approach by faculty with strong experience in their relative fields of expertise. At New England Institute of Technology, there is a belief that every student can learn; a recognition that students may learn in different ways with varying levels of ability; and the prioritization of the creation of a learning environment in every classroom and laboratory that both challenges and supports each student.

New England Institute of Technology currently enrolls approximately 2,600 students in over 50 associate, bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. academic programs in such diverse fields as nursing, occupational therapy, surgical technology, digital media production, building sciences, architecture, interior design, automotive technology, business management, criminal justice, information technology and numerous other technical areas of study.  New England Institute of Technology consists of three locations: the main campus in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, featuring Meltzer Residence Hall, and two campuses in Warwick, RI.

Dynamic changes, including the expansion of its program offerings and physical plant, symbolize New England Institute of Technology’s vanguard journey into the 21st century and its response to the radical transformation that new technologies have brought to the workplace. The needs of tomorrow’s students demand access to those technological resources that will enable them to realize technology’s full potential to change their education and their lives. As it has since its beginning, New England Institute of Technology has chosen to meet that challenge: the success of the university will continue to be measured by its graduates’ accomplishments in the world they are entering both as workers and citizens.

New England Institute of Technology is fortunate to have a diverse student body that includes traditional high school graduates, transfer students who have attended other colleges/universities and adults that are looking to advance their careers or pursue new career paths. New England Institute of Technology takes a personal, holistic, and individual view of the admissions process and works with each type of student to ensure the admissions committee receives the appropriate information when making their admissions decision. This approach ensures a diverse student body that is currently made up of 70% adult learners, 7% veterans and 50% Pell Grant recipients.  

History

Founded in 1940 as the New England Technical Institute, the present university began as a certificate-granting trade school. In 1971, a new administration, under the leadership of President Richard I. Gouse, envisioned a degree-granting institution that would not only be better qualified to meet industry’s need for technically-trained workers, but would also become one of the top technical universities in the nation. When the Board of Regents of the State of Rhode Island granted the institution the authority to offer associate degrees in 1977, its name was changed to New England Institute of Technology (NEIT). In 1982, NEIT was accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc. (NEASC). Two years later, in addition to associate degrees, the State of Rhode Island authorized NEIT to confer baccalaureate degrees and such other degrees, earned and honorary, as are usually conferred by colleges and universities in addition to its associate degree programs. By 1990, four new bachelor’s programs had been added to the university’s offerings. In 1995, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges’ Commission on Technical and Career Institutions awarded accreditation to NEIT as a baccalaureate-granting institution. In 2005, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges continued NEIT’s accreditation through its Commission on Institutions of Higher Education. This accreditation continues today through the New England Commission of Higher Education (formerly the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, Inc.). In 2010, the university began enrolling students in its first Master of Science degree program, and in 2018, the university offered its first post-professional doctoral program.

New England Institute of Technology is the recipient of a grant from the Feinstein Foundation. The objective of the Feinstein Enriching America Program is to promote the theme and values of caring, compassion, and community involvement. All students are encouraged to participate in this program which involves community-based volunteerism and may include academic credit.

Campuses:

New England Institute of Technology has three campuses in Rhode Island, two in Warwick and the principal campus in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, all a short distance south of the state’s capital, Providence. 

The main campus in East Greenwich, which opened in 2010, consists of two buildings: one containing office, classroom, and laboratory space; and Meltzer Residence Hall. Located on 220 wooded acres in a scenic New England town, this campus is headquarters to all administrative departments. The East Greenwich campus features expanded amenities for students, including a new dining center and a fitness center; along with the development of a university green open space area.

NEIT’s Meltzer Residence Hall is a four-story, 400-bed building that offers single and double occupancy traditional rooms and semi-suites. Meltzer Hall includes student lounges, study rooms, a game room, a lounge with a fireplace and multi-purpose common spaces. Managed by professional residential life staff who live on site, the residence hall also employs student Resident Assistants (RAs) who live throughout the building and are the first point of contact for students needing support or resources.

The Julian B. Gouse Campus, located in Warwick, consists of two buildings containing faculty and administrative offices, classroom and laboratory spaces, as well as a student lounge. The Gouse Campus is named after the late trustee and benefactor of the university. Julian B. Gouse was a member of the original Board of Directors of the National Association of Trade and Technical Schools; a trustee of New England Institute of Technology; and, for twenty years, president of one of America’s leading technical schools, Massachusetts Trade Shop School.

The Access Road Campus in Warwick consists of four buildings office, classroom, and laboratory space featuring a custom-designed 53,000 square-foot facility dedicated exclusively to the training of automotive technicians which opened in April, 2005. The Access Road Campus receives power from a 156-foot wind turbine and an array of 135 solar panels.

All buildings on the Gouse, Access Road, and East Greenwich campuses were either originally designed or extensively remodeled over the years to serve the institutional needs of the university, its mission and purposes. Laboratories have been conceived for the technology of the 21st century and they equal or surpass industry standards. Spacious and well-lighted, many of these combined classroom/laboratories have been custom-built to faculty and staff specifications. These facilities integrate computers into a highly functional setting for the technological training that is necessary to prepare students for successful applications in the workplace.

Location:

Rhode Island is an unforgettable New England destination that has a bold and spunky personality for its small size, making it a premier destination. The Ocean State combines an innovative arts scene, distinctive cuisine, trendy shopping, a thriving nightlife, miles of stunning beaches and an endless list of things to do, all within a short drive.

A state with a rich history, Rhode Island has family fun and culture around every corner. Residents can indulge in a decadent meal at one of its acclaimed restaurants, hit the beach for an ocean-side clam shack, or restore themselves with a spa treatment at one of the country's only 15-star resorts.  A small state with many benefits, Rhode Island offers history, natural beauty and more.

East Greenwich, where the main campus is located, is a suburb of Providence with a population of just over 13,000. Rated as one of the best places to live in Rhode Island, East Greenwich offers residents a dense suburban feel with its many restaurants, coffee shops, and parks, along with highly rated public schools.  Warwick, the location of New England Tech’s two other campuses, is centrally located and includes a diverse range of attractions and restaurants, convenient shopping and lodging, as well as beautiful scenery, beaches, and parks, which are some of the state’s best.

The New England Institute of Technology campus locations in Rhode Island are about 60 miles from the storied cultural, business and sports resources of Boston or the laid-back atmosphere of Cape Cod; and convenient fast Amtrak and highway access to New York City.

To Apply:

Napier Executive Search is assisting New England Institute of Technology with the search for the Vice President for Enrollment Management.  To arrange for a confidential conversation, please contact Laura Robinson (laura.robinson@napiersearch.com),

Catherine Capolupo (catherine.capolupo@napiersearch.com) or Mary Napier (mary.napier@napiersearch.com). 

Candidates who plan to apply should send a resume, a detailed letter outlining interest in New England Institute of Technology and contact information for three professional references by email to neit@napiersearch.com by January 3, 2020 for best consideration. All applications and nominations will be considered confidential and notice will be given before references are contacted.

New England Institute of Technology admits qualified students of any race, color, religion, sex, age, disability or national and ethnic origin to all the rights and privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. New England Institute of Technology does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, age, or national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and other school-administered programs nor does New England Institute of Technology discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability or national and ethnic origin in any phase of its employment process.