Brief Description
Role Overview:

• The Postgraduate Student Advisor will be integral to the ADU, tasked with enhancing student academic success and well-being. Responsibilities include:
• Implementing strategies to prevent students from becoming academically at risk.
• Employing early warning detection techniques to identify at-risk students and deploying effective interventions.
• In light of challenges within the South African higher education context and the Universitys commitment to diversifying access to postgraduate research, teaching, and learning, this role is pivotal. The advisor will develop and monitor academic and non-academic support structures across the faculty and its schools, utilizing data-informed programs.

Key Responsibilities:

• Engage with students through in-person and online platforms, providing both group and individual support.
• Develop personalized and faculty-wide support interventions aimed at improving academic, eco-social, and psycho-social well-being.
• Design and administer surveys to gather timely, insightful feedback on postgraduate student needs.
• Organize and conduct development workshops, webinars, seminars, and retreats.
• Facilitate orientation sessions, connect students with funding opportunities, and train tutors in student advising and academic mentoring.
• Establish student support structures within faculty schools and collaborate with university-wide units like the Counselling and Careers Development Unit (CCDU) for holistic student support.

Qualifications and Experience:

• A PhD degree in Engineering, Built Environment and Science.
• A minimum of three years of experience in student support within higher education, preferably in an Engineering or Built Environment context.
• Certification or documented training in Basic Counselling and Managing Students at Emotional Risk.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and oversee transformative student support programs that have tangibly improved student success.