Vice President for Enrollment Management Leadership Profile
Executive Summary
Azusa Pacific University seeks a seasoned relational and mission-aligned enrollment leader to serve as Vice President for Enrollment Management during an important period of institutional renewal and strategic advancement. This role requires an executive who brings strategic clarity emotional intelligence and deep care for people and who can lead confidently through complexity and change while fostering alignment and shared ownership.
APU is at a meaningful inflection point. The Vice President for Enrollment Management will be responsible not only for advancing enrollment outcomes but for building trust; establishing clear leadership structures; supporting a committed enrollment team; deepening partnerships with the academy; and aligning stakeholders around a shared vision for student access success and long-term institutional sustainability.
The Vice President for Enrollment Management (VPEM) serves as the universitys chief enrollment officer and as a key member of the Presidents Cabinet partnering closely with senior leadership to help shape the future direction of Azusa Pacific University. This leader will be charged with repositioning and strengthening enrollment performance and advancing the universitys mission through an ambitious data-informed strategy and execution. Working across divisions the VPEM will ensure strong alignment among enrollment goals institutional priorities and student success efforts.
APU seeks a change-oriented and forward-looking leader with the vision energy and entrepreneurial mindset to evaluate modernize and lead the enrollment enterprise. The VPEM will be empowered to implement innovative recruitment strategies; leverage advanced enrollment technologies including Slate CRM; collaborate effectively with external partners and vendors; and thoughtfully incorporate emerging tools such as AI-enabled approaches to engage recruit and yield prospective students. This role requires a systems-level leader who can set realistic enrollment targets; inform budget and resource planning; and lead with accountability transparency and collaboration.
Role of the Vice President for Enrollment Management
The Vice President for Enrollment Management is responsible for leading all aspects of enrollment strategy operations and this role the VPEM will:
- Lead the development implementation and ongoing refinement of comprehensive enrollment strategies aligned with APUs mission academic priorities and financial goals.
- Serve as the institutional leader responsible for driving new student recruitment growth while partnering closely with the Provost and Student Belonging leadership to strengthen retention strategies as a critical enrollment lever supporting overall enrollment growth and student success.
- Partner with the Provost academic deans and Student Belonging leadership to establish institutional enrollment targets that support academic quality and program vitality.
- Provide oversight of enrollment marketing undergraduate admissions graduate and online admissions enrollment operations financial aid military and veteran benefits student accounts records/registrar Student Services Center the Welcome Center international admissions and student services and recruitment efforts across six regional campuses in southern California .
- Strengthen the front door experience for prospective and current students ensuring a seamless welcoming and mission-aligned enrollment journey
- Build upon existing enrollment technologies and practices including the universitys Slate CRM to enhance data governance analytics and performance monitoring.
- Collaborate with the division of Strategic Communication and Engagement to ensure messaging branding and digital presence (including the APU website) effectively support recruitment and yield goals.
- Serve as a key liaison with external partners and community stakeholders to expand and diversify enrollment pipelines.
- Oversee enrollment policy in partnership with academic and executive leadership
Opportunities and Expectations for Leadership
In this role the VPEM will be expected to:
- Advance and align enrollment strategy: Assess current approaches identify opportunities for refinement and implement forward-looking data-informed strategies that strengthen outcomes across the enrollment funnel.
- Establish empowered leadership: Clarify roles decision rights and accountability structures that enable directors and teams to lead effectively and confidently.
- Lead culture and team development: Foster a culture of trust transparency collaboration and professional growth within the enrollment division and with campus partners.
- Strengthen academic partnerships: Build credibility with faculty and academic leadership through shared planning and inclusive engagement reinforcing the centrality of academic success in enrollment efforts.
- Contribute market-informed insight to academic planning: Partner with academic leadership on market research program demand forecasting viability delivery modalities and launch timing while respecting shared governance and academic decision-making structures.
- Provide strategic leadership for enrollment-related financial planning: Guide tuition revenue strategy financial aid philosophy and discount-rate management in partnership with finance and academic leadership to support access affordability and institutional sustainability.
- Position APU for sustainable success: Balance near-term enrollment priorities with long-term growth and resilience aligning enrollment strategies with evolving student needs and market dynamics.
Professional Qualifications and Personal Attributes
The successful candidate will bring:
- A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible leadership experience in comprehensive enrollment management (experience leading through organizational change or realignment preferred).
- Demonstrated success advancing enrollment strategy across undergraduate graduate adult and non-traditional populations.
- A collaborative empowering leadership style that builds trust clarity and accountability.
- Experience leveraging CRM systems (including Slate) data analytics and contemporary recruitment technologies to inform strategy and execution.
- Ability to integrate Christian mission and values into executive leadership and relationship building.
- A record of developing mentoring and empowering enrollment leaders and teams.
- Clear compelling communication skills and the ability to influence at all levels of the institution.
- Bachelors degree required; advanced degree preferred
Impact of This Role
Azusa Pacific University is well positioned to build on its mission academic strengths and commitment to student success while navigating a dynamic enrollment environment. The next Vice President for Enrollment Management will play a key role in:
- Establishing clarity confidence and shared leadership across enrollment functions.
- Aligning enrollment strategy with academic priorities and institutional goals.
- Advancing the universitys Christian mission and institutional reputation.
- Driving sustained measurable progress in enrollment performance.
This is a high-impact visible leadership role with meaningful authority strong executive partnership and the opportunity to guide the next phase of APUs enrollment journey and the institutions future.
Mental Demands
- A deep and personal commitment to Jesus Christ and complete alignment with the mission vision and values of Azusa Pacific University.
- Agreement with APUs Statement of Faith and the universitys convictions as outlined in the What We Believe document.
Physical Demands
- Continuous sitting for four to six hours/day.
- Repetitive wrist and finger motions related to computer usage.
- Hearing talking on the telephone.
- Ability to reach grasp bend pull and lift up to twenty pounds.
Visual Demands
Environment
Compensation
- $230000 to $290000 is the compensation for this role and reflects what Azusa Pacific University reasonably expects to pay for this position. Actual compensation may vary based on the qualifications experience and internal addition to compensation APU offers a competitive benefits package.
Azusa Pacific University is a Christ-centered multicultural community that values and seeks faculty and staff who are committed to diversity work effectively with diverse populations and engage others in ways that honor our rich cultural mosaic and biblical foundation. Please click the links to learn more aboutwhat we believe ourmission statement and our statement of faith.
You can learn more about APU by watching the stories of faculty staff and alumni as they carry out our mission here: role is designated as a Campus Security Authority (CSA) under the Clery Act. It involves responsibility for students and the campus community requiring the individual to receive and report crimes or incidents to Campus Safety especially those posing an ongoing threat.
Azusa Pacific University will conduct a background check on all final candidates.
Review of applications will begin immediately and the position will remain open until filled unless otherwise stated. Azusa Pacific University does not discriminate on the basis of race color national origin sex age disability or status as a veteran in any of its policies practices or procedures. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply.