How to hire a college director

How to hire a college director, step by step

Here's a step-by-step college director hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a college director job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new college director
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The college director hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A college director's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, college directors from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of college director salaries for various roles:

   Type of College Director	Description	Hourly rate
   College Director	Postsecondary education administrators oversee student services, academics, and faculty research at colleges and universities. Their job duties vary depending on the area of the college they manage, such as admissions, student life, or the office of the registrar.	$24-84
   Dean	A dean is responsible for overseeing the educational operations of the assigned department, enforcing school policies, and monitoring the students' progress by coordinating with the teachers and setting up procedures to improve teaching methods. Deans administer educational training and programs for the students, as well as extra-curricular activities to develop the students' social behavior, maximize their potentials, and increase their self-confidence... Show more	$23-72
   Admissions Officer	An admissions officer is responsible for recruiting new students from various venues and channels. You will connect with students and answer their questions about the college or university, and conduct interviews to better understand the students' objectives and background... Show more	$9-26

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Alumni
   • Financial Aid
   • Program Development
   • Professional Development
   • Academic Affairs
   • Student Services
   • Community Colleges
   • Academic Programs
   • Strategic Plan
   • Educational Programs
   • Curriculum Implementation
   • Community Relations
   • Leadership Development
   • Financial Management

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead project management team in development/execution of conferences and enduring CME -accredite programs.
   • Work with colleges through out Texas to develop common numbering system for courses.
   • Foster communication with alumni and encourage participation in events, programs and monetary support
   • Develop relationships with area guidance counselors in order to facilitate alumni transition from high school to post secondary education.
   • Design curricula and teach courses in development of oral and written communication skills, mathematics and general educational development for adults.
   • Safeguard course and syllabus alignment by performing ongoing examination review.

   More college director duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in the college director job description is a good way to get more applicants. A college director salary can be affected by several factors, such as the location of the job, the level of experience, education, certifications, and the employer's prestige.

   For example, the average salary for a college director in Oklahoma may be lower than in Connecticut, and an entry-level engineer typically earns less than a senior-level college director. Additionally, a college director with lots of experience in the field may command a higher salary as a result.

   Average college director salary

   $93,752yearly

   $45.07 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level college director salary

   $50,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 16, 2025

   Average college director salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$111,513	$54
   2	New York	$110,431	$53
   3	Massachusetts	$103,805	$50
   4	New Jersey	$102,863	$49
   5	Michigan	$101,000	$49
   6	North Carolina	$98,139	$47
   7	Nevada	$97,292	$47
   8	Maryland	$96,794	$47
   9	Pennsylvania	$96,325	$46
   10	Montana	$96,049	$46
   11	Arizona	$94,749	$46
   12	Colorado	$86,877	$42
   13	Washington	$85,096	$41
   14	Nebraska	$83,372	$40
   15	Georgia	$79,704	$38
   16	Idaho	$77,134	$37
   17	Tennessee	$75,880	$36
   18	Texas	$74,817	$36
   19	Oklahoma	$70,342	$34
   20	Florida	$66,927	$32

   Average college director salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Emory Healthcare	$158,817	$76.35
   2	Kern Community College District	$138,835	$66.75
   3	Cuesta College	$133,864	$64.36
   4	New York Edge Music	$122,111	$58.71
   5	University of Washington	$105,824	$50.88	2
   6	Emory University	$96,565	$46.43
   7	UC Santa Barbara	$93,808	$45.10
   8	Rowan University	$92,525	$44.48
   9	Envision	$92,077	$44.27
   10	Johns Hopkins University	$91,564	$44.02	12
   11	The City University of New York	$89,856	$43.20	35
   12	SRI International	$88,680	$42.63
   13	University of Nevada, Reno	$88,423	$42.51	1
   14	New York State Restaurant Association	$84,590	$40.67
   15	PSEA	$83,280	$40.04	3
   16	SUNY Broome	$76,576	$36.82
   17	Young Life	$74,628	$35.88	7
   18	Boston University	$71,949	$34.59	7
   19	Oakland University	$67,768	$32.58
   20	University of Nebraska at Omaha	$66,679	$32.06

4. Writing a college director job description

   A good college director job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a college director job description:

   College director job description example

   Who We Are
   
   Excellence Community Schools is a charter management, non-profit organization. The mission of the Excellence Community Schools is to prepare young people to compete for admission to and succeed in top public, private, and parochial high schools by cultivating their intellectual, artistic, social, and emotional, and ethical development through the Bronx Charter School for Excellence (Bronx Excellence) and the Stamford Charter School for Excellence (Stamford Excellence). Our network of schools accomplishes this by offering a challenging and rigorous academic curriculum - which at the earliest of grades, has an eye towards college preparation. We achieve this in a supportive and caring environment that always has high expectations of our students.
   
   Who We Need
   
   We seek dedicated, ambitious, and committed individuals to student success and education reform. Qualified candidates must demonstrate records of achievement, high degrees of personal responsibility, and the drive to do whatever it takes to ensure that every child achieves academic success. This individual must be committed to excellence, lead by example, and see collaboration as a key component of success.
   
   Job Overview
   
   The mission of the College and Career Readiness department is twofold. First, it exists to support our students' transition to the best possible high placement options that will aid in their progression towards college graduation and career readiness. Second, the department provides an array of services that support ECS students while they are in high school and college. These services include high school success counseling, enrichment and internship program placement, and job and career advising. This multivariate approach focuses on the development of the whole child, prioritizes empowering our families through access to information and exposure, and targets transforming the communities of our students' upbringing.
   
   The Director of College and Career Readiness reports to the Co-CEO. The successful candidate will liaise with the Director of High School Placement to build relationships with our middle school scholars. S/he will also lead the team providing direct services to our alumni to ensure their success on varied paths to excellence beyond graduation from an Excellence Community school. The Director will shape the department to accommodate a growing alumni base and expand upon the services offered to alumni and their families.
   
   Requirements
   
   Specific Responsibilities
   
   Lead and supervise staff that supports high school success, enrichment, and internship programs and college and career readiness.
   
   Facilitate the team's efforts to promote alumni success in high school and alumni admission to and graduation from top colleges and universities.
   
   Manage all aspects of our high school and college alumni scholarship fund, including the related work-study program for high school alumni and the application and selection process.
   
   Orchestrate the development of a high-quality college/career readiness department that includes mentoring, summer enrichment, internships, and job placement opportunities.
   
   Develop relationships with college access programs, coordinate college trips for alumni, and research and inform alumni of scholarships and Fly-In programs to top colleges and universities.
   
   Assist alumni and families with completing financial aid for both access programs and college applications including but not limited to FAFSA and CSS/Profile applications.
   
   Collaborate with HS Placement Team to establish an infrastructure that engenders post-graduation relationships and prioritizes relevant student academic achievement and family contact information.
   
   Develop and maintain relationships with Excellence Community Schools alumni/families via email, social media, and virtual and in-person workshops and site visits to high schools or colleges (as needed).
   
   Qualifications
   
   At least three years of experience in college admission, access, or opportunity programs, education, or nonprofit organizations.
   
   Ability to communicate and work with multiple stakeholders within and outside of the organization.
   
   Possess strong verbal and written communication skills. Fluency in Spanish is a plus.
   
   Strong attention to detail and ability to meet deadlines.
   
   Demonstrated commitment to educational opportunity and equity for underrepresented youth.
   
   Quick learner with the ability to inquire and be open to feedback.
   
   A Master's degree is preferred, Bachelor's degree is required.
   
   THIS POSITION REQUIRES YOU TO BE FULLY VACCINATED AND YOU MUST PROVIDE PROOF OF VACCINATION.
   
   Benefits
   
   Salary is commensurate with experience and qualifications.
   
   Health, dental, vision, & 403b Retirement Plan benefits available.
   
   Performance-based compensation for staff.
   
   

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find college directors for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any college directors they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level college directors with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   To find college director candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as k12jobspot, learn4good, serious teachers, teachingjobs.com.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting college directors requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new college director

   Once you've found the college director candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   It's also good etiquette to follow up with applicants who don't get the job by sending them an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new college director first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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