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What is a student services director and how to become one
Student services directors make sure that students' needs are met by implementing educational programs, extracurriculars, disciplinary programs, and more. They usually work for universities, private schools, or K-12 school districts. Student services directors handle all of the logistics needed to make sure that student services can happen, such as developing the yearly budget and securing sources of funding.
Student services directors need to have an in-depth knowledge of the student community that they serve in order to identify services that they need, such as in-school vocational training or more counselors. Although they are in charge of student services, directors need to be good team players in order to work with other administrators, faculty, and staff for the good of students.
Student services directors need considerable background experience in education before qualifying for this position. Most spend years working as teachers or lower level administrators in a university or school. Many have a bachelor's degree in education or even go on to get a master's. It takes many years to become qualified to be a student services director, but it is worth it in the end. They earn an average salary of $64,071 a year.
Avg. Salary $68,307
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth rate 7%
Growth rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.70%
Asian 4.31%
Black or African American 10.43%
Hispanic or Latino 13.96%
Unknown 3.99%
White 66.61%
Genderfemale 62.57%
male 37.43%
Age - 47American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 47Stress level is high
7.1 - high
Complexity level is advanced
7 - challenging
Work life balance is fair
6.4 - fair
Student services director career paths
Key steps to become a student services director
Explore student services director education requirements
Start to develop specific student services director skills
Skills Percentages Professional Development 7.96% Financial Aid 7.38% Support Services 6.25% Social Work 5.18% Alumni 4.44% Complete relevant student services director training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New student services directors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a student services director based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real student services director resumes.Research student services director duties and responsibilities
- Support and oversee students from colleges across the country as they organize and lead interfaith service programming on their own campuses.
- Source employers through market research, LinkedIn and cold calls.
- Explore and find additional sources to supplement scholarship funds for minorities.
- Review and edit resumes while providing direction for content in LinkedIn and e-portfolio profiles.
Get student services director experience
Generally, it takes 4-6 years to become a student services director. The most common roles before becoming a student services director include teacher, internship team lead and special education teacher.Prepare your student services director resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your student services director resume.
You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a student services director resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose from 10+ customizable student services director resume templates
Build a professional student services director resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your student services director resume.
Apply for student services director jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a student services director job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How did you land your first student services director job
Are you a student services director?
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Average student services director salary
The average student services director salary in the United States is $68,307 per year or $33 per hour. Student services director salaries range between $43,000 and $106,000 per year.
What am I worth?
How do student services directors rate their job?
Student services director reviews
Helping students develop strategies for their futures and supporting career outcomes is very rewarding. Launching students into careers is very satisfying if you are altruistic and have a helper mentality.
As a Director at a state institution, I am involved in a lot of administrative duties: budgeting, hiring, training and developing, strategic planning, evaluating programming. These duties are demanding and are necessary for successful outcomes, but they are not as fun as supporting and helping students.
Interaction with motivated people. Helping people who want to work.
Updated January 8, 2025
