Financial Aid Customer Service Specialist I

Job Classification
Pay grade level: Grade 11
Compensation: $37,468 - $51,518. Compensation will be commensurate with education and experience.
Employee category: Staff
Position Type: Full Time
FLSA status: Non-Exempt

Position Details
Job Code: SA051FTNFAS
Department: Student Financial Aid
Division: Student Affairs and Enrollment Management
Reports to: Assistant Director of Financial Aid
Positions Supervised: None
Location: Primarily Main Campus, but any other college location as assigned by the appropriate administrator

Job Purpose
The Financial Aid Customer Service Specialist I (FACSSI) is responsible for providing prompt, professional, courteous customer service to prospective and current students, faculty, staff, administration, and the community. The FACSSI position is responsible for managing the workflow of the Financial Aid front office and plays a key role in providing responses to phone and email inquiries and collaborates with members of the Student Financial Aid team, divisional, and college partners to support the mission and strategic objectives of Kansas City Kansas Community College (KCKCC).

Position Description

• Assess the needs of the walk-in, postal mail, and electronic traffic to the Student Financial Aid Office by answering financial aid questions and/or referring specific concerns to other professional office staff including processing returned mail and updating student addresses with appropriate KCKCC offices.
• Responsible for providing excellent customer service to prospective students and their families, current students, staff, faculty, and the community by sharing specific information regarding financial aid and KCKCC processes.
• Responsible for promptly and professionally reaching out to students, answering phone calls, and responding to financial aid email inquiries with accurate information. This includes, but is not limited to, guiding, and assisting prospective and current students through the federal financial aid application process, determining eligibility for book and supply costs in collaboration with KCKCC Bookstore, directing student interactions between the KCKCC Financial Aid Office and other offices.
• Responsible for processing documents and ensuring accurate intake of all financial aid forms delivered by current and prospective students.
• Responsible for organizing, preparing, and scanning student financial aid documents into the College’s document imaging system.
• Other duties assigned by the Assistant Director and Director of Student Financial Aid consistent with the Upward Bound grant and College strategic priorities and goals.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Have a demonstrated in-depth knowledge of a diverse and broad range of student financial aid programs and services to attract and support adult and non-traditional students.
• Have a clear knowledge of both federal and institutional policies as they relate to the student financial aid and enrollment process.
• Must demonstrate a commitment to and ability to work with a diverse student, faculty, and staff population.
• Must demonstrate a commitment to inclusive practices that promote social justice and equity.
• High energy, self-starter who can work with minimal supervision.
• Ability to develop and maintain excellent working relationships and establish credibility with all levels of students, faculty, and staff in the organization and community partners.
• Detail-oriented.
• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office 365 applications.
• Ability to manage several projects with multiple deadlines simultaneously.

Position Qualifications and/or Education

Minimum Qualifications and/or Education

• Associate degree plus two (2) years of customer service experience -OR- a Bachelor’s degree in education, business administration, or related field.
• For financial aid recipients, must be in good standing on all federal student aid programs.

Preferred Qualifications and/or Education

• Demonstrated experience working with student financial aid programs and services.
• Demonstrated experience within a higher education institution working with a student population with a highly diverse, first-generation, and financially fragile population.
• Demonstrated experience working with a student information system, database, customer relationship management, or similar software system.
• Multilingual speaking and writing proficiency.

Physical Requirements
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, talk, hear, walk, sit, and occasionally push or lift items. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Work Schedule
40 hours per week. Variable hours between 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., Monday - Friday. Must be able to work a variable schedule/hour to meet operational needs. May require evening and weekend hours.

To Apply

Visit www.kckcc.edu and click on CAREERS for a list of available positions.

• Read the job announcement carefully noting the initial screening date, minimum qualifications, and required information. Note that information contained in your application materials will be used to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for the position. Make sure you complete/submit all the documents listed as required.
• If the position lists a required transcript (during the application process) unofficial transcripts may be submitted. However, please note that upon selection for hire, you will be required to submit official transcripts.
• Ensure that your transcripts show that a degree was awarded or conferred if you are stating that it is your highest level of education completed. If you certify your level of education and it cannot be verified from your transcript(s), your application may not be referred to the selection committee.
• Foreign degrees are acceptable provided they have been translated and/or shown to have equivalency to a United States: Associate, Bachelor, Master, or Doctorate level degree.
• Documentation verifying completion of a degree, course work within a discipline, or other educational criteria should be electronically attached (uploaded) to your application.
• Three (3) professional references with phone number and email addresses are required.
• A college selection committee is responsible for application review and interviews. The final candidate(s) selected to be hired will be made by the hiring manager.
• Successful completion of a background check on all persons recommended for employment is required Individual hiring departments may elect to administer pre-employment tests, which are relevant to essential job functions as part of the applicant selection/hiring process.

***This job description in no way states or implies that these are the only duties to be performed by the employee occupying this position. Employees will be required to follow any other job-related instructions and to perform any other job-related duties requested by their supervisor. This job description may be revised upon development of other duties and changes in responsibilities.

KCKCC is an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Educational Institution