The Assistant Director for Community & Employer Relations will initiate, develop, and sustain productive relationships with members of the civic and employer communities to create meaningful opportunities for students to integrate academic learning with work, build professional skills, and secure employment. The position will serve as the lead for community and employer engagement activities, providing strategic direction, coordination, and operational oversight for employer-facing initiatives; identify student employment opportunities including internships, part-time employment, and full-time roles; plan, promote, and execute large scale events such as career fairs, networking events, and employer visits to campus through event management, communication, and database utilization; and provide career coaching to students and alumni on a limited basis.

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Assistant Director for Community & Employer Relations (Student Services Professional 2 - MR09), Career Connections, UT Chattanooga

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Minimum Qualifications:

• One year of professional experience within a college/university or within a corporate/industrial environment (recruitment, business development, community agency, etc.) is required

• Experience gained through an internship or assistantship can be considered to satisfy the experiential requirement

Preferred Qualifications:

• A minimum of two years of corporate industry work experience or experience in a university career services environment is preferred

• Demonstrated professional experience gained in business development, staffing, or civic government environments including event management, external customer engagement, effort reporting and/or outcome reporting is especially valuable

Work Location:

• University of Tennessee – Chattanooga, TN Campus

• This is a fully on-site position

Compensation and Benefits:

• UT Market Range: MR09

• Anticipated hiring range: $55,000-$58,000

• Find more information on the UT Market Range structure

• Find more information on UT Benefits

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Primary Responsibilities

• Strategically identify, cultivate, and manage relationships with local, state, and regional employers for programmatic engagement and recruitment of students and alumni

• Lead the development and implementation of community and employer engagement strategies aligned with departmental and institutional priorities

• Collaborate with campus partners to expand the depth, reach, and effectiveness of employer involvement

• Lead and support marketing and outreach strategies that enhance employer presence on campus, including campus recruitment, job and internship postings, career fairs and networking events, resume searches, and targeted employer communications

• Coordinate and contribute to the development of outbound and inbound communications (print, electronic, and digital) for employers and students

• Optimize and manage technical resources and engagement platforms (e.g., Handshake) to facilitate employer connections, streamline processes, extend outreach, and track participation and outcomes

• Provide guidance and training to staff and student employees on the effective use of these systems

• Provide leadership for community and employer-facing programs and events, including job and internship fairs, networking events, employer visits, on-campus tabling, interviewing, and class or student organization presentations

• Plan, coordinate, and execute large-scale events by establishing timelines, workflows, and responsibilities, directing student employees and volunteers and ensuring consistent, high-quality employer and student experiences

• Develop and document processes, best practices, and event protocols to ensure consistency, efficiency, and continuity across programs

• Offer ready assistance to related programming efforts offered by campus colleagues (e.g., College-based Student Success Centers, Advancement, and Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, etc.)

• Provide individualized career coaching to students through scheduled appointments, drop-ins, and small group sessions

The ideal candidate will possess the following:

• Maintain awareness of regional and national trends in higher education, career services, and talent acquisition, and the resulting impact on UTC's population of students, academic programs, and alumni

• Active and ongoing participation in various local, state, regional, and national organizations such as Chattanooga-area community groups, Chambers of Commerce, National Association of Colleges and Employers, alumni chapters representing the unit and aligning programming to increase the visibility of UTC

Preferred knowledge, skills and abilities

• Ability to plan, promote, and manage events that serve a variety of audiences and purposes

• Ability to create, review, and manage marketing communication plans to various audiences

• Confident working in an independent manner (decision-making, effort, accountability for both) is essential. Experience in marketing events and negotiating timelines and deliverables from a project management framework. Familiarity with integrating technology into relationship building and documenting effort

• Experience in recruiting, higher education communications, business preferred

Review of applications will begin January 12, 2026 and continue until the position is filled. Applications received by this date will receive priority consideration.