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Financial Aid Counselor - RVU

The Financial Aid Counselor provides direct financial aid counseling and support to students enrolled at Rocky Vista University. This role is responsible for guiding students through the entire financial aid lifecycle—from initial application and loan packaging to enrollment adjustments, ongoing financial literacy, and repayment preparation—ensuring compliance with federal and private loan regulations.

As part of the student journey, the Counselor acts as a trusted advisor to students and families, helping them understand eligibility requirements, borrowing responsibilities, creditworthiness, and long-term financial planning. The Counselor plays a pivotal role in debt management, credit counseling, and private loan counseling, equipping students with the tools to make informed borrowing decisions, budget effectively, and prepare for successful repayment after graduation.

This position reports to the Associate Director, Financial Aid.

Essential Functions

Student Counseling & Advisement

+ Counsel prospective, current, and graduating students on all aspects of federal and private loan programs, including eligibility, application processes, disbursements, and renewal requirements.

+ Provide individualized credit counseling to help students understand credit scores, creditworthiness, and their impact on loan approval and repayment.

+ Deliver private loan counseling, ensuring students fully understand loan terms, lender requirements, and repayment responsibilities.

+ Provide debt management counseling, helping students and graduates understand responsible borrowing, repayment options, and long-term financial impact.

+ Guide students through entrance and exit loan counseling, ensuring compliance with federal requirements.

+ Counsel students on budgeting, credit management, and meeting financial obligations to the University and their lenders.

+ Act as a primary point of contact for assigned caseload of active and prospective students, providing proactive outreach and timely responses.

+ Respond to all student inquiries within 24–48 hours, escalating complex cases to leadership or appropriate departments as needed.

Application Processing & Aid Packaging

+ Review and evaluate financial aid applications, including ISIRs, to determine eligibility and resolve conflicting information.

+ Package federal and private loans in accordance with DOE regulations and lender requirements.

+ Process budget adjustments, cost of attendance recalculations, and aid revisions for students with curriculum or enrollment changes.

+ Certify private loan eligibility and ensure compliance with lender and federal requirements.

Financial Literacy & Student Journey Integration

+ Develop and deliver financial literacy education for students through one-on-one sessions, group workshops, and presentations.

+ Present at orientations, webinars, and class meetings to support student awareness of financial aid processes and responsibilities.

+ Provide ongoing outreach throughout the student journey, ensuring students understand financial aid at pre-matriculation, enrollment, mid-program, and graduation milestones.

+ Monitor and track loan counseling completion, ensuring timely compliance with federal and lender requirements.

Collaboration & Compliance

+ Partner with Admissions, Registrar, Bursar, and Student Affairs to ensure seamless integration of aid with enrollment, billing, and student services.

+ Maintain strict compliance with federal regulations, FERPA, Title IV, and lender policies.

+ Evaluate unusual or extenuating circumstances submitted by students for professional judgment consideration and prepare recommendations for leadership.

+ Attend training seminars and stay up to date on changes in financial aid regulations, loan servicing, and best practices.

Operational Support & Reporting

+ Monitor daily, weekly, and monthly financial aid reports to ensure accuracy of disbursements, enrollment status, and loan eligibility.

+ Assist in audit preparation by ensuring files and student communications are accurate, documented, and accessible.

+ Provide administrative support for office-wide initiatives, including communication campaigns and compliance reporting.

+ Serve as a liaison to loan servicers and lenders to support students’ aid and repayment experience.

+ Perform other duties and special projects as assigned by the Associate Director of Financial Aid

Other Duties

+ Provide coverage for core functions as needed to ensure uninterrupted service to students.

+ Perform other duties and special projects assigned by leadership.

This description is not intended to be all-inclusive. This position may perform other related duties as required to meet the ongoing needs of the department/institution.

Qualifications

Education

+ Bachelor’s degree required; Master’s degree preferred.

+ Equivalent combination of education and related work experience may be considered.

Experience

+ Two (2) or more years of experience in financial aid, higher education, banking, or loan counseling required.

+ Experience with federal and private loan processing, packaging, and regulatory compliance preferred.

+ Familiarity with financial aid systems such as PowerFAIDS, Jenzabar, Banner, or similar platforms preferred.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

+ Thorough knowledge of federal and private financial aid regulations, programs, and processes.

+ Ability to explain complex financial aid information clearly and effectively to diverse audiences.

+ Strong organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills.

+ Demonstrated ability to work both independently and collaboratively in a team environment.

+ Excellent oral and written communication skills; ability to present to groups of students and faculty.

+ High attention to detail and accuracy in data management.

+ Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook).

+ Ability to manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.

+ Commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and supporting students from all backgrounds.

+ Demonstrated ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise sound judgment.

Physical Demands and Working Conditions

+ Work is primarily performed in an office environment with standard office equipment.

+ Must be able to sit or stand for extended periods, occasionally lift up to 20 pounds, and perform repetitive motions.

+ Occasional travel between campuses may be required.

The anticipated salary range for the Financial Aid Counselor is $50,000 to $60,000 per year. The final salary offered may vary and will be determined based on factors such as job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and education of the successful candidate. This information is provided per NYS local law.

We Are

• Student Centric: We approach every task with a focus on supporting our students to achieve their lifelong learning goals in a safe, vibrant and welcoming environment.

• A Global Community: We are one team with an international outlook welcoming the strength in our diversity and the value each of us brings to what we do.

• Accountable: We take responsibility for our actions by being responsive, resourceful and respectful in delivering on our commitments with integrity and the highest ethical standards.

• Collaborative: We support and empower one another through open communications, cooperation, sharing knowledge and taking time to always listen and show we care.

• Committed to Excellence: We take pride in our ongoing pursuit for continuous improvement through creativity, rigor and best practices to produce meaningful outcomes.

About University Support Services, LLC

University Support Services LLC (USS) is an affiliate of St. George's University (SGU), a leading provider of international medical education. SGU students and faculty come from 151 countries to the island of Grenada, located in the West Indies. Our purpose is to support SGU to deliver best in class education for all SGU students. We put a special focus on the growing global need for diverse high-quality medical and healthcare professionals. USS is pivotal in positioning SGU as a premiere medical degree institute through its student-facing as well as functional support teams.

USS is an equal opportunity employer. As such, it is company policy to fill positions with qualified candidates regardless of race, color, sex (including sexual orientation and gender presentation), age, religion, ancestry, national origin, citizenship status, pregnancy, marital status, medical condition, genetic information, disability, status in the Uniformed Services of the United States (including veteran status) or status as a victim of domestic violence, except where there is a bona fide occupational qualification. This policy protects applicants and employees from discrimination in the hiring process.