So you want to hire an interactive admissions person...

This post is directed specifically at all the Directors of Admissions out there, who are considering the creation of an e-admissions person.  I've heard a number of titles for it: My former one was Interactive Recruitment Manager; another popular one is Electronic Communications Coordinator.  What you call it is really immaterial.  What's really important is finding the right person with the right blend of experience, and then treating the position as it should be within the context of the office.  

80% Admissions/ 20% Web: I always thought that the main reason I was successful in this type of position was the fact that I had previous experience as an admissions counselor.  I had worked directly with the students and their families and so understood their needs at all stages, done the recruiting events, and knew the cycle of the admissions process.  This type of position is primarily a marketing position and understanding the point of view of your audience is really key to developing any marketing program. This position should be pegged, at minimum, as an associate level position since you should only be putting someone with at least three years of admissions experience in it.  It's that experience that will make or break the person's success in the position. 

That being said, if you hire someone that doesn't have web experience you are doing nothing but setting them up for failure.  Typically, this position is responsible the admissions web presence and you can't maintain a proper web presence if you have no previous web experience.  Having a MySpace and a Facebook profile do not count as web experience.  The web is not magic - things don't just appear from nowhere.  They have to be built.  You wouldn't hire someone to paint your portrait if they had no painting experience and the same goes here.  If you insist on not heading this advice, be prepared to dedicate some bucks to professional development to teach the person what they need to know to be successful.  

This position is NOT a counselor position!  Yes, this person should have previous admissions experience but that does not mean that you should make them your go-to person when you need someone to do a college fair, work an open house or do prospect interviews.  Give the person in this position the respect they deserve so that they can focus on the task at hand.  Believe me, in the first two years of the position when the program is being built from scratch, there will be more than enough for the person to do without you overburdening them with "other duties as assigned." 

Pay them what they're worth: If you're lucky enough to find a person that meets these qualifications, fight for a salary that lines up with them.  When I originally started my former position, my salary was pegged at $36,000/year.  That was far too low.  I fought it and got it brought up to $42,000/year, which is still too low in my opinion given the unique skillset required.  The incredible thing is that I know others who currently have this type of position and they are making significantly less than I was.  That's not OK. I get that it's higher ed and that no one is going to get rich doing it...but I still work in higher ed now doing a very similar job and make significantly more. So yes, it is possible. 

Building a program takes time and involvement: If you are starting a position from scratch, be aware that it will take one to two years to get a program build and running efficiently.  These things take time and you have to give the person in it the latitude they need to get things in order.  One thing that will help them is to include them in all counselor-related meetings and trainings: getting them involved in the day-to-day office activities will allow the person to assess where your gaps are and how they can work to fill them. Just because they aren't a counselor doesn't mean they should be cut off from the counseling staff, a mistake I've hard of some offices making with this type of position.  It's not helpful and it just pisses the person in it off.    

Trust the person you hire: This may be the hardest part for most Directors - if you are creating this type of position you are doing it, at least partly, because you don't know how to do it.  That's ok.  Admit it.  It's OK not to know everything.  Now, hire a person that DOES understand it and trust them to do a good job.  When they give you a recommendation that you don't agree with, give them the benefit of the doubt - they are doing it for a reason.  There are nuances and best practices to this that fly directly in the face of many common admissions tactics.  Because of that, the person in the position is going to tell you that you can't do things that you want to do.  Trust them and then work with them to come up with an alternative solution. 

Key Takeaways: 

1. The person you hire should have at least three years of admissions counseling experience.  At the same time, you should never use them as a stand-in for admissions counselors - the position is completely different.
2. The person you hire should have previous experience building and working on websites. 
3. Trust the person in the position when they tell you things you don't want to hear. 
4. Pay them what they're worth. 
5. Give them the time they need to build a program.