The NOLS Wilderness Medicine Student Services Director leads the student life cycle experience. This includes overseeing the admissions team, informing marketing initiatives, and alumni initiatives. This director defines the policies, vision, and tactics utilized to support wilderness medicine admissions, financial procedures, credit granting partnerships, financial aid, certifications and continuing education for 18,000+ students. This director may also guide innovative product development and student experiences to help generate non-tuition revenue opportunities.

Key Information:

• Please upload your cover letter and resume as one PDF document

• Target Start Date: January 12, 2026

• Location: In-person at NOLS HQ in Lander, WY

Questions: please contact peopleteam@nols.edu

What does a Student Services Director do?

• Strategic Thinking – Ability to align daily operations with department and schoolwide goals.

• Leadership & Team Development – Empowers a hybrid team through clear communication, coaching, and trust. Represents departmental viewpoints and strategic priorities on school-wide work groups and committees. Aptitude for working within both collaborative and autonomous environments.

• Systems Fluency – Skilled in CRM/ERP tools, data analytics, and process design for student lifecycle management. Ensures departmental compliance and reporting obligations to external entities and manages large amounts of data.

• Change Management – Guides teams through digital and organizational transformation with empathy and structure. Desire to balance numerous competing priorities daily.

• Data-Informed Decision Making – Uses metrics to drive improvements in student recruitment, retention, and service quality.

• Creative Problem-Solving – Finds innovative solutions balancing resource constraints and student needs.

• Collaboration & Influence – Builds effective relationships across departments, representing student needs with diplomacy.

• Customer Experience Design – Ensures the student journey from inquiry to alumni, is seamless, inclusive, and mission-driven. 

In your first 6 months, you will: 

• Develop deep knowledge of NOLS Wilderness Medicine’s mission, programs, and approach to student, faculty, and sponsor support.

• Lead the launch of new student communications workflows (email templates, automation, HubSpot integration) to improve enrollment efficiency and follow-up.

• Evaluate and refine financial aid and scholarship processes for clarity, equity, and efficiency. Support existing partnerships and possible expansion.

• Establish an alumni engagement roadmap, outlining key metrics for connection, retention, and revenue opportunities.

• Collaborate with IT and Admissions leadership to map system dependencies and identify data quality improvements that impact reporting and forecasting.

What makes a great Student Services Director at NOLS? 

We are looking for people who share our values and are keen to learn and develop their expertise. While our ideal candidate comes with the skills listed below, we expect to provide training and development support in some of the areas.

• 3+ years of supervisory experience leading multi-person hybrid teams.

• Minimum 2 years of experience overseeing student or customer management.

• Demonstrated success in implementing new technologies and process improvements.

• Proficiency with data systems such as CRMs (HubSpot, Salesforce, D365), ERPs, or registration software.)

• Competency in supporting marketing efforts, including content, social media, website, digital assets, and events.

• Experience with contract review and negotiation.

• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to balance numerous competing priorities daily.

• Capacity to innovate systematic changes while managing complex details effectively.

• Excellent written and verbal communication, with an aptitude for compassionate and clear messaging.

How to Apply

It’s super easy! Just enter your email and click the “start your application” and upload your cover letter and resume as one PDF document when you are prompted to upload your CV/resume.

At NOLS we use the Applied platform for our recruitment. The Applied platform will ask you some demographic questions before you start your application. We at NOLS never see the responses to these demographic questions with your application. We only see summary statistics to help us check if our candidate pool is balanced and if everyone has an equal chance to get hired irrespective of their background. If you prefer, you can easily opt out of answering these questions.

Who is NOLS?

NOLS is a nonprofit global wilderness school that strives to be the leading source and teacher of wilderness skills and leadership that serve people and the environment. Our community—staff, students, trustees, and alumni—shares a commitment to wilderness, education, leadership, safety, community, and excellence. 

We believe that anyone can be a leader; it is our role to provide the environment and training to help people discover their full potential. We do that in classrooms close to home and in remote wilderness areas around the world. We are an organization with heart, expertise, and wildness, and these qualities help us support powerful, authentic experiences.

Why is NOLS a great place to work?

• Global Reach: With locations across the U.S. operations in six countries, and courses running in all 50 states and more than 10 countries, you’ll be part of an organization with a truly worldwide impact.

• Course Discounts: Receive special pricing on NOLS courses for yourself and your family.

• Comprehensive Benefits: Full-time employees are eligible for a robust benefits package, including medical, dental, and vision coverage.

• Flexible Time Off: We offer a flexible time off policy that empowers employees to take the time they need for rest, adventure, and personal priorities without the constraints of traditional accrual systems.

• Employee Assistance Program: Access confidential, 24/7 counseling and support services to help you maintain balance and well-being.

Additional Information

To support pay transparency and equity, the posted salary range is fixed. We encourage you to explore our opportunities that fit your pay expectations. 

• A criminal background check is required from all NOLS employees.

• NOLS participates in e-verify for U.S. employees, Certificado de Antecedentes for Chilean or Mexican employees, and other relevant employment verification systems based on location.

• Current NOLS employees please note it is NOLS policy to conduct an internal reference check with People Team and/or your current supervisor as part of the reference check process. If you have any questions or concerns about this process please contact peopleteam@nols.edu.

NOLS does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, genetics information, disability unrelated to job or admission requirements, or status as a protected veteran. The school’s nondiscrimination policy applies to all phases of its employment process.

Reasonable accommodations may be requested for disability; limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition; religion; and domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, or harassment by emailing peopleteam@nols.edu with your request.