Associate Director, Brand & Experience Strategy

About the Role

The Associate Director of Brand and Experience Strategy shapes how university partners engage prospective students across the full recruitment lifecycle. This role works across brand and messaging strategy, lifecycle communications, content strategy, and student experience design, pairing deep partner knowledge and cross-functional fluency.

As a strategist, you will act as a consultative partner to university partners and internal teams, developing breadth across practice areas while building deeper expertise over time. You will contribute to strategic frameworks, execute against them independently, and bring strategic thinking to partner-facing work.

Strategic Practice & Framework Contribution

• Contribute to practice areas such as event strategy, lifecycle communications, content strategy framework, messaging architecture, or UX/student experience design
• Support the development, documentation, and continuous improvement of shared frameworks
• Partner with cross-functional teams and subject matter experts to apply shared frameworks effectively
• Maintain awareness of cross-portfolio patterns and surface insights
• Stay current on market trends, student behavior, and recruitment best practices

Partner Engagement & Discovery

• Develop familiarity with assigned university partners, programs, and competitive landscape
• Serve as a consistent second voice in partner relationships
• Participate in discovery engagements for launches and expansions
• Support facilitation of strategy sessions and workshops
• Develop and deliver presentations articulating strategy and recommended tactics

Lifecycle Communications & Student Experience Design

• Lead design and mapping of cross-channel lifecycle communications, including automated email and text journeys, communication cadences, and chat scripts
• Oversee journey mapping across recruitment and retention lifecycle
• Translate journey insights into actionable briefs for implementation teams
• Contribute to brand strategy, messaging frameworks, and student experience design

Measurement & Visibility

• Contribute to reporting on strategy performance and communication metrics
• Use data and analytical reasoning to identify gaps and recommend improvements
• Partner with analytics, SEO, and implementation teams to align data with strategic decisions

Team and Organizational Contribution

• Support peers and cross-functional collaborators in executing shared frameworks
• Contribute to campaign measurement frameworks and technology rollouts
• Ensure strategic intent is maintained from discovery through implementation

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience in marketing strategy, brand strategy, content strategy, engagement communications, or related field
• Working understanding of cross-channel lifecycle communications and student recruitment journey
• Experience contributing to partner-facing strategy sessions or discovery engagements
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• English fluency
• Legal authorization to live and work in the United States

Role Requirements

• Residence in the continental United States near a major airport
• Reliable high-speed internet and quiet workspace
• Availability during core business hours (9 a.m. to 5 p.m.)

Benefits

• Work from NYC office or home office
• 401(k) with company match and equity opportunities
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Employer-paid life and disability insurance
• HSA and FSA options
• Paid parental leave
• 4 weeks paid vacation plus holidays and sick leave
• Monthly mobile connectivity stipend
• Annual education stipend
• Employee assistance and wellness programs