Head of Student Recruitment
Madrid
Full-time
Permanent employee
45,000 € per year
Your mission
The Head of Student Recruitment plays a vital role in leading and implementing strategies to attract a diverse and qualified student population to the college or university. Reporting directly to the CMO, the Head of Student Recruitment oversees the recruitment team and collaborates with various departments to meet enrollment goals and promote the institution's offerings. This is a high-accountability commercial role focused on pipeline management, team performance, and enrollment results.
Tasks and Responsabilities
1. Recruitment Strategy and Commercial Planning:
• Develop and execute comprehensive recruitment strategies to achieve enrollment targets while aligning with the institution's mission and values.
• Analyze market trends, demographic data, and competition to identify opportunities for reaching prospective students effectively.
• Translate lead volumes into realistic enrollment forecasts and team workload planning.
• Identify conversion bottlenecks across the funnel and implement corrective actions proactively.
• Accountable for achieving enrollment targets.
2. Team Leadership and Performance Management:
• Lead, mentor, and manage the recruitment team, providing guidance, training, and performance evaluations.
• Foster a collaborative and results-driven team culture that emphasizes student-centered approaches and data-informed decision-making.
• Implement structured sales methodologies: pipeline management, lead scoring, follow-up cadences, and conversion tracking.
• Build a high-accountability, high-energy team culture with a student-first mindset.
3. Digital Lead Management & CRM Excellence
• Own the lead-to-enrollment funnel: ensure every inbound lead (organic, paid, outreach, referral) is properly qualified, assigned, and followed up.
• Drive CRM adoption and discipline across the team — pipeline hygiene, activity logging, and conversion reporting.
• Continuously improve lead-to-enrollment conversion rates through sales process optimization and team coaching.
4. Outreach and Relationship Building:
• Build and maintain relationships with high schools, community colleges, educational agencies, and other key partners to enhance recruitment efforts.
• Represent the institution at college fairs, conferences, and other events to engage with prospective students and their families.
• Create and manage all events, open days, campus tours.
• Manage the outreach team’s activity planning, visit calendar, and event participation.
5. Data Analysis, Reporting & Forecasting:
• Collect, analyze, and interpret data related to recruitment trends, application rates, and conversion rates to inform strategic decisions.
• Prepare regular reports and presentations for senior leadership detailing recruitment progress and outcomes.
• Maintain accurate enrollment forecasts by campus, intake, and market segment.
• Provide actionable insights on conversion trends, team performance, and market signals.
6. Admissions Process Support:
• Work closely with the admissions team to ensure a smooth and efficient application process, providing guidance on admission requirements, deadlines, and procedures.
7. Diversity and Inclusion:
• Implement strategies to enhance diversity and inclusivity within the student body by reaching out to underrepresented populations and promoting a welcoming environment.
8. International Student Recruitment:
• Develop and manage international recruitment initiatives, collaborating with international partners, and organizations to attract and support international students.
9. Enrollment Management:
• Collaborate with enrollment management and financial aid teams to optimize financial aid packaging, scholarships, and other incentives to attract and retain students.
• Develop and execute comprehensive recruitment strategies to achieve enrollment targets while aligning with the institution's mission and values.
• Analyze market trends, demographic data, and competition to identify opportunities for reaching prospective students effectively.
• Translate lead volumes into realistic enrollment forecasts and team workload planning.
• Identify conversion bottlenecks across the funnel and implement corrective actions proactively.
• Accountable for achieving enrollment targets.
2. Team Leadership and Performance Management:
• Lead, mentor, and manage the recruitment team, providing guidance, training, and performance evaluations.
• Foster a collaborative and results-driven team culture that emphasizes student-centered approaches and data-informed decision-making.
• Implement structured sales methodologies: pipeline management, lead scoring, follow-up cadences, and conversion tracking.
• Build a high-accountability, high-energy team culture with a student-first mindset.
3. Digital Lead Management & CRM Excellence
• Own the lead-to-enrollment funnel: ensure every inbound lead (organic, paid, outreach, referral) is properly qualified, assigned, and followed up.
• Drive CRM adoption and discipline across the team — pipeline hygiene, activity logging, and conversion reporting.
• Continuously improve lead-to-enrollment conversion rates through sales process optimization and team coaching.
4. Outreach and Relationship Building:
• Build and maintain relationships with high schools, community colleges, educational agencies, and other key partners to enhance recruitment efforts.
• Represent the institution at college fairs, conferences, and other events to engage with prospective students and their families.
• Create and manage all events, open days, campus tours.
• Manage the outreach team’s activity planning, visit calendar, and event participation.
5. Data Analysis, Reporting & Forecasting:
• Collect, analyze, and interpret data related to recruitment trends, application rates, and conversion rates to inform strategic decisions.
• Prepare regular reports and presentations for senior leadership detailing recruitment progress and outcomes.
• Maintain accurate enrollment forecasts by campus, intake, and market segment.
• Provide actionable insights on conversion trends, team performance, and market signals.
6. Admissions Process Support:
• Work closely with the admissions team to ensure a smooth and efficient application process, providing guidance on admission requirements, deadlines, and procedures.
7. Diversity and Inclusion:
• Implement strategies to enhance diversity and inclusivity within the student body by reaching out to underrepresented populations and promoting a welcoming environment.
8. International Student Recruitment:
• Develop and manage international recruitment initiatives, collaborating with international partners, and organizations to attract and support international students.
9. Enrollment Management:
• Collaborate with enrollment management and financial aid teams to optimize financial aid packaging, scholarships, and other incentives to attract and retain students.
Your Profile
- Bachelor's degree in a relevant field
- 7–10 years in sales or commercial roles, with at least 3 years in a team leadership position.
- Proven experience managing teams that work high-volume digital lead pipelines.
- Track record of consistently hitting or exceeding sales targets in a KPI-driven environment.
- Experience in higher education, EdTech, or B2C services with long or consultative sales cycles is a strong plus.
- Strong leadership and team management skills, with the ability to motivate and inspire others.
- Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
- Data-driven mindset, with proficiency in data analysis and reporting.
- Familiarity with enrollment management systems and CRM software. CRM power user (Salesforce, HubSpot, or equivalent); able to build and read pipeline reports independently.
- Understanding of higher education trends, demographics, and the competitive landscape.
- Commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in recruitment efforts.
- Ability to work collaboratively across departments and engage with external stakeholders.
- Strong sales methodology knowledge: pipeline management, lead scoring, follow-up cadences, objection handling.
- Highly organized, able to manage multiple campuses and teams simultaneously.
About us
Schiller International University is a global institution with campuses in Madrid, Tampa, Heidelberg, and Paris, offering a U.S.-accredited curriculum designed to prepare students for careers in an interconnected world. Through a combination of experiential learning, challenge-based education, and international mobility, we equip our students with the skills and mindset to become responsible global leaders.
At Schiller, we are committed not only to academic excellence, but also to creating an inclusive and equitable learning and working environment. In alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 5 (Gender Equality), we strive to ensure fair, transparent, and inclusive recruitment and career development practices across all our campuses.
We actively encourage applications from women and underrepresented groups, especially in disciplines where gender imbalance persists, and we are committed to supporting all members of our community in their professional growth and leadership development.
Our approach is supported by a commitment to continuous improvement through data-driven analysis, ensuring that our practices evolve in line with international standards and reflect our values as a global institution.