Director for Residence Life

The Director for Residence Life is employed by Tsinghua (pronounced ching-wah) University and is a 12-month live-in professional position in the Office of Student Life at Schwarzman College located in Beijing, China. Supervised by the Chief Student Affairs Office, the Director for Residence Life is responsible for the residential experience at Schwarzman College, a state-of-the-art university college model facility housing 150 graduate students from 43 countries.

Designed to inspire the next generation of global leaders, the Schwarzman Scholars program is the most significant of its kind since the Rhodes Trust was founded in 1902. With nearly $600 million raised so far, it is also the single largest philanthropic effort ever undertaken in China by largely international donors.

The 100-200 scholars chosen annually for this highly selective program work towards a one-year Master’s Degree in Global Affairs at Tsinghua University in Beijing — one of China’s most prestigious universities. As individuals who want to have a positive impact on the world, Schwarzman Scholars are selected based on their academic credentials, extracurricular interests, and leadership potential.

Responsibilities include leading and managing all aspects of the residential/communal experience for Scholars including but not limited to:

Student Focus

• Communicate and advise students regarding daily life opportunities and challenges including illnesses, accidents, cultural dynamics, intercultural relations, adjustment issues, conflicts, etc.
• Support students who need assistance with physical, emotional, and mental health issues when necessary.
• Maintain and share resource lists of hospitals, clinics, doctors, pharmacies and other health resources appropriate for both Chinese and international students and for students with special needs.
• Coordinate and manage all elements related to student health and safety.
• Coordinate and manage the student conduct process.

Operations & Procedures

• Coordinate, plan, and execute the housing assignment and check out process.
• Liaise with the Facilities team to coordinate maintenance, cleaning, turnover, and facility management.
• Select, train, and supervise 3-4 Senior Scholars (program alumni) to support Scholars.
• Facilitate 24-hour on-call coverage on rotation.
• Coordinate and manage all aspects of health and safety in the College.
• Create, revise, articulate, and enforce all housing policies and procedures.
• Develop materials and conduct health and safety sections of pre-arrival and orientation program.
• Coordinate and manage academic and/or non-academic accommodations and accessibility requests for students who apply for them under the accessibility policy.
• Adjudicate student conduct issues according to the Student Policy Guide.

Programs

• Create and conduct educational sessions during orientation and throughout the year on related topics including cultural adjustment, consent, bystander training, harassment prevention, alcohol consumption, social dynamics in the College and China.
• Conceptualize and facilitate programs for the Scholar community
• Advise the Program and Events Committee comprised of Scholars to coordinate small and large-scale programs and activities for the Scholar community. Examples include cultural celebrations, student led conferences, health/wellness initiatives, educational sessions, speakers, workshops, etc.

Other

• Typical work day is Monday – Friday from 9:00am to 5:00pm with occasional extended hours on weekdays/weekends to meet departmental needs of the Schwarzman community. Call-in duty as appropriate.
• Collaborate with the Student Life team, Academic team, Facilities team, and other College stakeholders to work toward overall student success.
• Support College leaders in crisis management. Work with Student Life team, facilities team, and other stakeholders, to develop and review emergency response procedures.
• Other duties as assigned by the Chief Student Affairs Officer.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited college or university.
• Master’s Degree in college Student Development, Student Affairs Administration, College Counseling, Higher Education Administration, College Counseling or a related field.
• 5 years professional experience in residence life, higher education or related field.
• Experience working with college students from diverse backgrounds.
• High level of cultural competence and ability to embrace and navigate global perspectives, especially Chinese culture and values).
• Native or fluent English with exceptional written and oral communication skills.
• Training and/or experience in providing support to students, including mental health support, conflict mediation, inter-cultural adaptation, crisis response, etc.
• Experience in developing/facilitating workshops, activities, and information sessions for students.
• A commitment to work flexible hours, due to time zone differences and the nature of emergencies, and to be on-call to respond to emergency situations.
• Excellent management, organizational, and time management skills, with a strong ability to handle multiple priorities.

Preferred Qualifications

• 7+ years professional experience in higher education residence life or related field preferred.
• Familiarity with China and/or mandarin language.
• Experience studying or working abroad.
• Experience working with graduate students.
• Experience in managing Accessibility Requests (requests for academic and non-academic accommodations for documented conditions).

Benefits

• Private fully furnished apartment in the College
• Meal plan in the Dining Hall
• Health benefits
• Vacation and Holidays – Chinese public holidays, winter break (4 weeks) and summer break (4 weeks)
• Paid time off – breaks, sick, and holidays