Business Data Analyst

USC Online is seeking a Business Data Analyst who is equal parts a data-driven thinker and student-focused problem solver. In this Business Office role, you'll use your expertise in Excel, data analytics, and higher education finance to help prospective and current online graduate students navigate financial aid, tuition processes, and enrollment milestones-while also supporting leadership with insights that drive retention, forecasting, and operational improvement.

If you love analysis, enjoy solving complex problems, are a self-starter, are excited by complex data and real-world impact, and are passionate about helping students succeed, this role is for you.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a key contact for students navigating financial aid and tuition billing.

• Help students understand how to finance their education, and ensure they have what they need to move forward.

• Track student progress across the financial aid and registration process to reduce barriers to success.

• Analyze student financial data, enrollment trends, and tuition activity to support strategic decision-making.

• Build and maintain dashboards and reports to forecast enrollments, attrition risks, and tuition revenue.

• Identify data patterns to reduce melt (students who never start) and improve graduation rates.

• Use tools like Excel (advanced), Google Sheets, and Tableau to uncover actionable insights.

• Collaborate with leadership to build KPIs and improve the accuracy of predictive models.

• Collaborate with the Financial Aid, Bursar, and Registrar Offices to resolve financial issues and proactively communicate with students.

• Monitor the full student financial journey-from inquiry to enrollment-and find opportunities to streamline processes.

• Participate in projects to improve systems that affect financial aid processing, student support, and data tracking.

• Spot trends in student attrition or payment delays and recommend improvements

• Oversees or performs data collection and/or entry processes for student financial aid, VA benefits, and VA certification processing.

• Oversees or performs maintenance and development of databases for collecting data and reporting purposes. Designs data input or data collection screens, as needed. Enters and/or validates data entry, as needed. Ensures data errors are addressed. Provides technical support and design enhancements.

• Provides business data trend information to support recommendations for action. Collaborates with management on matters of best practices, appropriate statistical measures, and benchmarking. Utilizes statistical and quality management principles to report and initiate operational/business practices changes.

At USC Online, we're reimagining how students learn and thrive in digital environments. This role offers a chance to directly impact student success while building your skills in one of the most dynamic areas of higher education. If you have a passion for technology, a dedication to service excellence, and a desire to contribute to the success of online education, we encourage you to apply.

The annual base salary range for this position is $82,583.50 - $90,000.00. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate's work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.

Qualifications
Bachelor's or Master's degree in Business Administration, Economics, Data Analytics, Education Technology or related field.
Expert-level skills in Excel and Google Sheets (advanced formulas, pivot tables, data cleaning, etc.)
Experience using data analytics and visualization tools like Tableau
Exceptional problem-solving skills and a customer service mindset
Excellent communication and collaboration skills, especially with students and internal partners
Demonstrated ability to create KPIs and performance metrics.
Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
Strong understanding of student finance concepts (e.g., tuition, credits, financial aid timelines)
Previous experience in a support role within an educational or technology-focused organization.