Academic Advisor, UGIS American Studies (5141C) #87355

At the University of California, Berkeley, we are dedicated to fostering a community where everyone feels welcome and can thrive. Our culture of openness, freedom, and belonging make it a special place for students, faculty, and staff. As a world-leading institution, Berkeley is known for its academic and research excellence, public mission, diverse student body, and commitment to equity and social justice. Since our founding in 1868, we have driven innovation, creating global intellectual, economic, and social value. We are looking for applicants who reflect California's diversity and want to be part of an inclusive, equity-focused community that views education as a matter of social justice. Please consider whether your values align with our Guiding Values and Principles, Principles of Community, and Strategic Plan.

At UC Berkeley, we believe that learning is a fundamental part of working, and provide space for supportive colleague communities via numerous employee resource groups (staff organizations). Our goal is for everyone on the Berkeley campus to feel supported and equipped to realize their full potential. We actively support this by providing all of our full-time staff employees with at least 80 hours (10 days) of paid time per year to engage in professional development activities. Find out more about how you can grow your career at UC Berkeley.

Departmental Overview

L&S Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Studies Academic Programs (UGIS) is a center for innovation in undergraduate education that extends beyond traditional departmental boundaries and brings together 28 teaching faculty and senate faculty from across campus and 68 academic student employees to teach in the department's degree programs. Together, these degree programs attract undergraduates who wish to explore intellectually engaging and promising interdisciplinary areas of study. The 3 UGIS majors include American Studies, Interdisciplinary Studies Field major (ISF), and Media Studies, which number more than 875 declared majors in total. The 5 UGIS minors include American Studies, Applied Language Studies, Creative Writing, Disability Studies, and Politics, Philosophy, and Law. Academic advising is provided by a team of 4 Student Academic Advisors.

Position Summary

The Academic Advisor serves on the UGIS Academic Programs Advising Team, primarily supporting the American Studies major and minor, their teaching faculty, and the Politics, Philosophy, and Law Studies Minor. This position provides advice and assistance to students on all aspects of their academic experience, including progression and departmental requirements. The Academic Advisor guides students on declaring the major and minor, completing program requirements, and planning alternative major pathways. Additionally, the Academic Advisor provides leadership coordination for large-scale events such as the annual AS faculty research symposium, student thesis showcase, UGIS student welcome, and Commencement, while managing a significant proportion of curriculum planning, scheduling, and enrollment across UGIS programs.

Application Review Date

The First Review Date for this job is July 22, 2026. For full consideration, please apply by the first review date.

Responsibilities

ACADEMIC ADVISING, ACADEMIC POLICY & STUDENT PROGRESS TRACKING

• Provide academic advising to students across all stages of the UGIS majors and minors lifecycle, usually American Studies and Politics, Phil. & Law Minor, including declaration, degree progress, completion of course, and written thesis requirements, and alternative pathways as needed.
• Help students define realistic academic goals and understand how to achieve them within a particular interdisciplinary major program.
• Drawing from an understanding of course content and area of interdisciplinary inquiry, help students devise their academic focus within the UGIS programs and prepare them to present their program of study for faculty advisor review.
• Update and maintain student records in the Academic Progress Report (APR) and American Studies program database; certify completion of degree requirements and honors designation, even when there are no clear precedents or articulations, such as for interdisciplinary programs.
• Maintain thorough knowledge of University and College policies.
• Stay informed of relevant course offerings across the College and campus, and maintain connections with student services staff across the campus.
• Identify students with GPA or progress problems and determine barriers, distractions, and complications affecting the student; help students recognize any key academic or non-academic issues, and make appropriate referrals for additional academic or therapeutic counseling and/or assistance from other units.
• Regularly meet with and advise new and continuing teaching and senate faculty, as well as the UGIS Manager, on departmental/school/college and university policies and procedures.
• Receive, approve, and/or implement relevant student petitions for exceptions to program and college policies.
• Assist students in taking full advantage of the numerous campus programs for education abroad, internships, research, scholarships, and graduate school preparation.
• Communicate regularly with students and faculty regarding program updates and other related academic matters.
• Provide statistical reports as needed and maintain historical data.
• Advise faculty director(s) on the formulation of department policy by identifying areas needing clarification and proposing solutions.
• Analyze the consequences of the program's academic policies and recommend new or changed policies.

CURRICULUM POLICY AND PLANNING/SCHEDULING/ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT

• Plan and track academic curriculum in collaboration with UGIS Programs faculty, colleagues, and UGIS Manager, and with other departments, to ensure students' progress through course sequences, avoid conflicts, and ensure compliance with campus-wide policies.
• Serve as liaison with campuswide courses committee (COCI), prepare course approval material, and maintain articulated transfer credit agreements (via ASSIST.ORG).
• Track the curriculum offerings and schedule courses based on a thorough understanding of the intricacies of SIS/Campus Solutions/CalCentral/Reporting.
• Review the program curriculum and make recommendations to better accommodate student demand and areas of focus.
• Coordinate approval of substitution of major requirements and transfer evaluation credit in consultation with faculty; keep APR and database current with any changes.
• Coordinate, review, and advise program directors and faculty on the transferability and applicability of non-UC Berkeley courses and/or courses on campus within or outside of the department that may affect ongoing requirements.
• Manage undergraduate course enrollment according to program policies via Student Information Systems (SIS). Monitor and analyze shifting enrollment patterns and adjust seat reservations accordingly.
• Analyze course waitlists and determine which students are eligible to enroll in impacted courses.
• Balance competing demands, such as instructor requests, course facilities needs, student and overall program needs, and communicate regularly with a wide range of departments regarding cross-listed and program-related courses.
• Recruits and assigns to courses graduate student instructors, readers, and Group Tutors within and outside of departments.

EVENT PLANNING AND COORDINATION

• Serve as lead or co-lead program event planner, including detailed long-term planning for large annual events such as Commencement ceremony, Cal Day and Transfer Day, Golden Bear Advising (GBA) and Golden Bear Orientation (GBO), and shorter-term planning for events such as major application workshops.
• Lead planning for presentations, end-of-year student thesis showcase event, student group events, alumni panels, periodic faculty and advisory board meetings, and annual faculty research symposium.
• Coordinate event logistics, scheduling, communications, and day-of support with faculty, students, alumni, campus offices, and outside participants.
• Publicize events to students in majors and minors and to the larger campus community by developing marketing materials, sending out communications, and coordinating with other programs/Departments across campus.

ADDITIONAL PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION AND COORDINATION

• Serve as academic program record-keeper and a historical resource for all decisions concerning major requirements, exceptions, and practices relevant to the major programs.
• Maintain digital student records, database records, file archives, and advising notes across the campus records system (BOA, SIS/CS), the student listserv, the handbook, and the catalog entry to ensure comprehension and accuracy.
• Maintain program websites to ensure accuracy and compliance with Disability Access and Compliance policies.
• Collect and publicize faculty office hours; collect course syllabi each semester.
• Maintain program administrative files in accordance with UCOP Record Retention policies.
• Create, maintain, and share current calendars of processes and procedures, upcoming events, and deadlines.
• Attend and/or coordinate meetings with program staff and faculty and/or with program leadership.

UGIS ACADEMIC PROGRAMS TEAM COLLABORATION AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

• Collaborate and/or provide backup for other advisors in UGIS academic programs.
• Maintain minimal familiarity with all programs housed in UGIS, including general knowledge of major/minor requirements, scheduling/enrollment, course offerings, etc.
• Maintain professional development goals; participate in required workshops and trainings, as well as on-campus and off-campus professional development opportunities.
• Attend program meetings with the UGIS Academic Programs team.
• Actively contribute to a team environment that fosters and promotes a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, belonging, and justice (DEIBJ) and incorporates the Division's Strategic Plan of Belonging, Wayfinding, and Scholarly Engagement.

Required Qualifications

• Thorough knowledge of academic advising and counseling techniques, knowledge of multiple majors, simultaneous degrees, colleges, & schools.
• Thorough knowledge of program, department, college, and campus-wide academic policies, procedures, and requirements (or comparable institutional knowledge).
• Skills in judgment and decision-making. Abilities in problem identification, reasoning, ability to develop original ideas to solve problems.
• Skills in administrative organization and project management, demonstrating keen attention to detail while maintaining flexibility and adaptability.
• Ability to manage multiple projects with varying deadlines in a busy environment.
• Skills in monitoring and assessing student experience, processes or services to make improvements, and taking initiative in seeking or promoting service improvements and procedural efficiency.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including demonstrated effectiveness in public speaking.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to foster a respectful, collaborative environment and develop effective working relationships with faculty, staff, and students.
• Skills in high-touch service orientation, active listening, emotional intelligence, and critical thinking.
• Ability to work both independently and with a team, maintaining cooperative and collaborative relationships with all constituency colleagues, partner departments, and central campus offices.
• Ability to work with objectivity and discretion in relating to all students, faculty, and staff.
• Demonstrated skills with university-specific (or comparable) software application systems, shared documents, spreadsheets, and event expense tracking.
• Understanding of the nature of interdisciplinary inquiry.
• Thorough knowledge of school precedents and application of policy, including risk management.

Education / Training

• Bachelor's degree in a related area and/or equivalent experience/training

Preferred Qualifications

• Master's degree in a related area and/or equivalent experience/training

Salary & Benefits

For information on the comprehensive benefits package offered by the University, please visit the University of California's Compensation & Benefits website.

Under California law, the University of California, Berkeley is required to provide a reasonable estimate of the compensation range for this role and should not offer a salary outside of the range posted in this job announcement. This range takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions, including but not limited to experience, skills, knowledge, abilities, education, licensure and certifications, analysis of internal equity, and other business and organizational needs. It is not typical for an individual to be offered a salary at or near the top of the range for a position. Salary offers are determined based on final candidate qualifications and experience.

The budgeted annual salary range that the University reasonably expects to pay for this position is $75,000 - $85,700.

• This is an exempt, monthly-paid position.
• This is a full-time (40 hours/week) Career position eligible for UC benefits.

How to Apply

To apply, please submit your resume and cover letter.

Other Information

• This position is eligible for up to 2 days/week of remote work within the United States. Exact arrangements are determined in partnership with your supervisor to meet role responsibilities and department needs and are subject to change.
• This is not a visa opportunity. This position does not include sponsorship of a new consular H-1B visa petition that would require payment of the $100,000 supplemental fee.
• This position is covered by the collective bargaining agreement between the UAW (United Auto Workers) and the University of California Regents for SV.

Conviction History Background

This is a designated position requiring fingerprinting and a background check due to the nature of the job responsibilities. Berkeley does hire people with conviction histories and reviews information received in the context of the job responsibilities. The University reserves the right to make employment contingent upon successful completion of the background check.

Misconduct

As a condition of employment, the final candidate who accepts a conditional offer of employment will be required to disclose if they have been subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct; received notice of any allegations or are currently the subject of any administrative or disciplinary proceedings involving misconduct; have left a position after receiving notice of allegations or while under investigation in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding involving misconduct; or have filed an appeal of a finding of misconduct with a previous employer.

"Misconduct" means any violation of the policies or laws governing conduct at the applicant's previous place of employment, including, but not limited to, violations of policies or laws prohibiting sexual harassment, sexual assault, or other forms of harassment, discrimination, dishonesty, or unethical conduct, as defined by the employer. For reference, below are UC's policies addressing some forms of misconduct:

UC Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy

UC Anti-Discrimination Policy

Abusive Conduct in the Workplace

Equal Employment Opportunity

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected status under state or federal law.