Associate Director, Healthcare Career Coaching - CCDAE - UTK

University of Tennessee · Knoxville

The Associate Director leads the healthcare career coaching team, a new collaboration between the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK) and the University of Tennessee Health Sciences (UTHS) designed to build a clear, well-supported pathway from undergraduate study to admission into graduate and professional healthcare programs. This is a highly visible, campus-wide role at the center of one of the university's signature commitments: preparing more Tennesseans to enter the health professions and strengthening the state's healthcare workforce pipeline. The Associate Director supervises and develops a growing team of professional staff and is accountable for the quality, consistency, and reach of the services team delivers. In this role, the Associate Director leads the design, launch, and continuous improvement of the team, including coaching curricula, cohort programming, pre-health application coaching workflows, and student touchpoints across the undergraduate experience.

The position provides day-to-day leadership for the team by hiring, training, coaching, and evaluating staff; establishing shared standards of practice; and building the team’s capacity as the initiative scales. The Associate Director defines success metrics, tracks student progression and professional-program admission outcomes, and uses data to guide resource allocation and program refinement. Results are reported to divisional, campus, and system leadership to demonstrate impact and inform future planning.

Because the program depends on strong relationships across institutions, the Associate Director works directly with UTHS colleagues in admissions, student affairs, and academic programs to align expectations, create early exposure opportunities, and support the student transition from UTK to professional study. The role requires close collaboration with UTK academic colleges, faculty advisors, undergraduate research, experiential learning, and student organizations so pre-health students receive consistent guidance regardless of major or entry point. Throughout this work, the Associate Director ensures program design and service delivery advance divisional, campus, and UT System retention, progression, and graduation goals. This position is designated a Joint Partnership Position and operates under a dual-supervision model shared by UTK and UTHS. Day-to-day operational supervision is coordinated through UTK Student Success, while strategic direction, annual goal setting, work priorities, and performance management are jointly established by designated leaders from UTK and UTHS.

Success in this role requires the judgment and interpersonal skill to operate effectively across two institutions with distinct cultures, calendars, and priorities, building trust and maintaining a seamless student experience.

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has shaped leaders, changemakers, and innovative thinkers since its founding in 1794. The university is home to more than 38,000 students and 10,000 statewide employees—the Volunteers—who uphold the university’s tradition of lighting the way for others through leadership and service.

UT Knoxville offers over 900 programs of study across 14 degree-granting colleges and schools. As Tennessee’s flagship land-grant university, its footprint spans the entire state. The university holds the highest Carnegie classification for research activity and has deep partnerships with industry leaders and the US Department of Energy’s largest multidisciplinary laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The Knoxville campus serves and recruits for UT Knoxville, including the Institute of Agriculture and the Space Institute, as well as the UT Institute of Public Service.

UT Knoxville considers its employees its number one asset. With values that focus on work-life balance, compensation, and innovation leadership, all Vols are supported to advance professionally. Employees have access to career development and coaching, continued education, and an extensive list of development and training possibilities. The Volunteer employee experience implements structures and practices to attract and retain top-tier talent, fostering a strong staff community and supporting a culture of involvement and engagement for everyone.

The university holds a strong commitment to its land-grant mission of learning and engagement, with a tradition of service and leadership that carries that Volunteer spirit throughout the state and around the world. It has been ranked nationally as “Best Employer for New Graduates,” “One of America’s Best Large Employers,” and “Best Workplace for Women,” and has been designated as “Best Place for Working Parents” by Forbes Magazine.

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