POSITION TITLE: Admissions & Recruitment Manager (Domestic, GCC & MENA)
REPORTING LINE: Head of Admissions & Recruitment
POSITION SUMMARY
The Manager – Admissions & Recruitment (Domestic, GCC & MENA) is responsible for day-to-day operational delivery of recruitment and admissions activities across the UAE domestic market, GCC markets and selected MENA markets.
The role leads assigned admissions and recruitment staff, maintains strong pipeline discipline, ensures high service standards and converts prospective students into enrolled students through ethical, timely and student-centred recruitment practices. The Manager supports the Senior Manager in implementing approved strategies, partnerships and market plans.
Key Responsibilities
Representation, Customer Experience and Campus Value
• Represent the university professionally at all times, ensuring interactions with students, parents, schools, agents, corporate partners and stakeholders uphold the institution’s reputation and brand standards.
• Deliver exceptional customer service throughout the student journey, ensuring a welcoming, ethical and student-centred recruitment experience.
• Promote and embody campus values, fostering trust, integrity, inclusivity and respect in all engagements.
• Ensure communications, presentations and recruitment activities reflect the university’s positioning and academic credibility.
• Act as a role model for the team in maintaining professionalism, responsiveness and service excellence.
Team Leadership and Performance Management
• Provide day-to-day management of the admissions and recruitment team, including workload planning, performance monitoring, conflict resolution, coaching and motivation.
• Set clear individual and team performance targets aligned with institutional enrolment goals and the approved Domestic/GCC/MENA recruitment plan.
• Monitor performance based on pipeline health, CRM discipline, conversion rates, application progress, offer acceptance, deposit movement and enrolment outcomes.
• Conduct regular one-to-one meetings, team check-ins and formal performance reviews.
• Deliver coaching sessions and structured training to improve productivity, sales discipline, admissions knowledge and service quality.
• Mentor junior team members, fostering professionalism, accountability, collaboration and ethical recruitment practices.
• Oversee onboarding, training and orientation of new recruitment team members and assigned agents.
• Manage team leave and coverage to ensure uninterrupted business operations during peak inquiry, application and intake periods.
• Ensure adherence to internal operational standards, housekeeping rules, CRM usage requirements and reporting timelines.
Student Recruitment, Conversion and Market Development
• Oversee the effective management of inbound leads, enquiries and applications across UAE, GCC and MENA markets.
• Ensure 24–48-hour turnaround on enquiries, follow-ups and key student-facing actions, with accurate CRM updates.
• Monitor lead quality, conversion rates and pipeline performance, and proactively flag risks to the Senior Manager.
• Ensure all recruitment activities align with institutional policies, admissions criteria, visa considerations and student engagement best practices.
• Support recruitment initiatives including open days, school visits, exhibitions, counsellor events, on-campus and off-campus events.
• Implement region-specific recruitment strategies approved by the Senior Manager, with focus on ROI, cost efficiency, conversion and enrolment quality.
• Strengthen relationships with existing schools, counsellors, agents, institutes and regional stakeholders to support sustainable enrolment growth.
• Analyse market trends, competitor activity, scholarship positioning and entry requirement competitiveness, and provide actionable insights to the Senior Manager.
Partnership and Channel Execution
• Support the Senior Manager in executing corporate, institutional, school and pathway partnerships across the UAE, GCC and MENA markets.
• Support implementation of approved MOUs, progression arrangements, tuition-benefit structures and education packages, ensuring no commitments are made without required approvals.
• Coordinate corporate presentations, HR engagement sessions, school visits and partner-facing recruitment activities as agreed with the Senior Manager.
• Collaborate with the Outreach team in executing recruitment-led school and counsellor activities.
• Track school, counsellor, partner and agent-specific application and enrolment performance year-on-year.
• Build and maintain a strong domestic, GCC and MENA agent and regional representative network under the approved channel strategy.
• Support agent onboarding, training, performance evaluation and compliance in line with institutional policies.
• Assess prospective agent profiles and provide recommendations to the Senior Manager to safeguard institutional brand quality.
• Ensure agents are clearly briefed on admissions requirements, visa guidelines, institutional updates, scholarship rules and approved messaging.
• Ensure agent marketing campaigns align with university brand standards and receive prior approval before execution.
• Address agent-related challenges proactively to improve performance, conversion and compliance outcomes.
• Ensure any regional travel plans are shared at least one month in advance to allow coordination with marketing campaigns, event planning and internal approvals.
Admissions Operations and Compliance
• Ensure admissions and recruitment operations comply with university requirements, admissions criteria, documentation standards and internal workflows.
• Coordinate with Admissions, Academic, Student Services, Visa, Finance, Marketing and Outreach teams to ensure aligned messaging and smooth student progression.
• Ensure application status, offer conditions, document follow-ups, deposit updates and enrolment progress are accurately recorded and followed up.
• Escalate admission, compliance, visa, customer service or reputational risks to the Senior Manager in a timely manner.
• Maintain confidentiality, data accuracy and professional handling of student and partner information.
Reporting, Data Management and Continuous Improvement
• Prepare and submit weekly, monthly and intake-level admissions and recruitment performanceTrack and analyse lead generation, conversion rates, enrolment outcomes, partner effectiveness, agent effectiveness, cost per enrolment and market performance.
• Prepare market performance reports outlining growth trends, risks, recruitment outcomes and recommended actions.
• Support the Senior Manager with data analysis and implementation of recruitment initiatives.
• Provide actionable insights and recommendations to support data-driven decision-making.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of recruitment processes, CRM utilisation, reporting templates and team workflows.
Indicative Success Measures
Achievement of approved group enrolment targets
• Inquiry response and follow-up turnaround within 24–48 hours.
• CRM accuracy, pipeline hygiene and timely status updates.
• Conversion from lead to application, application to offer, offer to deposit and deposit to enrolment.
• Performance of assigned staff, agents, schools, counsellors and regional partners.
• Quality and timeliness of reports, forecasts and market insights.
• Compliance with admissions requirements, ethical recruitment practices and approved messaging.
• Day to day management of the team, their performance, capability development and retention.
• Student, parent, partner and internal stakeholder service quality.
RELATIONSHIPS
• Work closely with the Head of Admissions
• Support student-facing admissions activities, delivering high-quality customer service throughout the enquiry, application, and enrolment process.
• Collaborate closely with internal teams, including Marketing, Student Services, and Finance, to ensure a seamless and positive applicant and student experience.
QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS
• Bachelor’s degree in Education, Business, Marketing, or a related discipline; a postgraduate qualification is an advantage.
• Minimum 5–7 years of experience in student recruitment and admissions, preferably within a higher education environment, with a strong focus on MENA and GCC markets.
• Demonstrated experience managing domestic recruitment portfolios, enrolment targets, and conversion pipelines across the UAE, GCC, and broader MENA region.
• Proven track record in team leadership, including coaching, performance management, workload planning, and capability development.
• Strong hands-on experience with CRM systems, enquiry and application management, pipeline tracking, reporting, and data-driven decision-making.
• In-depth knowledge of domestic recruitment channels, including schools, counsellors, outreach activities, events, partnerships, and feeder institutions across MENA and GCC.
• Sound understanding of admissions criteria, documentation standards, compliance requirements, and local regulatory considerations relevant to domestic students.
Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder engagement skills, with the ability to build trusted relationships across diverse cultural and institutional contexts.
• Highly organised, results-oriented, and capable of managing competing priorities in a fast-paced recruitment environment.
• Willingness and ability to undertake regional travel within the UAE, GCC, and MENA region as required to support recruitment and outreach activities.
LOCATION AND WORK ENVIRONMENT
• This position is a full-time on-campus role.
• Flexibility for remote work based on operational requirements and approved workloads.
• The role includes offsite and cross campus university engagement opportunities such as conferences, meetings, and industry partnerships
COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS
• Competitive compensation package aligned with the industry.
• Freezone company sponsored visa.
• Health insurance with a quality provider under the company’s group medical policy.
• Annual air ticket after the completion of one year
• Annual leave as per the UAE Labour Law.
• Gratuity and end of service benefits as per the UAE Labour Law.
• Transport services or transport reimbursement if travelling is required offsite.
• Staff discounts on university programs and university’s short courses.
HOW TO APPLY
• Send your CV to [email protected]
• Provide your name, contact details (phone number and email), notice period.