Marketing & Communication Specialist

Job Summary: 

The Marketing and Communications Specialist plays a vital role in advancing the university’s strategic priorities related to enrollment growth, alumni engagement, and brand awareness. This position is responsible for developing compelling, mission aligned content that connects with prospective students, current families, and alumni, while reinforcing the distinct value of the university experience. Through integrated, multichannel campaigns including email, text messaging, social media, and narrative driven storytelling. The Specialist elevates the university’s voice and guides prospective students through the enrollment journey. Content is strategically designed to inspire action, deepen engagement, and move audiences from awareness to application and ultimately to enrollment. In addition, this role contributes to student retention and success by creating targeted communications for parents and families of current students. These efforts reinforce the institution’s commitment to student achievement, belonging, and holistic formation. Leveraging strategic storytelling, digital engagement, and creative production including short form and viral video content. The Marketing and Communications Specialist translates the university’s mission, student outcomes, and academic offerings into relevant, high impact messaging that resonates with today’s audiences.

Key Responsibilities:

• Enrollment Communication Strategy:
  • Develop and write email and SMS/text messaging campaigns for prospective students and their families throughout the recruitment funnel.
  • Create persuasive copy that supports key enrollment milestones, including inquiry, application, admission, deposit, and orientation. 
  • Collaborate with the Admissions team to align messaging with recruitment strategies and enrollment goals.
• Content Development and Storytelling:
  • Produce engaging content across multiple channels highlighting current student experiences, campus life, academics, and outcomes.
  • Write feature stories, profiles, and short narratives about students, faculty, and programs with a focus on prospective undergraduate audiences.
  • Translate complex academic and institutional information into clear, engaging, student centered messaging.
• Parent Communications (Recruitment and Retention)
  • Develop targeted content for parents of prospective students, helping them understand the value, outcomes, and support systems of the university.
  • Create communications for parents of current students that reinforce student success initiatives, campus resources, and retention messaging.
  • Ensure messaging addresses common parent concerns such as academic support, career outcomes, faith formation (if applicable), and campus safety.
• Social Media Management:
  • Manage the university's primary social media channels with a focus on prospective student engagement and enrollment growth. 
  • Develop social media content calendars aligned with recruitment cycles and admissions campaigns.
  • Monitor social media engagement, trends, and performance analytics to refine strategy.
• Video Storytelling and Viral Content:
  • Identify and tell compelling student stories through short form video content designed for high engagement on platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts.
  • Collaborate with photographers, videographers, and student content creators to produce authentic, student-centered storytelling.
  • Capture moments of campus life that resonate with traditional undergraduate audiences.
• Analytics & Optimization:
  • Track performance of digital content including email open rates, click through rates, social engagement, and video performance.
  • Use data insights to refine messaging strategies and improve recruitment outcomes.
  • Stay informed on emerging trends in Gen Z communication, digital storytelling, and higher education marketing.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in marketing, communications, journalism, public relations, or related field
• 2-4 years of experience in digital marketing, content marketing, or communications
• Demonstrated strength in copywriting for digital platforms, especially email and social media
• Experience managing social media channels and developing audience centered content
• Strong storytelling ability and editorial judgement
• Excellent written communication skills with attention to tone, clarity, and brand voice
• Ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines in a collaborative environment.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in higher-education marketing, enrollment marketing, or youth focused communication.
• Familiarity with CRM platforms and marketing automation tools used in enrollment communications.
• Experience producing or scripting short-form video content.
• Understanding of digital engagement trends among prospective college students and their families.

Core Competencies

• Strategic storytelling
• Persuasive writing and messaging
• Digital marketing and social media engagement
• Creative content development
• Audience segmentation and communication strategy
• Data-informed decision making
• Multi-Channel Content Creation
• Strategic Thinking: Identifying target audiences (prospective students, alumni, donors)
• Inclusive Communication with diverse audience and stakeholders
• Relationship Management: building trust and collaborating effectively with disparate stakeholders
• Project Management & Adaptability: Managing multiple complex projects
• Active Listening: the ability to keenly listen to stakeholders

The successful candidate will also be expected to be a person of Christian faith, demonstrate a commitment to the mission of MidAmerica Nazarene University, and show evidence of collaborative servant leadership that is focused on team building.

Application: Upload a Cover letter, a Statement of Faith, and transcript copies when applying online for this position. 
Questions regarding the application process may be directed to Abigail Harris, HR Generalist at [email protected].

Statement of Faith: MidAmerica Nazarene University is an intentionally Christian Community and desires that all employees in positions of leadership reflect a foundational Christian position in word, attitude and action. While there is no predetermined length or format for the Personal Statement of Faith, the norm is a one or two-page narrative document describing the applicant’s central Christian beliefs, significant formative influences in the applicant’s Christian experience (e.g., religious experiences of conversion or the affirmation of one’s faith, one’s family and/or home life, spiritual aspirations), and ways in which the applicant’s faith is being demonstrated in daily patterns and practices.

Location: MidAmerica Nazarene University is located in Olathe, Kansas, a suburb of the Kansas City metropolitan area. The Kansas City area offers access to the arts, quality health care, excellence in education and more, and it does so with a lower cost of living and higher employment in an accessible metropolitan area. Olathe and the surrounding community are a distinctly livable area with a very high quality of life and an excellent place for families. 

MidAmerica is very much interested in reviewing applications from qualified members of traditionally underrepresented groups in America, including women and racial and ethnic minorities. MidAmerica Nazarene University policy prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, sex, religion,* age, color, creed, national or ethnic origin, marital status, disability, genetic information, or any other legally protected class in the recruitment and admission of students, in the hiring process, during employment, and in the operation of all university programs, activities, and services. 

*Christian faith and employment at MidAmerica Nazarene University: MidAmerica Nazarene University is an expression of the Church of the Nazarene. It reserves the right to prefer employees on the basis of religion (Title VII, Section 702-703, U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964). Preferred candidates demonstrate a strong commitment to the Christian faith, active participation in a local church, and a philosophy of Christian higher education consistent with the Wesleyan tradition.

Read the university’s full Non-Discrimination/Equal Employment Opportunity Statement at www.mnu.edu/employment.