Avery Hired as Director of Graduate and International Admissions

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Niki Avery

On the sidewalk stretching past Gearhart Hall, Niki Avery's name is engraved into the stone after graduating with an undergraduate degree from the U of A. As the new director of graduate and international admissions in the Graduate School and International Education, Avery will now help countless other students on their journey to have their names engraved on Senior Walk.

Avery, a proven admissions and student success professional, stepped into the director role Aug. 31. She comes to GSIE after two years as a student success specialist and coach with InsideTrack and more than a decade of experience in higher education, highlighted by her work as director of admissions operations at Lamar University.

In her new role, Avery leads the unit's admissions team and manages GSIE's customer relationship management software and technology tools, as well as streamlining the application and admissions management process to ensure applications are processed in a timely manner.

Following a lifelong passion for the U of A — "the call of the Hog was strong," she said — Avery graduated from the U of A with a Doctor of Education in adult and lifelong learning this spring. She saw the opportunity to lead GSIE admissions as a chance to give back to the university.

"The U of A is the institution that built me," she said. "I know that education changes lives. As a first-generation college student, I never would have imagined all I have achieved thanks to higher education. It has always been a professional goal to return to the U of A in some capacity. The school has given me so much, and I want to give back."

As director of admissions operations at Lamar, Avery led a staff of 19 employees, processing more than 25,000 student applications per year, encompassing undergraduate, graduate, domestic and international students. She collaborated with the international recruitment team to implement new recruiting strategies and expedite international admissions, which helped increase new international student enrollment by 2.5%.

She reports to Ed Bengtson, associate dean of the Graduate School and International Education.

"Dr. Avery is a seasoned and established admissions professional whose leadership, collaborative spirit and expertise will help us elevate our admissions operations to ensure we are processing applications in the most timely yet accurate manner possible," Bengtson said.

In addition to her doctorate, Avery holds a bachelor's degree in communications from the U of A and a Master of Science in organization development from Friends University.