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Become an Academic Skills Educator

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Chris Puntasecca
Chris Puntasecca - Lead Learning Consultant, Academic Skills Education Division
Contact: cjpunt@stanford.edu

This is a high impact, high-commitment role at Stanford. Please read the entire description of the role and its expectations before applying.


Graduate and professional students are invited to apply to work as a Peer Learning Consultant in the Academic Skills Education Division. As an Academic Skills Educator, consultants work with all Stanford students in a group setting to help them navigate academic challenges and goals. PLCs in this division start at $28/hour and are expected to work a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 hours per week.

Apply to be an Academic Skills Educator


Division purpose

Want to be on the frontlines representing CTL in front of students from all disciplines and academic levels? Looking to show off your public speaking skills as a consultant specialized in presenting? Ready to engage with students and provide them with strategies they can use to succeed throughout their time at Stanford? As an Academic Skills Educator, you’ll be the interface between CTL and the student body, a forefront representative of our program, and be responsible for presenting a variety of topics to communities across campus.

What you'll do

  • Deliver high-quality, polished presentations of workshops and studios that other PLCs (the Curriculum Design division members) design with high audience engagement and interactivity
  • Provide feedback to Curriculum Design division members on what worked with implementing the curriculum and what needs to be improved
  • Propose new programming ideas that you see missing as a PLC with direct audience-facing responsibilities
  • Specialize in novel ways to engage audiences of a variety of sizes, from small groups sessions to large groups of close to a hundred audience members
  • Provide feedback to other division members for dress rehearsals of presentations to improve their delivery, presentation presence, and audience engagement
  • Serve as ambassadors for the broader PLC program and student learning resources to the campus community through tabling events, classroom visits and consultations

Skills we seek

  • Exceptional presentation skills (over Zoom and in person)
  • Ability to manage your own time and projects with guidance but minimal structure
  • Excellent communication skills, with students and with PLC staff over Slack and email
  • A desire to learn and grow in your ability to deliver academic skills content
  • Effectively giving and responding to constructive feedback
  • Passion for supporting undergraduate and graduate students
  • Ability to work on a dynamic team in which changes occur throughout the year
  • Understanding of diverse communities on campus (including through your own personal experiences as a diverse applicant)

Application process

  1. Application: Complete the online application (which includes submitting a brief statement and CV/resume).
  2. Finalist Interviews: Qualified candidates will be contacted to participate in an one hour interview with the Lead Learning Consultant, current Peer Learning Consultants and other stakeholders.
  3. Admission: All candidates will be informed about a decision no later than two weeks after the interview. Successful candidates will be given 48 hours to accept the offer. Please note that the turnaround time between admission and onboarding is relatively short.

Application requirements

  • Must be a currently enrolled co-term, masters, doctoral, or professional student
  • Must be legally eligible to work in the United States
  • Co-term and masters students must have a minimum 3.0 GPA overall; graduate and professional students must be in good standing with their department/program
  • Must have a strong commitment to helping peers learn
  • Must possess outstanding interpersonal skills, time management skills, and attention to detail

Apply to be an Academic Skills Educator