Associate Director, Brand & Experience Strategy

About the company

Noodle is a strategy, services, and technology partner focused on higher education. The organization helps universities strengthen their infrastructure, improve learning experiences, and increase awareness and enrollment for academic programs. Its mission is to help universities create meaningful impact at scale.

About the role

The Associate Director of Brand & Experience Strategy helps shape how university partners connect with prospective students throughout the full recruitment journey. The role spans brand and messaging, lifecycle communications, content strategy, and student experience design, and requires strong collaboration with internal teams and partner stakeholders.

In this position, you will operate as a consultative strategist, contributing to shared frameworks, supporting partner discovery, and executing independently on strategic work. You will also serve as a reliable second perspective in partner relationships, bringing consistency, context, and cross-portfolio insight.

Key responsibilities

• Contribute to strategic practice areas such as event strategy, lifecycle communications, content strategy, messaging structure, or UX and student experience design, while helping improve and document the frameworks used by the team.
• Apply shared strategic models and help refine them over time, with increasing ownership of one or more practice areas.
• Work with other teams and subject matter experts to understand what is possible and where constraints exist when using common frameworks.
• Track patterns across portfolios, identify what is performing well or drifting off course, and share insights with senior strategists and the broader team.
• Stay informed on market changes, student behavior, and higher education recruitment trends, working alongside research and analytics partners to bring useful insights into client work.
• Build knowledge of assigned university partners, including their programs, competitors, priorities, and target student groups.
• Act as a steady second voice in partner conversations, complementing the Integrated Marketing Director's relationship ownership with strategic depth and broader context.
• Join discovery work for new program launches and portfolio growth efforts, helping translate insights into execution.
• Support strategy workshops and stakeholder sessions by helping facilitate discussions, clarify needs, align participants, and capture next steps.
• Create and present strategy materials that explain recommendations, outline tactics, and help position Noodle's services for internal and external audiences.
• Lead the planning and mapping of cross-channel lifecycle communications, including automated email and text journeys, communication cadences, chat scripts, and toolkits.
• Guide journey-mapping exercises to reflect both internal stakeholder views and student expectations across the recruitment and retention lifecycle.
• Turn journey insights and partner priorities into clear briefs that enable smooth execution by implementation teams.
• Contribute as a cross-trained practitioner to brand strategy, messaging frameworks, and student experience design, with depth in your primary area and working knowledge across adjacent areas.
• Help report on strategy performance, including content effectiveness, email and communication metrics, and pipeline influence.
• Use data and analytical thinking to identify gaps, recommend improvements, and support the overall health of the recruitment ecosystem.
• Collaborate with analytics, SEO, and implementation teams to connect performance results back to strategic decisions.
• Support teammates and cross-functional partners in using shared frameworks and practice standards effectively.
• Contribute to broader initiatives such as campaign measurement frameworks and technology rollouts, representing the student engagement perspective.
• Help transfer knowledge from discovery and strategy into creative and implementation teams so that strategic intent is preserved through delivery.

Requirements

• At least 3 years of experience in marketing strategy, brand strategy, content strategy, engagement communications, or a related discipline; experience in higher education is preferred.
• Proven ability to work across several practice areas while developing deeper expertise in at least one.
• Working knowledge of cross-channel lifecycle communications and the student recruitment journey.
• Experience participating in strategy sessions, workshops, or discovery work with partners.
• Comfort operating in a matrixed environment where influence is important.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present complex ideas to non-technical audiences.
• Solid analytical and problem-solving abilities, with skill in using performance data to guide strategy.
• English fluency.
• Must live in the continental United States and be located near a major airport to support travel to partner universities.
• Reliable high-speed internet and a quiet workspace are required for camera-on partner meetings.
• Availability during core business hours from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with some flexibility depending on time zone.
• Applicants must be legally authorized to live and work in the United States.
• Employment must be maintained from within the United States for the duration of the role.
• The hiring team encourages applicants to apply even if they do not meet every listed qualification, as potential is valued alongside experience.

Preferred experience

• Background in brand strategy, UX, content strategy, sales enablement, or SEO that adds depth to a broad marketing profile.
• Familiarity with higher education enrollment systems, CRM tools, or marketing automation platforms.
• Experience supporting discovery or go-to-market planning, including competitive analysis or program positioning.
• Ability to work through ambiguity and shifting team structures with a practical, solution-focused mindset.

Benefits

• Choice of working from a New York City office or from a home office.
• Company-provided computer and charger.
• 401(k) plan with company match and equity opportunities.
• Medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and their families, including mental health support through Headspace and Talkspace.
• Employer-paid life and disability insurance.
• Optional supplemental coverage such as life, accident, critical illness, and hospital insurance.
• Health Savings Account, Flexible Spending Accounts, commuter benefits, and other pre-tax savings options.
• Employee Assistance Program.
• Paid parental leave.
• Wellness programs and resources.
• Free Calm app subscription.
• Employee discount program.
• Four weeks of paid vacation, 10 paid holidays, and paid sick leave.
• Monthly mobile connectivity stipend.
• Annual education stipend for continued learning.
• Opportunities for growth within a supportive and inclusive workplace.

Additional information

Noodle is committed to building an inclusive workplace and strongly encourages applications from women, people of color, LGBTQIA2S+ individuals, and members of other underrepresented groups. The company is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or veteran status.

The company may use AI-assisted tools during parts of the hiring process, such as screening applications, analyzing resumes, or evaluating responses. These tools support recruiters but do not replace human decision-making. Final hiring decisions are made by people.