Head of Admissions & Marketing

Job Description

Head of Admissions & Marketing

Department: Admissions & Marketing Reports to: Director Direct reports: Admissions and marketing team (Senior Registration Officer, Admission Officers, Sales Officers, Marketing Officer) Location: Ignite School, Al Warqa'a 3, DubaiPurpose of the role To lead the school's enrolment growth by setting the admissions and marketing strategy, building a high-performing, data-driven team, and delivering enrolment and retention targets.Key responsibilitiesStrategy and enrolment growthDevelop and deliver an annual admissions and marketing plan aligned with the school's enrolment and budget targetsForecast enrolment by grade and division, and advise leadership on capacity, pricing position and growth opportunitiesAnalyse market trends, competitor schools and demographic data to guide decisionsSales team leadershipLead, coach and manage the admissions and marketing team, setting individual targets and holding the team accountable for resultsManage the full enquiry-to-enrolment pipeline, including follow-up standards, conversion tracking and response timesBuild a performance culture driven by data, with regular pipeline reviewsMarketing and brandPlan and deliver digital, social media, event and community marketing campaignsManage the marketing budget and measure campaign return on investmentStrengthen the school's brand and reputation as an American curriculum schoolData, systems and reportingOwn the admissions CRM and keep the data accurate and completeProduce weekly reports for leadership on enquiries, tours, assessments, enrolments, conversion rates and leaversUse data to identify drop-off points in the pipeline and act on themRetention and parent experienceLead re-enrolment campaigns and work with Principals to reduce student attritionDesign a consistent, professional experience for families from first enquiry through to onboardingCollect and act on parent feedbackCompliance and collaborationEnsure admissions processes comply with KHDA requirements and school policyWork with Finance on fees, discounts and budget, and with Principals on placement and assessmentsBuild partnerships with corporate partners, relocation agencies and feeder nurseriesKey performance indicatorsNew enrolments against targetEnquiry-to-enrolment conversion rateRe-enrolment and retention rateMarketing cost per enrolmentTimeliness and accuracy of weekly admissions reportingParent satisfaction with the admissions processQualifications and experienceBachelor's degree in Marketing, Business or a related field; Master's or MBA preferredMinimum 8 years of experience in sales, admissions or marketing, including at least 5 years leading teamsProven experience leading data-driven sales teams in a service industry, with a track record of meeting targetsEducation sector experience, particularly with K-12 or American curriculum schools, is an advantageStrong command of CRM systems, reporting dashboards and performance dataExcellent English; Arabic is an advantageUAE market experience preferre