Student Mental Health Lead

Ready to start your next chapter with NAIT?

At NAIT, we’re passionate about building a team of talented, dedicated professionals who share our commitment to excellence and innovation. Your skills and experience can shape the future of education and make a real impact in our community.

If this opportunity feels like the right fit for you, we encourage you to apply and join us in creating a brighter future – together.

Important Application Deadline Notice

Please note that Workday closes job postings at 11:59pm MST on the day before the posting end date listed above.

To ensure your application is received, submit no later than 11:59pm MST the day prior to the posting end date.

Internal NAIT Employees

Current NAIT employees are welcome to apply for this opportunity. To be considered, please submit your application through the NAIT Jobs Hub rather than the external career site.

Reporting to the Manager, Student Life, the Student Mental Health Lead is responsible for overseeing the delivery of counselling services while providing leadership to both the counselling team and the Student Support Coordinator team.

This role supervises staff through recruitment, onboarding, scheduling, performance management, and ongoing professional development, while fostering effective communication, collaboration, and high-quality service delivery. As the primary point of contact for counselling-related inquiries and complex cases, the Student Mental Health Lead manages departmental systems, workflows, and finances, and ensures continuity of care by stepping in to support urgent client needs when required.

This position plays a key role in campus-wide mental health initiatives, coordinating outreach and programming, collaborating with internal and external partners, and contributing to institutional events and emergency response efforts.

Key Responsibilities

• Provides direct supervision and leadership of clinical and non-clinical staff and has the responsibility for assigning work, managing workloads, allocating resources, and directing day-to-day operations.
• Assesses staff capacity, expertise, and workload demands to distribute work effectively, ensure equitable caseloads, and maintain timely, high-quality student services.
• Monitors performance, productivity, documentation, and outcomes, providing ongoing guidance, coaching, and direction to ensure compliance with professional, organizational, and service standards and addresses employee relations matters and conflict resolution.
• Coordinates staff response to urgent and high-risk situations, identifies resource needs, and contributes to operational planning to ensure effective service delivery.
• Serves as the primary point of contact for all internal and external counselling (clinical) specific inquiries and referrals. E.g., Health Services, the Nîsôhkamâtotân Centre, Recovery Alberta.
• Manages service escalations and complex cases for both Counsellors and Student Support Coordinators
• Monitors financial activities, processes invoices for payment, reviews and approves departmental expenses.
• Assesses wait-times and resolves recurring bookings and other issues.
• Fulfills duties as overflow/backup Counsellor when staff are unexpectedly absent or when urgent cases are received by the office.
• Compiles data and draft reports for leadership.
• Coordinates and/or facilitates drop-in counselling sessions, group therapy events, education sessions, or other related mental health initiatives across campus.

Skills & Abilities

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Excellent time management and organization skills
• Ability to build effective relationships and work collaboratively with various stakeholders
• Working knowledge of Mental Health Act, Health Information Act, Privacy legislation, Professional Regulatory Bodies (ACSW, CAP, etc.)
• Extensive knowledge of respective College’s guidelines and policies (e.g., College of Alberta Psychologists, Alberta College of Social Workers, etc.)
• Able to develop and maintain collaborative relationships across campus and with community partners as required
• Ethical decision-making, professional standards, confidentiality and legal obligations related to counselling practice
• Crisis intervention, suicide risk assessment and mental health response protocols

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in related human services field (Social Work, Psychology, etc.) is required
• 5 years’ related experience working in a post-secondary environment (e.g. student services, student mental health)
• Candidates must be registered and in good standing with their regulatory body. I.e. Alberta College of Social Workers or the College of Alberta Psychologists

Applicants with education credentials earned outside of Canada should have their credentials evaluated by World Education Services (WES), International Qualifications Assessment Service (IQAS) or the Comparative Education Services (CES).

Remuneration: Refer to salary range noted on this posting, plus a comprehensive benefits package.

The compensation range for this job posting is : $95,256.68 - $126,203.35

NAIT is committed to a transparent, fair, and human-centered hiring experience. All candidates are assessed directly by our recruitment and hiring teams.

About NAIT

We are known as one of Alberta’s top employers. Being part of a community that makes a difference in the lives of students, staff, industry clients and partners, NAIT’s culture reflects our shared values of respect, collaboration, celebration, creativity, and accountability.

People are what make NAIT great, and we prioritize the employee experience. For eligible positions, we offer benefits and unique perks focusing on health and wellness, work-life balance, recognition, and professional and personal growth. In addition to excellent vacation time, eligible employees receive paid time off between Christmas and New Year’s.

NAIT supports a flexible work environment, enabling staff to request approval for on-campus, off-site, or hybrid work arrangements based on the nature of the role. Please note that remote positions require employees to reside within Canada.

NAIT is committed to fostering a safe environment that supports equity and cultivates inclusion through our Centre for Community and Belonging (CCB) and our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Strategy. We are a proud partner of the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion. While we encourage all qualified applicants to apply, only those being considered will be contacted. If you require any assistance or accommodations, please connect with us at careers@nait.ca.

Please submit a resume and cover letter to be considered for this opportunity.