As Executive Director, Student Recruitment and Admissions, Mr. Hargraves works at the institutional level, serving as an adviser to senior administration on policy and planning decisions in national and international student recruitment and admissions. He also consults in decisions that directly impact the University’s operating budget, brand, institutional risk, and the prospective and current student customer experience. Additionally, Mr. Hargraves provides strategic central coordination and operations management for first-entry divisions, and works to protect the institution’s interests supporting institutional and divisional goals.

The driver of a transparent, collaborative and student-centric decision-making culture across the University, the Executive Director, Student Recruitment and Admissions is responsible for:

• overseeing the development of outreach, recruitment, marketing and communications strategies to attract top students locally, nationally, and internationally;
• monitoring government, university, and secondary school policies and practices nationally and internationally that may affect the University’s ability to meet its enrolment objectives;
• evaluating the impact and developing recommendations or options for the university to consider with respect to admissions and recruitment;
• capturing and analyzing student and global market trend data that anticipates upcoming opportunities and risks, and monitoring their impact on university admissions goals and resources;
• collaborating with relevant portfolios to further the University’s continuous improvement of recruitment and admissions automation and systems;
• ensuring the quality and security of admissions data and decisions; and
• working closely with academic divisions and institutional units including University of Toronto Communications, Student Life, Planning & Budget, the Office of the Vice-President, International, and the Office of the Vice-Provost Academic Programs to advocate for regulatory and process changes and champion operational efficiency.

Mr. Hargraves brings a wealth of experience to the University of Toronto. Over the last twenty years, he has built his career in student recruitment and admissions and strategic enrolment management. Most recently the Executive Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of Vermont, Mr. Hargraves previously held several senior leadership positions in recruitment and admissions at the University of Virginia. His experience spans the range of enrolment management functions – from the development of new recruitment paradigms, to public relations and marketing, to diversity and inclusion initiatives, to on-the-ground international outreach – and he has been involved in many successful, innovative, and student-centred enrolment initiatives.

A collaborative leader, Mr. Hargraves is well-respected for his capacity to bring key players together to solve mutual challenges and further institutional objectives. At the University of Vermont, his team worked to matriculate a class representing a fifteen-year peak in yield and student quality. He is also known for his experience in organizational restructuring, equity-focused recruitment, and team leadership.