A Perfect Fit

Guadalupe Williams

Growing up, Guadalupe Williams wanted to be everything from a doctor to a firefighter, but never imagined herself working as a recruiter. Last year, Guadalupe Williams was Union College’s student body president. This year, she is Southwestern’s newest enrollment counselor.

Williams graduated from Union in May with a degree in business administration and an emphasis in marketing and a minor in psychology. While she was pursuing her business degree, Williams felt she wanted to work for Target Corporation, but for some reason, she never got around to applying. While visiting Austin for interviews, a friend told her about an open position at Southwestern. She sent in her resume, came for an interview, and got the job.

Williams’ title, Enrollment Counselor, is pretty much a description of what she does during and after recruiting; she helps and counsels prospective students.

So what does it take to be an effective recruiter? “You have to be friendly, outgoing, good at public speaking, always have a smile, and resourceful,” says Williams. “Which is not hard for me, since I am a very outgoing person.”

Williams’ job now includes lots of traveling. She is in charge of NAD (North American Division) tours, which are basically college fairs, helping students fill out applications and answering any of their questions. She also visits the six schools in our Union to make Southwestern familiar.

“One of the biggest challenges I am having right now is adjusting to the new environment and system that Southwestern has,” says Williams. “That includes learning everything that we have to offer incoming students and maybe booking everything for the Fall NAD College Fairs tours.”

“Last year, the enrollment team worked non-stop to always ensure that Southwestern had a known presence at all the academies in our Union,” says Williams. “That included Senior Survival, Christmas, graduation, and even camp meetings. In the end, we see it paying off with all the new and incoming students.”

Another big change was the weather, though she says she’s getting acclimated to it. Although Williams grew up in Minnesota and lived in Nebraska for college, she sees Texas and all its challenges as a new adventure.

“The other morning I was walking out of my house and it was 75 degrees out and I was thought, ‘oh I should’ve brought a sweater,’ but in Minnesota or Nebraska it would have been fine,” she says jokingly.

“I never imagined being a recruiter or working here,” says Williams. “But about a month into it, I realized that I love it here. I love my team, my job, and Southwestern.”

Enga Almeida, vice president for enrollment, sees Williams as a perfect fit to the enrollment team. “She has not been afraid to step right into the thick of things,” Almeida says. “We are absolutely thrilled that she gave up the cold weather of Minnesota for the nice, toasty weather of Texas.”

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