Grant Nickles

Background

About Grant Nickles

I was first introduced to higher education administration when I was selected for the role of office assistant at Tarleton State University’s Honors Hall. This role opened my eyes to all the intricate inner workings of what makes a residence hall run and what a strong, supportive team looks like. Working with this team of Residential Leaders (RL) inspired me to apply for the role in the upcoming academic year, and I was selected as an RL in the Honors Hall. My experience working as a Residential Leader at Tarleton State University instilled the importance of flexibility, teamwork, and problem solving in achieving goals successfully and efficiently. This role allowed me to express myself creatively by planning social and developmental events for my hall and using attractive graphics to market them across campus. I was also able to expand my capabilities for leadership and problem-solving by serving as a peer mentor for 40+ first time in college students. Also at this time, I accepted a position as an Intern at the Honors College office. I was able to hone my customer service skills with assisting 400+ current and prospective students with answering inquiries and directing them to proper resources. I was also presented with the opportunity to collaborate on several projects with other interns, such as creating a newsletter highlighting current students and alumni, graduation announcement graphics for our social media sites, and large-scale recruitment mailouts and call lists. Alongside these positions, I also served as an ambassador and an academic mentor for the Honors College. As an ambassador, I represented the Honors College at university sponsored events, such as the Honors College Preview Day, Texan Tour, and Texan Orientations. As an academic mentor, I was the leader of a group of 10 first time in college students. I helped these students by hosting bi-weekly study sessions, holding events with topics such as medical school application process, resume building, and interview assistance, and directing my students to academic resources or provided advice on their academic journey. Now, I serve as an Academic Advisor 1 at the University of Texas at Dallas in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer science. I work with the engineering and computer science students and assist them on their academic journey by explaining university policy, translating degree requirements, and offering resources and support when necessary,