What Does an Auxiliary Services Director Do?
Campus dining halls, parking lots, bookstores and ID card offices usually get no tuition money and must cover their own costs. The auxiliary services director keeps them in the black, setting budgets and rates for each unit, planning projects such as a new parking deck and negotiating contracts with outside food service and bookstore companies.
Also known as: Director of Auxiliary and Administrative Services, Assistant Director of Auxiliary Services
Auxiliary Services Director Duties and Responsibilities
The primary responsibilities of an auxiliary services director include:
- Direct campus auxiliary units such as dining, housing, the bookstore, parking and ID card services.
- Set annual budgets and rates so each unit covers its costs and builds reserves.
- Negotiate and oversee outsourced contracts with food service, bookstore and vending companies.
- Review monthly financial reports and act when a unit's revenue falls short.
- Plan capital projects such as dining hall renovations or new parking decks with facilities staff.
- Survey students and staff on service quality and turn the results into improvements.
- Lead unit managers, setting goals and holding regular performance reviews.
- Represent auxiliary services on university committees and before student government.
- Set policies for campus card use, parking permits and vendor access to campus.
- Prepare reports for senior administrators and auditors on revenue, spending and reserves.
Required Skills and Qualifications
To succeed as an auxiliary services director, you will need the following skills and qualifications:
- Financial planning for self-supporting operations
- Contract negotiation and vendor oversight
- Leading managers across very different services
- Reading profit and loss statements
- Service standards for student-facing businesses
- Capital project planning
- Presenting to committees and senior leaders
- Fair, firm dealing with outside contractors
Education and Training
An auxiliary services director is distinguished from a single-unit manager in that the job covers several businesses at once, each with its own budget, staff and customers. Most directors hold a bachelor's degree in business, hospitality or finance and have run a campus service such as dining or parking. Most universities require directors to be experienced managers.
Salary and Job Outlook
Typical pay: $86,460 - $157,420 per year, with a median of $114,130.
The range covers the middle half of earners nationwide. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, Administrative Services Managers.
For administrative services managers as a whole, BLS projects employment growth of about 5 percent from 2025 to 2035 and about 22,000 openings a year. Director posts in auxiliary services are fewer and more senior than most jobs in that group. Campus budgets and enrollment often shape hiring, but directors always will be needed as universities keep running businesses that must pay for themselves.
Outlook source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035, Administrative services managers.