Graphic Designer & Donor Relations Specialist

Job description

Job Posting Title: Graphic Designer & Donor Relations Specialist ---- Hiring Department: University Development Office ---- Position Open To: All Applicants ---- Weekly Scheduled Hours: 40 ---- FLSA Status: Exempt from FLSA ---- Earliest Start Date: Immediately ---- Position Duration: Expected to Continue ---- Location: UT MAIN CAMPUS ---- Job Details: General Notes About The University of Texas at Austin What starts here changes the world.

The University of Texas at Austin, founded in 1883, ranks among the best universities in the world. With 76 programs ranked in the top 10, UT Austin is the #1 public university in Texas and the #7 public university in the nation. Like the state it calls home, The University of Texas at Austin is a bold, ambitious leader supporting more than 55,000 students, 4,750 faculty, 15,000 staff and top national programs across 18 colleges and schools. Amid the backdrop of Austin, Texas, a city recognized for its creative and entrepreneurial spirit, the University provides a place to explore countless opportunities for tomorrow’s artists, scientists, athletes, doctors, entrepreneurs and engineers.

Learn more about UT’s mission and values and leadership .

Why Join Texas Development? The University of Texas at Austin is a thriving hub of learning and discovery that anchors our city and enables excellence and innovation on the highest level. And it’s only possible because generous supporters believe in the power and promise of our state’s flagship university to change the world. With more than $6 billion raised in the What Starts Here campaign, Texas Development is quickly becoming one of the best fundraising programs in public higher education.

Texas Development is a dynamic community of 500+ fundraising professionals across the Forty Acres. We strive to reach the highest levels of achievement and success in all that we do by creating meaningful and powerful experiences for our donors.

Follow your passion, grow your career and help us change the world .

Benefits The University provides a competitive benefits package that includes insurance and retirement benefits in addition to other programs and services.

Texas Development supports growth by offering professional development opportunities that help every team member accomplish their goals, enrich their skillset and deepen their engagement with UT.

Purpose Reporting to the Associate Director, Project Operations, the Graphic Designer & Donor Relations Specialist plays a critical role in shaping the end-to-end donor journey for Annual Giving Programs at The University of Texas at Austin. This position blends strategic design, storytelling, and donor stewardship to deepen engagement, increase retention, and build lifelong philanthropic relationships.

This role serves as both a creative lead for donor-facing communications and a stewardship strategist, responsible for designing compelling experiences that demonstrate impact and inspire engagement strategies, including supporting Longhorn Loyal and emerging student-focused giving initiatives.

This role is instrumental in strengthening the culture of philanthropy at UT Austin, an contributing to the university’s long-term fundraising success and directly influences donor engagement, retention, and pipeline development for Annual Giving Programs. By integrating strategic design with thoughtful stewardship, this position helps build meaningful donor experiences that cultivate long-term loyalty, from student giving through alumni engagement and beyond.

Responsibilities Strategic Graphic Design & Storytelling

- Conceptualize and produce high-impact visual communications – including impact reports, campaign assets, presentations, digital content, and stewardship materials – that clearly communicate donor impact and inspire action.

- Translate complex fundraising priorities into compelling visual narratives that resonate with diverse donor audiences.

- Partner closely with the Art Director and Annual Giving leadership to develop creative strategies aligned with campaign goals and donor engagement objectives.

- Design scalable template and toolkits to ensure consistency and efficiency across campaigns and stewardship touchpoints.

- Oversee print production, file preparation, and press checks.

- Maintain and evolve UT Austin brand standards across all donor-facing materials.

- Incorporate data visualization and infographics to highlight giving trends, donor impact and campaign success.

- Photo-editing as needed.

Donor Experience, Stewardship & Engagement

- Design and implement innovative donor stewardship strategies that deepen relationships and increase retention across Annual Giving audiences.

- Develop personalized, multi-channel donor communications (print, email, video, ThankView, social) that demonstrate the impact of giving.

- Support donor recognition and society experiences, including:

- Working with Donor Relations to enhance Longhorn Loyal for current students (e.g., graduation cords, recognition moments, milestone communications).

- Development of an Advocate segment recognizing multi-year student Advocates.

- Partner with Donor Stewardship, RAD, and Annual Giving teams to align recognition strategies with broader university priorities.

- Support segmentation strategies by tailoring messaging and design for key audiences (students, young alumni, loyal donors, advocates).

- Write and edit compelling stewardship copy for thank you messages, impact stories, scripts, and donor outreach.

- Ensure timely, personalized acknowledgement of gifts through handwritten notes, video messages, and other touchpoints.

- Assist in planning and executing donor-facing events and recognition experiences.

Data, Segmentation & Donor Pipeline Development

- Maintain and utilize donor data systems to track giving history, engagement, and stewardship activity.

- Collaborate with RAD and internal teams to support data integrity and segmentation (e.g., Longhorn Loyal reporting, Advocate tracking).

- Help define and operationalize donor society criteria and benefits, including:

- Current student Longhorn Loyal segment (requiring data flags and tracking).

- Advocate-based recognition for sustained peer-to-peer fundraising participation.

- Leverage data insights to inform creative strategy, improve donor journeys, and optimize engagement.

- Support adoption of new data tools (e.g., SPUR fields) for tracking and reporting donor engagement.

Additional duties as assigned.

Salary $65,000+ depending on qualifications

Required Qualifications

- Bachelor’s degree in graphic design, Communications, Marketing, or related field.

- Two or more years of professional graphic design or visual communications experience.

- Strong portfolio demonstrating excellence in visual storytelling, layout, and concept development.

- Proficiency in Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop) and Microsoft Office.

- Experience designing for both print and digital platforms.

- Two or more years of experience in fundraising, donor relations, or nonprofit communications.

- Ability to translate strategy into compelling creative execution.

- Strong writing and editing skills for donor-facing communications.

- Experience managing multiple projects and meeting deadlines in a fast-paced environment.

- Excellent collaboration and interpersonal skills.

Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.

Preferred Qualifications

- Experience in higher education fundraising or Annual Giving programs.

- Two or more years of professional graphic design or visual communications experience.

- Familiarity with donor databases/CRMs and segmentation strategies.

- Experience developing donor recognition programs or societies.

- Knowledge of video storytelling tools, (e.g., ThankView or similar platforms) and video editing/production.

- Understanding of donor lifecycle and retention strategies.

Working Conditions

- This position is based in Austin, Texas.

- Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States. The University Development Office does not sponsor work visas for this position.

- Works in standard office conditions, in a shared office environment, with repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation.

- Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM on-site work is the standard expectation for this position.

- May require additional hours during peak periods and special events.

- Regular and consistent attendance is required in this job.

Required Materials

- Resume/CV

- Three work references with contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor

- Letter of Interest

Important   for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers:  You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded.  Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers:  As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) tha