Excursion Coordinator

CIS job description. 

Designation: Excursion Coordinator

Department: K-12 Whole School Administration

Location: Lakeside Campus 

Reports To: Secondary Principal

Works Collaboratively With: Principals, Vice Principals, Athletics Director, Academy of Music Director, Trip Leaders, International SOS, Service Providers, MarCom, Administration Executives, IT, Finance Department, and division offices

Working Partners: Trip Leaders

Key accountability (Main purpose of this job): 

The Excursion Coordinator is responsible for ensuring standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the following overnight off campus trips are developed, implemented, monitored and evaluated for continual improvement. 

• Overseas Field Trips: Multi-day trips that fulfil curriculum requirements such as the DP Geography and ESS field trip and participation in overseas festivals/events. 
• Excursions: Multi-day, local, regional or global residential trips that involve overnight stays. 

The Excursion Coordinator ensures all trips prioritise student safety, risk management, and compliance with school policies and international safety standards. They work closely with trip leaders, division principals and vice-principals, International SOS, excursion providers and other stakeholders to ensure a well-managed trip experience that meets the safety expectations of the CIS community. This role may also need to work weekends, public holidays and after school hours in the event of emergency situations.

Responsibilities (Key Areas of Responsibilities): 

Trip Planning & Coordination 

• In collaboration with principals, vice-principals, Grade Level Leads, Athletics Director and Academy of Music Director, , review and make decisions on service providers. 
• Coordinator with service providers and trip leaders continually to review trip information and requirements 
• Ensure that principals, vice-principals, trip leaders and teachers are aware of the standard operating procedures and processes. 
• Support principals, vice-principals and trip leaders with parent and student education sessions. 
• Develop and maintain a consolidated excursion planning schedule, including key milestones, deliverables, task owners and deadlines. Proactively monitor progress, follow up on outstanding actions and escalate potential delays or operational risks in a timely manner.

Risk Assessment & Compliance 

• Implement a dynamic and standardised risk assessment planning document and emergency operating procedures (EOP) that is informed by ISOS, service providers, site visits, SOPs and needs of students. Monitor and review for continual improvement. 
• Maintain a pre-departure readiness checklist to ensure that risk assessments, emergency response plans, required approvals, student documentation and relevant arrangements are completed and verified within established deadlines, escalating unresolved matters before departure. 
• Audit SOP implementation to ensure that they are being adhered to. 
• Perform reconnaissance trips with the trip leader when a new trip is being offered to students. 
• Build a strong partnership with ISOS and the school regarding communication, dynamic response protocols, and clarification of respective roles and responsibilities. 
• Keep up to date with global travel advisories, health and safety regulations, and insurance requirements. 
• Implement a systematic annual training programme that can be tracked and monitored for administrators in charge, trip leaders and accompanying staff 
• Coordinate with divisional leadership, Learning Support, and Health teams to ensure appropriate arrangements are in place for students with additional learning, medical, accessibility, or wellbeing needs. 
• Develop and maintain contingency planning protocols for medical emergencies, safeguarding incidents, severe weather, transportation disruptions, trip cancellations, and other unexpected circumstances. 

Operational Oversight & Safety Management 

• Provide training and guidance to trip leaders on safety protocols, risk mitigation, and emergency response. 
• Develop and implement incident reporting protocols 
• Ensure all necessary permissions, medical information, and documentation are collected and verified before trips. 
• Create sharing protocols that respect data privacy but do not restrict those that need access to accurate health information for students 
• Establish and maintain clear emergency communication and escalation procedures, including designated points of contact, decision-making authority, and responsibilities during critical incidents. 
• Coordinate pre-departure briefings to ensure all accompanying staff understand their responsibilities, student supervision arrangements, emergency procedures, and reporting requirements. 
• Maintain a system for monitoring and documenting incidents, near misses, and corrective actions to support ongoing risk reduction.

Post-Trip Review & Continuous Improvement 

• Conduct post-trip debriefs with trip leaders and divisional administration to assess the success, areas for improvement and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) relating to excursion readiness, compliance, service provider performance, stakeholder satisfaction, and operational efficiency.
• Continuously improve trip processes, procedures, and policies based on feedback and best practices.
• Conduct periodic reviews of service provider performance and maintain records to inform future provider selection and contract renewal decisions.

Document Management: 

• Set up and maintain the Master Excursion shared drive and all the data on the Master Pax Data spreadsheet. 
• Set up and maintain grade level shared drive folders with destination-specific documentation, spreadsheets, and information, accessible to relevant staff. 
• Create and manage electronic Parent Pack permission forms for each grade. 
• Track and ensure collection of all required student documents/information (e.g.,updated passports). 
• Collate and organize confirmed student data for invoicing, maintaining a tracking document for changes/cancellations, and share with Finance and Sr. Admin Exec. 
• Maintain up-to-date forms, procedures, and flowcharts. 
• Ensure all excursion documents are updated and streamlined across divisions (including My.CIS excursion pages, parent presentation templates, electronic forms).

Communication and Liaison with Stakeholders: 

• Define spreadsheet information requirements for each trip with GLL/Divisional Admin/Service Provider. 
• Forecast and finalise trip costs (programme, nursing, first aid, iSOS, insurance) in liaison with the service providers, trip leaders, Finance, Health Lead, Senior Admin Exec., and divisional admin 
• Determine and review visa requirements and vaccination needs 
• Update excursion documents (parent letters, consent forms, My.CIS page) with relevant information (cost, dates, times, contacts, travel and health information) with divisional teams (Finance, Communications, GLLs, Divisional Admin). 
• Collect staff wellbeing and travel information (with Divisional Admin/HR/Health Lead) and collaborate with Health Lead to maintain staff first aid certifications and database. 
• Collaborate with Senior Admin Executive to purchase travel insurance. 
• Coordinate with Finance to ensure timely submission and verification of costing sheets, supplier agreements, invoices and payment schedules, including tracking outstanding payments and financial commitments in line with school procedures. 
• Share non-attending student details with the divisional office. 
• Send timeline reminders & change notifications to relevant staff (Divisional Admin/GLL/Health Lead/Finance/Senior Admin Exec). 
• Prepare grade level advisories with GLL/Divisional Admin and Communications. 
• Prepare and update reflection forms (student & staff) with GLL/Trip Leader. 
• Manage dedicated my.CIS Excursion pages (create, curate, populate, and maintain)
• Create a data analysis table for Senior Leadership. 
• Coordinate the preparation, verification and timely release of parent communications, registration forms and excursion information, ensuring accuracy, completeness and appropriate testing before publication.
• Confirm excursion information deletion clearance before clearing drives of personal information (health, passports, SG immigration). 
• Provide input on Parent Information Night dates and expected administrative timelines. 

Requirements:

• Diploma or Bachelor's Degree in Hospitality Management, Tourism Management, Business Administration, International Relations, or a closely related field of study . 
• Previous experience working within an international school environment or a global youth travel agency is preferred. 
• Proven track record of managing budgets, negotiating contracts with global vendors (airlines, hotels, charter buses), and auditing third-party providers for safety. 
• Strong knowledge of risk assessment, health and safety compliance, and emergency response planning.
• Familiarity with international travel protocols, insurance policies, and global risk management services (e.g., International SOS). 
• Highly meticulous and detail-oriented, with the ability to manage extensive documentation, timelines, and compliance requirements accurately. 
• Demonstrated leadership skills, with the ability to proactively identify tasks, assign responsibilities, and provide clear direction to trip leaders and stakeholders 
• Demonstrated experience managing multiple concurrent projects or programmes, including strong task prioritisation, follow-through and the ability to maintain accurate operational records. 
• Excellent organisational, problem-solving, and leadership skills.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills to collaborate with diverse stakeholders. 
• Ability to work under pressure, manage multiple tasks, and respond effectively in emergencies.

Preferred Skills and Certifications: 

• First Aid or equivalent safety training. 
• Certified in risk assessment and safety management.

Disclaimer: The duties and responsibilities described above are not an exhaustive list and additional tasks and/or responsibilities may be assigned to you from time to time according to business demands. This job description may be amended at any time at the sole discretion of CIS.