Social Sciences Faculty Office

Grade 5: - £22,417- £25,941 per annum (pro rata)
Open-Ended/Permanent - Part Time Job Share
Contracted Hours per Week: 17.5
Closing Date: 13-Mar-2021, 7:59:00 AM 

The Department and role purpose

The Faculty of Social Sciences & Health is seeking to appoint an administrator on a job-sharing basis to support the management and operations of doctoral training centres and partnerships which are hosted by the University. In the first instance the role will support the ESRC NINE DTP (formerly NEDTC).

The ESRC NINE DTP was established in 2017 and is a c. £16 million centre for postgraduate study in the social sciences. The Partnership is a collaborative initiative with 6 other universities (Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland, Teesside, Queen’s Belfast, and Ulster) and is funded and accredited by the Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC).

The post holder will be expected to work with Doctoral Training Partnership staff based at Durham University, and across the wider partnership, to deliver exceptional support and guidance to postgraduate award-holders. Working closely with senior staff and administrative colleagues, they will assist in processing applications for funding, organising and running training events and research activities, maintaining financial and student records, and co-ordinating studentship competitions. The role will also provide opportunities for the post holder to contribute to the development of promotional materials and communication tools, including the DTP website and social media content.

The administrator will act as the first point of contact for enquiries and managing a wide range of internal and external enquiries from students, staff, partnerships and the consortia via email, telephone and face-to-face contact, taking an active decision-making role and using judgement on a day-to-day basis, providing advice, support and information.

This role is an excellent opportunity for an administrator who is seeking to develop their experience and knowledge of postgraduate training and research at both strategic and operational levels.

This post is being offered as a job-share on a permanent basis. The expected hours of work are 17.5 hours per week, likely to be Wednesday afternoon through Friday (although this is open to negotiation).

 Core responsibilities:

• Act as more knowledgeable team member without responsibility for team members.
• Plan and organise own workload with or without involvement with project work streams.
• Resolve queries and requests for information and advice and escalate more specialist and complex queries or issues to more experienced team members.
• Respond to stakeholder needs to deliver and shape an excellent stakeholder experience.
• Apply theory and practice, from academic and professional development and previous knowledge within a service team.
• Contribute to collaborative decision making within the team with service provision to deliver an excellent stakeholder experience in accordance with policy and procedures. 
• Work collaboratively across the organisation and/or externally with colleagues and stakeholders to deliver a service.
• Provide guidance and advice to resolve problems and queries for a broad range of service users.
• Collaborate with team members to implement service alterations.
• Organise and schedule resources, activities and events.
• Identify priorities and monitor processes and activities to ensure success.
• Provide more in-depth independent research and analysis activities within the role.
• Analyse work activities to ensure the effective and efficient use of capital and consumable equipment and resources.
• Provide demonstrations and instruction to others outside the team.
• Support the capture of business requirements from users and work with colleagues to translate these into recommendations for future service provision.
• Liaise with contacts and participate in networks and communities internally and possibly externally, contributing to effective collaborative working.
• Advise others and make recommendations into work processes and procedures for consideration by senior management to improve services.        

Role responsibilities: 

• Deliver support services to ensure the effective and efficient running of business processes and systems.
• Monitor and evaluate service delivery to ensure compliance with regulatory and professional procedures and standards.
• Collaborate with colleagues across professional and administrative areas to ensure seamless service provision.
• Provide training to team members on data handling and recording.
• Monitor data accuracy checks to identify anomalies and ensure the integrity of data and information.
• Update data and information on systems and media for recording, storing, communicating and informing service users and team members.
• Work with internal and external partners to deliver cross-functional administrative, business and financial work streams.
• Work with internal and external partners to deliver cross-functional services and activities.
• Analyse data and statistics and provide reports for higher level decision makers.
• Accurately record information and data and disseminate within internal networks including committees.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of policy and procedures within own area of working. 
• Prepare written reports for consideration by management where required.
• Assist in the management of budgets to monitor and control direct costs, including monitoring all expenditure and income and providing summary reports.
• Manage and coordinate studentship competitions in line with the requirements of each centre/partnership, including collating, managing and monitoring the applications, ensuring that full and correct information has been provided, and that the strongest candidates are put forward for consideration.
• Process applications from students for support funding, such as resources to conduct fieldwork and purchasing specialist equipment.
• Producing, maintaining and reviewing content and information for each Centre /Partnership’s website.
• Any other reasonable duties.    

Recruiting to this post

In order to be considered for interview, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification section. Evidence should be provided via CV and covering letter.

In some cases, the recruiting panel may also consider the desirable criteria, so we recommend you evidence all criteria in your application.  

Please note that some criteria will only be considered at interview stage. 

How to apply 

We prefer to receive applications online. Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement https://www.dur.ac.uk/ig/dp/privacy/pnjobapplicants/ which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.

What you are required to submit 

1. A CV; 
2. A covering letter which details your experience, strengths and potential in the requirements set out above.

Please ensure that you submit all documentation listed above or your application cannot proceed to the next stage.

This post is a job-share, 17.5 hours per week, with an expected work pattern of Wednesday afternoon through Fridays.      

Contact details  

For further information please contact Stuart Gladwell, DTP Manager, on 0191 334 2916 or via email to stuart.r.gladwell@durham.ac.uk. 

At Durham University, our aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work.  We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our work force including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. 

We will notify you on the status of your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system.  Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to ensure you receive all emails. 

At Durham University, our aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work.  We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our work force including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.

Person specification - skills, knowledge, qualifications and experience required 

Essential Criteria 

1. Degree or comparable professional experience, with at least GCSE-level Maths and English
2. Excellent oral and written communication skills and the ability to develop effective working relationships, both internally and externally.
3. Proven IT skills, including use of Microsoft Office.
4. Evidence of personal development to maintain skills.
5. Relevant administrative experience in a busy office environment.
6. Demonstrable ability to proactively work with team members to ensure the delivery of high quality services.
7. Experience of working on the front line with service delivery, and the ability to work under pressure and meet tight deadlines without compromising on quality.
8. Demonstrable ability to provide advice and guidance to a range of customers and colleagues.
9. Ability to solve problems as part of a team and resolve issues, plan solutions and make pragmatic decisions.
10. Evidence of ability to work collaboratively across organisational units (both internal and external)
11. Experience of organising and planning events (desirable)
12. Familiarity with the higher education sector and student processes (e.g. registration, admissions and examinations) (desirable)
13. Experience of communicating with students to provide support or services (desirable)
14. Experience of preparing reports or presentations for a range of audiences (desirable)

Job Family: Business Process and People Services

OUR CHARACTERISTICS: We are welcoming, collegiate and inclusive.     

OUR VALUES: We are motivated, inquisitive, challenging, rigorous and innovative.

Durham University

Durham University is one of the world's top universities with strengths across the Arts and Humanities, Business, Sciences and Social Sciences. We are home to some of the most talented scholars and researchers from around the world who are tackling global issues and making a difference to people's lives. 

The University sits in a beautiful historic city where it shares ownership of a UNESCO World Heritage Site with Durham Cathedral, the greatest Romanesque building in Western Europe. A collegiate University, Durham recruits outstanding students from across the world and offers an unmatched wider student experience.

Durham University seeks to promote and maintain an inclusive and supportive environment for work and study that assists all members of our University community to reach their full potential. Diversity brings strength and we welcome applications from across the international, national and regional communities that we work with and serve.    

It is expected that all staff within the University: 

• Contribute to our learning culture by engaging in mentoring, training and coaching.
• Positively contribute to fostering a collegial environment; as well as demonstrating commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Have due regard to Health and Safety requirements appropriate to grade and role.   

Family key attributes

Roles in this family provide a comprehensive service and deliver the efficient administration and governance of the University.   

Overall family purpose    

• Deliver direct and indirect services to stakeholders.
• Provide advice and answer queries as part of an enquiry-desk/help-desk function.
• Respond to and manage requests for information and resources.
• Deliver services to meet regulatory requirements and procedures. 
• Plan and deliver a joined-up approach to University business and people services.
• Align business processes and services to meet operational and strategic policy objectives.  
• Deliver business processes to ensure effective management, governance and the economic viability of the University. 
• Encourage, collaborate and participate in the development of productive cross-institution relationships and working.
• Provide excellent professional services that meet strategic and operational goals and business needs.
• Carry out monitoring, analysis, development and planning to design new services and service updates for continuous improvement whilst meeting changes in regulations.
• Engage with specialist professionals, consultants, and suppliers to exchange knowledge and facilitate partnership working.
• Work collaboratively and network across the University with staff in other families to ensure a smooth, timely and high-quality delivery of service.
• Align and deliver programmes and activities to meet operational and strategic objectives to enhance the stakeholder experience.
• Engage and encourage participation with external professionals, schools, alumni and donors. 

 Link to key strategic plan

• An economically sustainable approach to delivering Professional Services across the University;
• A joined-up approach to University professional services, regardless of location or line management;
• A culture and practice of continuous improvement; 
• Design services that meet business need;
• A stakeholder-focused orientation, offering satisfying careers to all staff;
• Support and facilitate programmes that offer intellectual challenge, cohesiveness and a strong sense of progression;
• Ensure that an increasingly diverse workforce is treated equally, fairly and with respect, and that all staff are demonstrably valued and actively engaged. 

DBS Requirement: Not Applicable.