Academic Administrative Assistant

Trent University; Oshawa; On-site; CAD 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

Trent University is seeking an Academic Administrative Assistant to support the Durham campus. This role involves a variety of administrative tasks, including managing departmental operations, budgetary duties, and providing support for faculty and students. The ideal candidate will have a Bachelor's degree and two years of administrative experience, along with strong organizational and problem-solving skills.

Qualifications

• Two years of administrative experience required.
• Expertise in standard word-processing and spreadsheet applications.
• Ability to work accurately under pressure.

Responsibilities

• Manage departmental office and respond to inquiries.
• Coordinate meetings and manage document retention.
• Assist with budget management and course evaluations.

Skills

Organizational skills

Problem-solving skills

Attention to detail

Confidentiality

Education

General Bachelor’s Degree (3 year)

Tools

Word

Excel

Job description

About the job

Trent University is actively committed to creating a diverse and inclusive campus community and encourages applications from all qualified candidates. Trent University offers accommodation for applicants with disabilities in its recruitment processes. If you require accommodation during the recruitment process or require an accessible version of a document/publication, please contact [e-mail].

Job Purpose:

Reporting to the Chair and Program Coordinators, the Academic Administrative Assistant performs a variety of administrative, budgetary, human resource management, data analysis, event planning, and clerical duties related to the operation of each department/program. The Manager of the Durham Dean’s Office will provide indirect oversight to the Academic Administrative Assistant to maintain procedural consistency across academic departments and programs at the Durham campus.

Key Activities:

Academic Administration

• Manages the Departmental/Program office. This includes addressing faculty, staff, student, parent, and public questions (e.g. complaints, concerns, and general information) by interpreting policy; acts as an effective spokesperson for the Department/Program; receiving, interpreting, and conveying verbal and written information with clarity; provides advice and procedures with a view to ensuring maximum office efficiency and client satisfaction.
• Manage Durham Departmental email accounts by monitoring and responding to requests or forwarding to appropriate department/personnel.
• Responsible for document management and retention; develops, manages, and maintains paper and electronic filing systems specific to program needs.
• Arranges department and committee meetings as necessary, room bookings, and takes meeting minutes.
• Liaises with Trent’s Registrar’s Office regarding policy and procedural matters, scheduling, student records, and communicates confidential information about waivers, conditions, exceptions etc. with respect to students.
• Liaises with Durham Dean’s Office regarding course offerings, course syllabi review prior to submission, operating budgets, CUPE 1 and CUPE 2 hiring, hour allocation, timesheets/VIP.
• Provides administrative support to the Chair/Program Coordinator for TUFA and CUPE recruitment and hiring processes by drafting and processing job postings, collecting applications and corresponding with applicants, setting up interviews, and arranging travel and accommodation for candidates.
• Support the Chair/Program Coordinator with TUFA tenure and promotion files collecting student and colleague letters of support.
• Responsible for ensuring CUPE 1 members requesting Right of First Refusal are provided the departmental criteria, set up in-class visits, track all ROFR information.
• Responsible for administrative duties associated with course evaluations (communicating deadlines, collecting and sharing results with Durham Dean’s Office).
• Acts as point of first contact for orientation and for the provision of information on workplace, university policy, and support services for new, sessional and part-time faculty.
• Requests accounts (Blackboard, phones, office keys, and photocopier) for new faculty/instructors, and staff.
• Maintains electronic files of departmental scholarships and awards; works with the Chair/Program Coordinator to determine lists of candidates for individual awards and prepares a summary of eligible students according to the award criteria. Notifies the award winners with a letter and the award (monetary or gift).
• Orders and maintains office supplies. Arranges room bookings for Department/Program.
• Manages key and door code allocation for departmental spaces.
• As directed by course instructors, order desk copies from bookstore or publisher.
• Organizes alternate exam dates/times for students who have missed an exam, consults with course instructors for list of student attendees, and exam material needed, provides completed examination materials back to course instructors.
• Develops and applies for funding through Trent University Work Study (TWSP) program; hires the candidates for TWSP office assistants; assigns and supervises the work of TWSP office assistants.
• Monitors and updates the Departmental/Program website as necessary.
• Creates and manages social media accounts for department as necessary.
• Attend the Academic Administrative Assistant Meetings and other training as applicable to job.
• Assist with Durham Convocation.

Cyclical Review:

• General support of the Quality Assurance processes by assisting with cyclical review processes and any new programs developed within the academic unit, including:
• Attends Cyclical Review Workshop
• Collects and compiles Curriculum Vitae and Course Syllabuses
• Assists with development and distribution of required surveys
• Drafts the site visit schedule for external reviewers, and arranges hospitality and transportation from the hotel for the external reviewers

Timetabling, Enrolment Management, & Planning:

• Support or act as the Durham Timetable Representative for the Department/Program, and proactively manage section needs and waitlists for Durham courses, to avoid scheduling conflicts and to promote efficient use of facilities space.
• Organizes Durham timetable data in DCU timetabling software, screens for potential scheduling conflicts and works closely with the Scheduling Administrators throughout the academic year in regards to scheduling, enrolment monitoring, and trouble-shooting any scheduling issues.
• Maintains database of Durham course offerings and enrollments and prepares long-range forecasts of course demand for use by the Chair/Program Coordinator in program planning.

Teaching Support/GTA/Markers/Academic Assistants/Lab Demonstrators:

• Maintains departmental database of teaching support needs.
• Summarize and post course support needs for department.
• Prepares budget to submit to the Durham Dean’s Office for Fall, Winter, and Summer terms; responsible to ensure that this budget is met.
• Reviews and approves employment record forms before Chair/Program Coordinator approval, and submission to the Durham Dean’s Office.
• Updates and provides instructions for guiding new employees to access and complete safety training.
• Assigns, and monitors timesheets throughout the term, and is responsible for payroll reporting (i.e. delegate in VIP).
• Working with the Chair to produce the GTA course listing for Dean approval, once approved post on departmental website. Confirm GTA assignment and process hiring paperwork for the Graduate Studies Office.
• Communicates with Graduate Studies with regards to – GTA hirings and confirming graduate student status when hiring markers/graders and academic assistants.

Events:

• Assists with planning, and coordination of Durham Department of Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence Program events.
• Liaises with faculty in obtaining speakers' contact information, prepares letters of invitation, plans an itinerary for the speakers’ day at Trent, and organizes travel accommodation.

Financial:

• Provides administrative assistance with the management of the departmental operating budget and departmental trust accounts.
• Monitors monthly statements.

Special Tasks/Other Duties:

• Durham Scantrons - Coordinates the proper forms for faculty.
• Department of Computer Science has departmental offices at both the Durham campus, in Oshawa, and Symons campus, in Peterborough. Position will communicate and collaborate with staff in both departmental offices regularly, to maintain program and departmental consistency.
• Occasional travel to Peterborough campus.
• Coordinates as liaison with external organizations, especially in the local community.
• Produces a handbook for both TUFA and CUPE to detail department specific, and where appropriate, campus specific, policies and procedures.

Education Required:

• General Bachelor’s Degree (3 year) required.

Experience/Qualifications Required:

• Two (2) years of administrative experience.
• Expertise in the use of standard word-processing and spreadsheet applications including Word and Excel, demonstrated ability to master new computer platforms; familiarity with web-authoring program.
• Excellent organizational skills and problem-solving skills with strong attention to detail.
• Financial management experience including budget development and implementation.
• Maturity, good judgement, tact, and the ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Ability to work accurately in stressful conditions with multiple demands, tight deadlines, and changing priorities.

Supervision:

Direct Responsibility:

• Student Employees – TWSP Office Assistants – hiring, training and orientation, assignment of tasks, attendance, payroll/timesheet processes

Indirect Responsibility

• Student Employee (i.e., Academic Assistants, Student Markers)
• CUPE 1 Hourly Employees (Lab Demonstrators, Marker/Graders)
• responsible to identify and actively inform qualified students beyond standard job postings regarding departmental opportunities
• responsible for carrying out hiring procedures ensuring training and safety orientations are completed, assignment of tasks (i.e., labs/tutorials, marking), dealing with scheduling issues (i.e., student employee is sick, replacement needed), payroll/timesheets accuracy checks prior to Chair’s signature, budget managing of all student and CUPE 1 hours to stay within Dean’s office allocated budget