Administrative Assistant, Indigenous Health and Wellness

University of Saskatchewan; Saskatoon; Hybrid; CAD 51,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work option

Job summary

University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon invites applications for Administrative Assistant, Indigenous Health and Wellness. The role provides confidential support to Pewaseskwan and Indigenous Health and Wellness group, assisting with administrative tasks, travel, events, and data management.

The successful candidate will have a graduate degree in health or social sciences with at least five years of related experience, strong communication skills, and a commitment to equity, diversity and

Qualifications

• Graduate degree in health or social sciences, and minimum five years of related experience.
• Experience in healthcare/university settings preferred.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion.

Responsibilities

• Provide high-level administrative support for Pewaseskwan and Indigenous Health and Wellness projects.
• Coordinate calendars, prepare briefing materials, agendas and meeting documentation.
• Plan and execute events, travel, reimbursements and related paperwork.
• Maintain electronic files and support data administration and digital platforms.

Skills

Communication skills

Office administration

Event coordination

Data management

Education

Graduate degree in health or social sciences

Tools

Asana

Microsoft Office

Job description

Administrative Assistant, Indigenous Health and Wellness

Primary Purpose: Pewaseskwan (the Indigenous Wellness Research Group) is a multi-partner research group which builds capacity and collaborations to conduct responsive, equitable, innovative, community-led research that continuously improves the wholistic health of First Nations, Métis and Inuit people.

Pewaseskwan carries out core functions (projects) including knowledge gathering, mobilisation and training; Indigenous research and engagement leadership. Each project is supported by a lead and dedicated staff. All projects are approached collaboratively, drawing upon and capitalizing on diverse strengths and interests within the team, and linking with other organizations as required. Content and methods expertise is provided by dedicated research methodologists, other researchers and learners.

This position will provide confidential and high-level support to Pewaseskwan and Indigenous Health and Wellness group. The position will be instrumental in providing administrative support and effectively aid in all aspects of Pewaseskwan and its strategic priorities to the College of Medicine and the University.

Nature of Work: Reporting to the Head in Indigenous Health and Wellness, with day-to-day direction from the Pewaseskwan co-leads, this position interacts with a diverse group of individuals including faculty, students, staff and the public. The incumbent works in a fast-paced, complex office setting, dealing with competing deadlines, multi-tasking, multi-directional high stakes communication in a highly confidential and nuanced environment faced with constant change and enhancement. Considerable discretion is a requirement as this position is privy to, and handles, highly sensitive and at times confidential information.

The successful candidate will be required to work in a complex and ever-changing environment, adapting to shifting priorities and timelines. They will contribute to a positive, diverse and inclusive work and learning environment by actively engaging in self-awareness learning opportunities, relationship building and communication.

Accountabilities:

Administrative and Logistics Support

• Provides high administrative support for all projects for which the Pewaseskwan co-leads serve in a leadership role.
• Provide strategic administrative support through the preparation of briefing materials, agendas, meeting documentation, reports and executive correspondence.
• Provides effective and efficient committee support to internal and external committees.
• Research, compile and synthesize information to support responses to internal and external inquiries.
• Plans and executes events, including managing invitations, agendas, caterings, venue bookings, including honoraria administration.
• Prepares, reviews and submits travel authorization requests as well as travel and expense claims and purchasing card statement reconciliations.
• Coordinates travel logistics, such as booking flights, transportation and securing accommodations.
• Prepares purchase requisitions, cheque requests and invoice requests, as needed.
• Prepares and submits travel claims, reimbursements and related documentation in compliance with institutional policies and procedures.
• Manage executive communications and correspondence on behalf of the Pewaseskwan heads and/or managers including monitoring and responding to the IWRG Operations emails, prioritizing inquiries, coordinating responses while maintaining confidentiality.
• Coordinate and process professional conference registrations for Pewaseskwan managers and/or team staff.
• Sign documents on behalf of Pewaseskwan heads and/or managers upon receiving direct authorization.
• Maintains electronic files for audit compliance.

Operations Management and Team Coordination

• Lead and coordinate complex scheduling and executive calendar management for the Pewaseskwan heads and/or Pewaseskwan managers, ensuring alignment of schedules, priorities, communications and organizational commitments.
• Coordinate high-volume and time-sensitive operational priorities ensuring continuity across multiple initiatives and tasks.
• Serve as a key operational contact for staff, guests and external partners.
• Coordinate and facilitate team meetings, gatherings, learning circle sessions, etc., effective taking notes, to support knowledge sharing, reflective practice and continuous improvement across teams.
• Proactively manage daily meeting logistics by auditing and verifying Zoom connectivity prior to session starts, successfully mitigating unresolved IT system errors to ensure uninterrupted business continuity.
• Ensure operational continuity by proactively managing timelines, competing priorities and resource allocation.

Data Administration and Digital Platform Management

• Act as the primary administrator for the team’s project management platform (Asana), managing user access and permissions.
• Manage subscription payments for organization software.
• Manage and submit secure access requests for team members to internal data repositories.
• Maintain and update central contact database, ensuring information remains accurate, organized and easily accessible for the team.
• Revoke platform privileges for departing staff to maintain security and integrity of internal platforms and databases.
• Update and maintain professional profiles for managers, including CCV, ORCID and professional accreditation records (MOC) to ensure institutional compliance and accuracy.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Graduate degree in a relevant discipline. Minimum of five years of related experience, or the equivalent combination of education and experience.

Education and Experience:

• Graduate degree in health or social sciences, preferred. A minimum of five years of progressive experience providing support to multi-faceted teams (preferably in a healthcare/university setting). Experience working in diverse and inclusive environments is required, and the candidate will ideally have experience working with Indigenous people in a good way.
• Education/training in qualitative and quantitative data collection and analysis.
• Administrative experience, skills and knowledge in research environment.
• Excellent computer skills (word processing; excel; research software, library database searches; reference systems and others).
• Demonstrated ability to think critically, analytically and respond to a broad range of situations with a high level of independence. Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated effective oral and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated initiative and the willingness to work closely with members of a research team to ensure problems are resolved quickly and appropriately.
• Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion.
• Ability to work with people of diverse backgrounds, health care professionals and policy makers. Ability to be self-directed and to work both independently and within a team environment.

Department: Medicine
Status: Term 1 year with the possibility of extension
Employment Group: CUPE 1975
Shift: 8:00-4:00 pm
Full Time Equivalent (FTE): 1.0
Salary: The salary range, based on 1.0 FTE, is $24.74 - 31.37 per hour. The starting salary will be commensurate with education and experience.
Salary Family (if applicable): Operational Services
Salary Phase/Band: Phase 4
Posted Date: 9/30/2026
Closing Date: 11/4/2026 at 6:00 pm CST
Number of Openings: 1
Work Location: May be eligible for hybrid work under the terms of USask's Alternative Workspace Guidelines

The University of Saskatchewan aspires to be what the world needs and embraces equity, diversity and inclusion as foundational to excellence and innovation. We actively seek to create a welcoming environment where all individuals feel empowered to thrive, contribute, and grow. Applications from equity-deserving groups are encouraged as part of our ongoing efforts to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve: EDI Framework for Action.
We continue to grow our partnerships with Indigenous communities across the province, nationally, and internationally and value the unique perspective that Indigenous employees provide to strengthen these relationships. Verification of Indigenous Membership/Citizenship at the University of Saskatchewan is led and determined by thedeybwewin | taapwaywin | tapwewin: Indigenous Truth policy and the Standing Committee in accordance with the processes developed to enact the policy. Successful candidates that assert Indigenous membership/citizenship will be asked to complete the verification process of Indigenous membership/citizenship with documentation.
The University of Saskatchewan provides an accessible and inclusive workplace. Should you require support through any stage of the recruitment process, please contact usfor assistance.