Postdoctoral Affairs Officer

University of Toronto; Toronto; On-site; CAD 85,000 - 108,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Toronto’s School of Graduate Studies is seeking a Postdoctoral Affairs Officer to provide central support to divisions and postdoctoral scholars. You will handle payroll enquiries, onboarding, and awards administration, while advising on financial reporting and university policies.

Reporting to the Associate Director, you will streamline processes, maintain records, and collaborate with HR services, faculty, and administrators in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Commerce or Management, HR or related discipline.
• Minimum five years in a fast-paced frontline service role with payroll/awards.
• Strong customer service and interpersonal skills with stakeholders.
• Experience onboarding, payroll and personnel administration.
• Knowledge of university policies, procedures, and collective agreements.
• Demonstrated financial reporting, reconciliation and policy interpretation.
• Proven ability to handle high volume with accuracy and deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Oversee day-to-day unit operations and identify actionable items.
• Act as first point of contact for payroll inquiries.
• Coordinate with HR services to implement system changes for records keeping.
• Advise staff on financial reporting and regulatory requirements.
• Liaise with internal contacts to resolve accounting and payroll issues.
• Support onboarding of new hires and maintain personnel records.
• Ensure transactions follow policies, agreements and legislated requirements.
• Respond to escalated complaints using informal negotiation skills.
• Update and maintain database records and generate standard reports.
• Assist in funding opportunities and pre/post research award administration.

Skills

MS Office Suite

HRIS experience

Communication skills

Analytical skills

Problem solving

Teamwork

Education

Bachelor's degree in Business, Commerce or Management, HR or related discipline

Job description

About us

The School of Graduate Studies (SGS) promotes University-wide inclusive excellence in graduate education, research and professional training to ensure high standards across the various academic divisions, as well as supporting postdoctoral Scholars. SGS defines and administers University-wide regulations for graduate education. We share responsibility for graduate education with graduate units and divisions and operates through a system of collegial governance, consultation, and decanal leadership.

SGS also provides expertise and advice; reviews the design and delivery of programs; develops performance standards; supports access, equitable inclusion, fairness, and ethical conduct in graduate education; organizes services and financial assistance to graduate students; encourages a close and positive relationship between research and graduate instruction and represents the cause of graduate education at the University of Toronto and in the broader academic and general community.

This is a unique opportunity for an administratively skilled professional with a background in human resources and/or business administration, including experience with hiring, onboarding, payroll, and labour relations, who is looking to grow their expertise while providing central support to divisions and their postdoctoral scholars at the University of Toronto. As a key member of the School of Graduate Studies (SGS) team, the Postdoctoral Affairs Officer plays a meaningful role in shaping the experience of postdoctoral scholars across the University, contributing to SGS's broader mission of fostering excellence in graduate education and research.

Working under the general direction of the Associate Director, Graduate Awards, Operations and Postdoctoral Affairs, the Postdoctoral Affairs Officer serves as the primary resource for postdoctoral scholars, faculty, and administrators on postdoctoral policy, procedures, and awards. The incumbent is responsible for performing a wide range of day-to-day activities to support the smooth and efficient operation of the fast-paced Postdoctoral Office. The role requires strong skills in issue assessment, case management, stakeholder consultation, conflict resolution, and collective agreement administration. It calls for research and problem-solving skills and the ability to apply institutional policy to nuanced, case-by-case situations. In return, it offers the opportunity to build deep expertise in postdoctoral affairs administration, develop relationships across divisions and central administrative units, and contribute to initiatives supporting researchers at a critical career stage.

The incumbent facilitates timely communication and coordination, referring complex issues to the appropriate office for guidance and resolution, and demonstrates initiative and good judgement in handling enquiries independently where appropriate. The incumbent also proactively identifies opportunities to streamline processes and tracking mechanisms, making recommendations to the Associate Director.

Your responsibilities will include

• Overseeing day-to-day operational needs of the unit; Determining actionable items based on the review of applicable information
• Acting as the first point of contact for payroll related enquiries
• Proactively works with the departments and central human resources services to ensure that any required system changes are implemented to facilitate all record keeping.
• Advising academic and administrative staff on financial matters and reporting requirements
• Liaising with internal contacts to resolve accounting, payroll and/or HRIS processing issues
• Collecting and passing on information that supports the onboarding of new hires
• Verifying that personnel transactions are processed according to applicable policies, procedures, collective agreements and applicable legislated requirements
• Responding to escalated complaints using informal negotiation skills
• Assessing and revising processes that support administrative activities and objectives
• Keeping well-informed on policies, rules, regulations and guidelines
• Disseminating information; Probing for information to establish needs
• Acting as the primary contact for enquiries pertaining to funding opportunities as well as advising on pre and post research award administration providing options and solutions
• Exchanging information at formal department and/or program committee meetings; Maintaining records of committee decisions
• Acting as the first point of contact for payroll related enquiries; Troubleshooting and resolving payroll discrepancies
• Updating and maintaining database records
• Implementing plans and process improvements for administrative workflow
• Reconciling accounts; Generating standard financial reports; Identifying and resolving individual financial discrepancies

Essential Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Commerce or Management, Human Resources or a related discipline, or an acceptable equivalent combination of education and experience
• Minimum five (5) years of recent and related experience in a fast-paced, high-volume, frontline customer service environment, with a focus on business administration and awards, preferably in a post-secondary or research-intensive institution, including account monitoring, reconciliation, reporting, and interpreting collective agreements and policy.
• Superior customer service and interpersonal skills with the ability to work effectively with postdoctoral fellows, faculty members, and other key stakeholders
• Experience onboarding, payroll and personnel administration, including experience maintaining personnel records in accordance with applicable institutional policies
• Knowledge of University policies, procedures, and collective agreements relevant to postdoctoral fellow employment
• Demonstrated experience with financial administration, including account monitoring, reconciliation, and reporting
• Demonstrated ability to work with high volume and tight deadlines while maintaining a high level of accuracy and attention to detail
• Ability to interpret and apply guidelines and policies to a variety of situations in order to ensure adherence and provide direction
• Highly developed problem-solving and analytical skills
• High degree of computer and internet literacy, including excellent working knowledge of MS Office Suite
• Superior oral and written communication skills; ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing
• Good judgement, tact and discretion in dealing with sensitive information
• Ability to work both independently and in a team environment
• Demonstrated ability to adapt to new practices and procedures quickly and accurately

Assets

• Processing entries in an HRIS and FIS
• Direct experience supporting postdoctoral fellows
• Direct experience administering awards

Skills

• Highly proficient computer skills (M365 – Word, Excel, PowerPoint, SharePoint), databases and HRIS.

Note: This is a one (1) year term position, with possibility to renew and secondments are welcome.

Closing Date

Closing Date: 10/13/2026, 11:59PM ET

Employee Group

Employee Group: USW

Appointment Type

Appointment Type: Budget - Term

Schedule

Schedule: Full-Time

Pay Scale Group & Hiring Zone

Pay Scale Group & Hiring Zone: USW Pay Band 12 -- $84,564 with an annual step progression to a maximum of $108,145. Pay scale and job class assignment is subject to determination pursuant to the Job Evaluation/Pay Equity Maintenance Protocol.

Job Category

Job Category: Student Services

Lived Experience Statement

Lived Experience Statement: Candidates who are members of Indigenous, Black, racialized and 2SLGBTQ+ communities, persons with disabilities, and other equity deserving groups are encouraged to apply, and their lived experience shall be taken into consideration as applicable to the posted position.

Diversity Statement

The University of Toronto embraces Diversity and is building a culture of belonging that increases our capacity to effectively address and serve the interests of our global community. We strongly encourage applications from Indigenous Peoples, Black and racialized persons, women, persons with disabilities, and people of diverse sexual and gender identities. We value applicants who have demonstrated a commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion and recognize that diverse perspectives, experiences, and expertise are essential to strengthening our academic mission. As part of your application, you will be asked to complete a brief Diversity Survey. This survey is voluntary. Any information directly related to you is confidential and cannot be accessed by search committees or human resources staff. Results will be aggregated for institutional planning purposes. For more information, please see http://uoft.me/UP.

Accessibility Statement

The University strives to be an equitable and inclusive community, and proactively seeks to increase diversity among its community members. Our values regarding equity and diversity are linked with our unwavering commitment to excellence in the pursuit of our academic mission. The University is committed to the principles of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA). As such, we strive to make our recruitment, assessment and selection processes as accessible as possible and provide accommodations as required for applicants with disabilities. If you require any accommodations at any point during the application and hiring process, please contact [e-mail].