Student Services Office Coordinator

University of British Columbia; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading educational institution in Vancouver seeks a Student Services Representative to oversee operations in the Faculty of Forestry. The role involves providing exceptional customer service, assisting with course scheduling, and guiding students through various academic processes. Preferred qualifications include a post-secondary diploma and experience in a similar environment. This position offers a dynamic work atmosphere with a focus on student success.

Benefits

Collaborative working environment

Professional development opportunities

Qualifications

• High School graduation plus two-year post-secondary diploma and four years of related experience.
• Ability to work effectively with diverse individuals.
• Comprehensive knowledge of university services and procedures.

Responsibilities

• Provide high-level customer service and front-line assistance.
• Coordinate scheduling of undergraduate courses.
• Interprets policies and procedures to aid students.

Skills

Customer service

Communication

Empathy

Judgment

Problem-solving

Education

High School graduation

Post-secondary diploma

Tools

Workday

MS Office

Web site creation

Job description

Job Summary

This position works collaboratively with units both within and external to the Faculty of Forestry to oversee the daily operations and complex processes of moving from prospective student, to applicant, to registered student across our three Bachelor degrees (Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources, Bachelor of Indigenous Land Stewardship, and Bachelor of Urban Forestry).

The position acts as Student Services’ focal information center and initial point of contact in the resolution of complex issues provided to current students, prospective students, departments and the general public regarding admission, basic course planning, student records and registration, and all other functions supporting Forestry students.

The incumbent will refer students to University and Faculty policies and procedures and provides guidance and interpretation to students. Refers students to appropriate staff and faculty within the Faculty of Forestry and Forestry Student Services.

This position may evolve and duties may be added or removed in response to updated operational requirements, unit, and Faculty goals. This position requires an individual who is comfortable in an atmosphere that will adapt to meet student needs, and as new technologies or opportunities for improved processes are identified.

Organizational Status

This position reports directly to the Associate Director, Student Services and will assist the Director, Student Services, Associate Dean, Student and Associate Dean, Academic and the Director of Curriculum with their schedules as well as major projects implemented from their offices.

Given the incumbent works as an actively contributing member of the Forestry Student Services team, they will also receive direction from the Forestry Academic Advisors, Student Engagement Officer and Co-op Coordinators.

Must be familiar with other areas of the university such as: Enrolment Services, Centre for Student Development and Leadership, Counselling Services, Career Services, Student Health Services, Centre for Accessibility, AMS, The Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology, etc. as many students will need the appropriate referrals once they have come to Forestry Student Services.

This position is expected to have the capacity to work independently and exercise good judgement under direction from the Associate Director.

Work Performed

Student Support

• Provides high-level customer service and front-line assistance, reflective of the unit’s values of empathy, collaboration, wellness, inclusivity, and an overall positive student experience. Administers work flow of the Student Services Unit, coordinating work processes, establishing work schedules and priorities. Screens, prioritizes and responds to a variety of in-person, email, virtual or telephone inquiries from prospective and current students, Forestry Program Directors or faculty, UBC departments and units, and the general public. Asks probing questions to determine what students really need, and refers them to the most appropriate Student Services team member or campus resource.
• Acting as the primary Timetabling Rep (TRep), the incumbent will assist the Director of Student Services in ensuring accurate timetabling and scheduling of undergraduate courses within the Faculty of Forestry each scheduling cycle. Example duties include, but are not limited to: scheduling new courses, rescheduling existing courses, and collecting and submitting final and SD exam requests. Coordinates courses by performing duties such as confirming course offerings, developing timetables, making arrangements for examinations, and relaying information to the 3 departments, over 80 instructors and faculty members, and students.
• Knows and understands the complex regulations in the UBC calendar, online course schedules and other UBC publications. Using this knowledge, along with Workday, the Online Advising Management System (OAMS), provides accurate information to prospective and current Forestry students, other UBC students who wish to transfer into the Faculty of Forestry as well as the general public regarding admission requirements, registration, transfer credit, academic concessions, Forestry degree requirements, and other basic student matters. Example duties include: identifying problems and providing advice on how to resolve course planning issues, providing information on second year admission to degree programs and opening distance education credits for students; determining why a student's registration is blocked, explaining reasons to students and what is needed to remove block and in simple cases remove block if/when appropriate; explaining Workday screens and fields to students; assisting students in finding information, and identifying students in crisis and determining if/when/where to refer, etc.
• Interprets University and Faculty policies and procedures, and provides guidance and interpretation of same to students, faculty, and staff. Assists and guides students in making informed decisions. Informs students what they need to consider in making decisions and the academic implications of their decisions.
• Uses Workday, exercises judgment to make decisions whether to add or drop courses, checks availability of courses, and obtains student information.

Administrative Support

• Manages the TeachEval and CourseEval under direct supervision of the Associate Dean, Students and the Director of Student Services
• Participates in identifying processes and systems that require improvement, mapping current processes, re-designing processes, and making recommendations for change.
• Coordinates the process of collecting, reviewing, and tracking submissions and decisions related to academic or admission appeals, transfer credit requests, curriculum updates, minor and competitive major applications, and academic concession.
• Collates data for the sessional evaluations (annual review) of all the Forestry undergraduate academic records following final examinations to determine promotion/failure/deficiencies, etc. Once the evaluation meeting has been carried out and decisions have been made about students' class standing and progression in their program, this position will enter the decision on Workday and then send letters to the students notifying them of what has been decided.
• On behalf of the Director of Student Services, Associate Director, Student Services and the Senior Academic Advisors, reviews requests and prepares Letters of Permission (LOP), visa extension and degree completion letters, and prepares accordingly under established policies. Follows up on incomplete submissions, as needed.
• Assists the Associate Deans (Students and Academics), or Director (of Student Services and of Curriculum) with special projects, for example, data collection/extraction (determines what information to extract and where to collect it and how to access data, and presents data in comprehensible format).
• Maintains the Programs Sheets, Registration Guide and all of the literature that is part of what the advisors can give to students in order to keep them on track, making sure that they are always current and in accordance with the most recent curriculum submission and reflecting the UBC published calendar.
• Updates the Academic Progress Report for students in our programs by cyclically making sure the reports get updated properly and helps revise the reports versions on the Systems working closely with the Director of Student Services and Enrolment Services Records and Registration.
• Takes, transcribes, and distributes meeting minutes, as required by the Director of Student Services and/or by the Associate Dean, Academic and Associate Dean, Students.
• Provides administrative support for Student Services Team including Co-op and Engagement Officer (e.g updating/maintaining student contact information for weekly/monthly email newsletter; supporting of scheduling of first-year/ co-op and program specific events/programming, etc.).
• Supports advising team as needed, which includes event + program planning support both in person and virtual events (i.e. coordinating logistics, ordering food and equipment if and where needed, zoom links, sending out invitations, ect.).

Other Duties

• Keeps and organizes the schedules of the Director of Student Services, Associate Dean, Students, Associate Dean, Academic and the Student Services Team members including the schedule for the embedded counsellor on Titanium.
• Makes travel arrangements for the Associate Dean, Students and Associate Dean, Academic and the whole Student Services Team if and when needed according to their schedules' availability.
• Responds to a variety of in-person, telephone and email enquiries from students, all UBC departments and units, and the general public.
• Prepares journal vouchers, travel requisitions and requisitions for payment using manual forms.
• Maintains and orders supplies.
• Is knowledgeable about customer service principles and provides service that is excellent, seamless and accessible.
• Participates in cross-training initiatives as appropriate.

Consequence of Error/Judgement

As a representative of the Faculty and the University, and as a contributing member of the Forestry Student Services team, the incumbent is expected to provide a high level of customer service and must exercise a great deal of judgement and initiative in handling matters of both a routine and non-routine nature, requiring the interpretation of University and Faculty policies, procedures and guidelines. Information must be accurate and provided in a respectful, timely and supportive way. The incumbent will at times have concurrent timelines and will be required to exercise judgement in establishing priorities and carrying work through to completion in a timely manner under general supervision Failure to provide service that meets these standards affects the reputation of the Faculty and/or the University.

The incumbent exercises considerable judgment and sensitivity to diverse cultural backgrounds, and must demonstrate tact and discretion.

Students and other members of the academic community rely on advice given from the Dean's Office and base their academic decisions upon it.

Failure to provide correct and appropriate information could affect a student's eligibility for admission, promotion or graduation and damage the integrity and reputation of the Faculty and University.

Miscommunication in registration and timetabling may result in disgruntled students and faculty.

Supervision Received
Reports to the Associate Director, Student Services. Work is performed in accordance within broadly established procedures and practices. Makes independent decisions within guidelines. Requires initiative to plan and complete recurring assignments independently and uses good judgment to determine which of many methods are applicable. New or unusual problems outside the established guidelines and matters involving policy are referred to either the Director of Student Services or the Associate Dean, Students.

Supervision Given
No supervisory responsibilities, however, may explain work procedures and assist with training of new staff. Assists in overseeing Work-Learn students.

Minimum Qualifications
High School graduation, plus two year post-secondary diploma, plus four years of related experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

- Willingness to respect diverse perspectives, including perspectives in conflict with one’s own
- Demonstrates a commitment to enhancing one’s own awareness, knowledge, and skills related to equity, diversity, and inclusion

Preferred Qualifications

High School graduation and two-year post-secondary diploma and 4 years related experience or the equivalent combination of education and experience. Preference given to those with an undergraduate degree and speaking a second language. Preference given to those with moderate to advanced word processing, data base and spreadsheet programs MS Word for Windows, Excel, Access, PowerPoint, email, and web site creation/maintenance programs WordPress and to apply these systems and applications to the complexity of data and work requirements. Preference given to those with experience using UBC systems including Workday, MSP-HRMS/FMS, FSC, EPAF, SCMC, SITS/eVision, Scientia, SEoT, Teaching Evaluation system. A thorough knowledge of business procedures and practices and their application gained through experience most of this preferable within the university service. Ability to apply broad knowledge of policies and procedures. Ability to work effectively, quickly, and diplomatically with a wide variety of persons. Ability to exercise initiative, tact, diplomacy, discretion, and to work under pressure to meet deadlines. Ability to resolve problems, to prioritize, to accept responsibility, to communicate effectively and tactfully in both oral and written form, and to compose complex correspondence. Ability to work independently and in a team environment. In cases in which knowledge and/or skills in any of these computer programs is deficient, a willingness to take appropriate training courses. Ability to maintain accuracy and attention to detail. Ability to communicate effectively verbally and in writing. Ability to analyze and interpret data, determine implications, and provide recommendations Ability to accurately create and maintain records. Ability to deal effectively with a diversity of people. Ability to accurately process within required timelines.