Academic Admissions Officer

Arden University; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days holiday + bank holidays

Private Medical Insurance

Perkbox benefits

Study Arden courses for free

Job summary

Arden University’s Birmingham Campus seeks an Academic Admissions Interview Officer to assess applications, conduct academic interviews and verification checks, ensuring entry requirements are met across Foundation Year and Foundation Degree routes. You will apply admissions criteria consistently and provide a supportive applicant experience throughout the process.

This role offers opportunities to support occasional workshops or teaching cover as you develop, within a collaborative,

Qualifications

• Good Honours degree or equivalent professional experience.
• Experience in admissions, student administration, applicant support, academic administration, customer service or another regulated environment.
• Strong written English, numeracy and professional communication skills.
• Ability to assess applications against published criteria and University guidance.
• Confident and consistent approach to conducting structured academic interviews.
• Excellent attention to detail when reviewing applicant documentation, evidence and records.
• Confident use of Microsoft 365 and relevant University systems.
• Ability to manage competing priorities, meet deadlines and maintain accurate records.
• Sound judgement, with the ability to identify risks and elevate complex or non-standard cases appropriately.
• Understanding of UK Higher Education admissions, the student lifecycle and fair, transparent decision-making.
• Awareness of widening participation, equality of opportunity and inclusive admissions practices.
• Knowledge of data protection, equality, safeguarding and confidentiality.

Responsibilities

• Assess applications against published criteria and University guidance.
• Conduct academic interviews and verify information.
• Provide a supportive, positive applicant experience throughout the process.
• Work across Foundation Year and Foundation Degree routes to apply admissions criteria fairly.
• Occasionally support workshops or teaching cover as you develop in the role.

Skills

Honours degree

Admissions experience

Interviewing

Written English

Data accuracy

Caseload management

Communication

Record keeping

Professional development

Education

Honours degree

Tools

Microsoft 365

Job description

Salary: £30,000

Employment type: Permanent

Hours per week: 37

Reporting into: Senior Lecturer

Faculty: Faculty of Foundation Studies

This role will be based full time from our Birmingham Campus

About Arden University

We are an aspirational and multi-award-winning university, delivering rapid growth with ambitious plans to disrupt the HE sector through our passion for innovation and digital education. Our vision is to become the first-choice university for career-focused lifelong learners worldwide, ensuring that everyone, everywhere can access higher education.

There has never been a more exciting time to join Arden University, as we expand into new disciplines, forge worldwide partnerships, and expand our locations.

About our Faculty

The Faculty of Foundation Studies is Arden University’s academic gateway into higher education, supporting students from admission and induction through to achievement, progression and future success. Bringing together Foundation Year, Foundation Degree, new-student induction and academic admissions activity, the Faculty provides accessible and inclusive pathways for students from a wide range of educational, personal and professional backgrounds.

Our purpose is to widen participation while ensuring every student is prepared to succeed. We combine subject knowledge with academic, digital and professional skills, helping students build confidence, develop a strong sense of belonging and progress successfully into further study or employment. Our teaching is applied, supportive and career-focused, with clear links between learning, assessment, workplace practice and students’ future ambitions.

You will join a large, collaborative and growing academic community committed to excellent teaching, inclusive curriculum design and evidence-informed student support. This is an exciting time to join the Faculty as we develop discipline-aligned Foundation Year routes, expand our Foundation Degree portfolio and embed employability, enterprise and responsible use of AI across the student experience.

About the Opportunity

Join Arden University's Faculty of Foundation Studies as an Academic Admissions Interview Officer and play an important role in helping prospective students take their next step into higher education.

You’ll assess applications, conduct academic interviews and conversations, and complete verification checks to ensure applicants meet the appropriate entry requirements. Working across Foundation Year, Foundation Degree and related entry routes, you’ll apply admissions criteria consistently and fairly while ensuring applicants receive a supportive and positive experience throughout the process.

This is a great opportunity to build your career in academic admissions and applicant assessment, working alongside experienced academic colleagues and contributing to the continued growth of the Faculty. While teaching isn't a core part of the role, there may be opportunities to support occasional workshops, academic skills sessions or teaching cover as you develop in the role.

About You

To be successful in this role, you will need:

• Good Honours degree or equivalent relevant professional experience.

• Experience in admissions, student administration, applicant support, academic administration, customer service or another regulated environment.

• Strong written English, numeracy and professional communication skills.

• Ability to assess applications accurately against published criteria and University guidance.

• Confident and consistent approach to conducting structured academic interviews.

• Excellent attention to detail when reviewing applicant documentation, evidence and records.

• Confident use of Microsoft 365 and relevant University systems.

• Ability to manage competing priorities, meet deadlines and maintain accurate records.

• Sound judgement, with the ability to identify risks and elevate complex or non-standard cases appropriately.

• Understanding of UK Higher Education admissions, the student lifecycle and fair, transparent decision-making.

• Awareness of widening participation, equality of opportunity and inclusive admissions practices.

• Knowledge of relevant requirements around data protection, equality, safeguarding and confidentiality.

• Ability to handle sensitive information with discretion and professionalism.

• Experience managing a varied caseload and working collaboratively to meet service deadlines.

• Commitment to continuing professional development in admissions, academic interviewing or Higher Education practice.

Why Arden

At Arden, you will become a part of a passionate and dedicated team who are committed to removing unnecessary barriers to learning and making education more accessible. Our people work hard to ensure our students journeys are the best they can possibly be, as such we want to reward our people with fantastic benefits. Employees benefit from:

• 30 days holiday + bank holidays on-top, and even a Christmas closure!

• A generous Aviva pension plan, company contributions starting from 7%

• BUPA Cash Plan

• Private Medical Insurance

• Access to Perkbox benefits

• Study any Arden course for free, with a discount for all family and friends

• Plus, other excellent benefits

• Our ‘Golden Ticket’ which allows you to gift anyone in your life a free Arden education

Our Values

Stand out, Progressive, Accessible, Resourceful, Kindness, reflect who we are as an institution, a team and as individuals. If they also reflect you and you are excited by the chance to be the driving, creative force within a growing business, we want to hear from you.

There has never been a more exciting time to join Arden University, as we expand into new disciplines and locations.

Closing Date: 15th September

We reserve the right to close this vacancy before the specified closing date should we receive sufficient applications or in order to respond to business needs. In order to avoid missing an opportunity to apply please submit your application as early as possible.

If you are a current Arden student or have an upcoming course with us, you are not eligible to apply for Student Experience roles due to a conflict of interest related to system access.

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion

Arden University is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. This means that if you have a disability, as defined by the Disability Equality Act 2010, you may be guaranteed an interview if you meet the essential criteria for the role.

If you wish to be considered under this scheme, you can indicate via the application form below. By doing so, you are also consenting for this information to be shared with the hiring team. For more details on what qualifies as a disability under the Disability Equality Act 2010, please refer to the guidance here.

As an Equal Opportunity Employer we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. Therefore, we make sure that our recruitment and selection processes never discriminate based upon people's age, disability, gender, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation, or other personal circumstances, and actively welcome applications from all groups.

Sponsorship statement

Please be aware that some roles may not meet the points requirement for a sponsored Skilled Worker visa, or fulfil the criteria we have for providing sponsorship. However we welcome applications from candidates who do not currently have the right to work in the UK but may be eligible for a visa through an alternative route.