Education & Student Experience Assistant

The University of Sheffield; Sheffield; Hybrid; GBP 25,000 - 27,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Annual leave

Flexible work

Pension scheme

Discounts

Staff networks

Professional development

Job summary

The University of Sheffield is seeking a dedicated receptionist to join our Education and Student Experience team. You will be the frontline voice, handling enquiries from students, staff and visitors and providing essential admin support across student records and assessments.

You will manage events, support ethics applications and assist with timetabling, while ensuring confidential information is handled with care. A strong customer service ethos and excellent IT skills are essential.

Qualifications

• Educated to GCSE level or equivalent experience.
• Experience in a reception or customer service environment.
• Excellent customer service skills for face-to-face, phone and email enquiries.
• Ability to perform administrative duties in a busy, sensitive environment.
• Commitment to flexible working and prioritising urgent tasks.
• Outstanding interpersonal and communication abilities.
• Proven IT skills with Microsoft/Google packages and email usage.
• Ability to work in a team or independently with initiative.

Responsibilities

• Be the first point of contact on the school’s reception for students, graduates, staff and visitors.
• Handle sensitive, confidential student matters and refer to appropriate resources.
• Compile and input student information using information management systems.
• Respond to general student information requests and escalate complex queries.
• Plan and organise events, including welcome activities and graduation.
• Provide high-quality admin support for education and student experience meetings.

Skills

Customer service

Interpersonal skills

Administrative duties

Time management

Effective communication

Teamwork

Education

GCSE level or equivalent

Tools

Microsoft Office

Google Workspace

Email and internet skills

Job description

The University of Sheffield is a remarkable place to work. Our people are at the heart of everything we do. Their diverse backgrounds, abilities and beliefs make Sheffield a world-class university.

We offer a fantastic range of benefits including a highly competitive annual leave entitlement (with the ability to purchase more), a generous pensions scheme, flexible working opportunities, a commitment to your development and wellbeing, a wide range of retail discounts, and much more. Find out more about our benefits (opens in a new window) and join us to become part of something special.

Overview

You will be part of a team that develops, manages and improves the effective organisation of our taught programmes and related student procedures. You will ensure policies and processes across the student journey are clear and straightforward, meet regulatory requirements, are consistently applied and deliver educational excellence.

You will provide crucial frontline support, representing the school in real time to deliver an outstanding student experience. As well as working on a reception, you will take ownership of a range of administrative tasks that support students as they progress through their programme.

The ideal candidate will have outstanding customer service and interpersonal skills, and an ability to put people at ease through sophisticated and sensitive verbal and non-verbally communication skills. We are looking for a flexible, confident and enthusiastic approach to work and a focus on improving the experience of our students. Excellent time management skills along with the ability to work on a range of tasks in a timely and accurate way are also essential.

Main Duties And Responsibilities

• Be the first point of contact on the school’s reception taking care of enquiries from students, graduates, staff and visitors in person, via email and chat functions and telephone, recording enquiries on various information systems as required.
• Take care of sensitive, confidential, and personal student‑related matters, signposting and referring appropriately to relevant information sources, self‑help resources and specialist services as required.
• Compile and collate student information using a range of University Information Management Systems; assisting with the collation and inputting of student assignment and examination marks onto databases, monitoring and updating student records, including change of status, repeat study and assisting in the preparation of student letters.
• Respond to requests for general student information, referring more complex queries to other colleagues in the team.
• In collaboration with colleagues, plan and organise events to a high standard, including supporting welcome and induction activities and graduation.
• Administer ethics applications and related processes related to in‑curricular activity.
• Support the School’s Extenuating Circumstances and Extensions processes, referring complex cases to senior colleagues as required.
• Provide a high quality administrative service for education and student experience meetings, including diary management and date setting, accurate minute taking and subsequent write‑up, ensuring timely follow‑up of actions from meetings are received, and collating and distributing papers.
• Carry out general administrative duties to support the effective delivery of Education and Student Experience. This may include across activities related to assessment and feedback, academic misconduct, student voice (eg TellUS configuration) and timetabling, as well as broader cross‑team support , working collaboratively across the team as required.
• Provide first line support and troubleshooting for Blackboard queries, updating templates in Blackboard, creating guidance for staff/students, and assisting in setting up assessment groups and other activities.
• Liaise and collaborate with other schools and professional service departments to provide a joined‑up service to students.
• Suggest improvements to the School’s processes and activities in order to improve the student and staff experience.
• Support colleagues across the Education and Student Experience Team to ensure that the School is able to deliver the full remit of its responsibilities in a timely and effective manner.
• Carry out other duties, commensurate with the grade and remit of the post.

Person Specification

Our diverse community of staff and students recognises the unique abilities, backgrounds, and beliefs of all. We foster a culture where everyone feels they belong and is respected. Even if your past experience doesn't match perfectly with this role's criteria, your contribution is valuable, and we encourage you to apply. Please ensure that you reference the application criteria in the application statement when you apply.

Essential criteria

• Educated to GCSE level (or equivalent experience) (Application)
• Previous experience of working within a reception or within a customer service environment ( Interview/Application)
• Excellent customer service skills, with experience of working within a customer facing environment, including responding efficiently and effectively to face‑to‑face, phone and email enquiries (Application/Interview)
• An ability to carry out effective administrative duties in a busy and sensitive customer care environment, including responding quickly and confidently to a range of complex enquiries from a diverse audience. (Application/Interview)
• Commitment to working flexibly, including prioritising urgent or unscheduled tasks and accommodating changes. (Application/Interview)
• Excellent interpersonal skills, including an ability to use sensitive verbal and non‑verbal communication. (Application/Interview)
• Proven IT skills, with experience of working with Microsoft packages, Google packages, email and the internet. (Application/Interview)
• Ability to work as part of a team, whilst being willing and able to to work independently and on own initiative. (Application/Interview)
• Ability to maintain information with a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail (Test)

Further Information

Grade: 4

Salary: £25,249 - £26,707

Work arrangement: Full Time - Open ended - Hybrid - Flexible options considered

Line manager: Assessment and Feedback Officer

Direct reports: N/A

Our website: https://sheffield.ac.uk/mps

For informal enquiries about this job contact Peggy Haughton, Education Manager: on [e-mail]

Next steps in the recruitment process

The selection process will take place following the closing date. This will consist of an interview and a test. We plan to let candidates know if they have progressed to the selection stage on the week within 2 weeks of the closing date. If you need any support, equipment or adjustments to enable you to participate in any element of the recruitment process you can contact [e-mail].

Our vision and strategic plan

We are the University of Sheffield. This is our vision: sheffield.ac.uk/vision (opens in new window).

What We Offer

• A minimum of 41 days annual leave including bank holiday and closure days (pro rata) with the ability to purchase more.
• Flexible working opportunities, including hybrid working for some roles.
• Generous pension scheme.
• A wide range of discounts and rewards on shopping, eating out and travel.
• A variety of staff networks, providing opportunities for social interaction, peer support and personal development (for example, Race Equality, LGBT+, Women’s and Parent’s networks).
• Recognition Awards to reward staff who go above and beyond in their role.
• A commitment to your development access to learning and mentoring schemes; integrated with our Professional Services Shared Skills Framework
• A range of generous family-friendly policies
  • paid time off for parenting and caring emergencies
  • support for those going through the menopause
  • paid time off and support for fertility treatment
  • and more

More details can be found on our benefits page: sheffield.ac.uk/jobs/benefits (opens in a new window).

We are a Disability Confident Employer. If you have a disability and meet the essential criteria for this job you will be invited to take part in the next stage of the selection process.

Possession of a criminal record is not an automatic bar to employment at the University of Sheffield. We recognise the value of steady employment in the rehabilitation process and examine each case in its own right. More information can be found on our Information for candidates page:- sheffield.ac.uk/jobs/candidates (opens in a new window).

Closing Date : 13/10/2026

We are a research university with a global reputation for excellence. Our ideas and expertise change the world for the better, making a real difference to society. We know that when people come together with different views, approaches and insights it can lead to richer, more creative and innovative teaching and research and the highest levels of student experience. Our University Vision (www.sheffield.ac.uk/vision) outlines our commitment to building a diverse community of staff and students that recognises and values the abilities, backgrounds, beliefs and ways of living for everyone.