Administrative Program Assistant: Graduate Admissions Applicant Support APA

OSU Oregon State University; Corvallis (OR); On-site; USD 29,000 - 44,000; Full time

Job summary

Oregon State University (OSU) is seeking an Administrative Program Assistant to support Graduate Admissions Applicant Services. The role focuses on evaluating applications, guiding applicants, and coordinating a student team to ensure seamless, compliant pre‑enrollment processes.

The position reports to the Associate Director within the Office of Admissions and requires strong communication, organization, and adaptability across multiple channels including phone, email, and chat.

Qualifications

• Three years of office experience including two years at full performance level and experience coordinating office procedures.
• Demonstrated ability to think critically while working independently and collaboratively.
• Ability to produce work accurately and efficiently.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with administrative and academic constituencies.
• Experience learning new software or business processes quickly.
• Criminal history check required; position designated as critical/security-sensitive per university policy.

Responsibilities

• Evaluate graduate applications for admission.
• Provide applicant support in person, online, and by phone.
• Verify, process, and file official electronic academic documents.
• Lead a team of student workers.
• Ensure live support during standard working hours.
• Support recruitment efforts and collaboration across the unit.

Skills

Office experience

Communication skills

Critical thinking

Team leadership

Education

Tools

Slate CRM

Job description

Important Notifications: Application Deadline: When applying, please keep in mind this posting will close at 11:59 pm the night before the posted "end date". Applications MUST be submitted prior to this deadline.

Department: Office of Admissions - Special Instructions to Applicants: When applying you will be required to attach the following electronic documents: 1) A resume/CV; and 2) A cover letter indicating how your qualifications and experience have prepared you for this position. Starting salary will be commensurate with skills, education, and experience. For additional information please contact: Katie Scott at [e-mail]

Job Summary: This recruitment will be used to fill one full-time Administrative Program Assistant: Graduate Admissions Applicant Support position for the Office of Admissions at Oregon State University (OSU).

Key Responsibilities

• Evaluate graduate applications for admission
• Provide applicant support in person, online, and on the phone
• Verify, process, and file official electronic academic documents
• Lead a team of student workers
• Ensure live support is available for applicants during the standard working week and hours
• Support recruitment efforts
• Help maintain a collaborative graduate admissions work community

The incumbent in this position supports prospective students, current applicants, incoming admitted students, and graduate program staff and faculty throughout the entirety of the graduate admissions cycle, starting with application intake and continuing through admission and matriculation. While focused on supporting students through the admission process, the incumbent will work with the rest of the Graduate Admissions Team to process applications for admission to the university and recruitment activities and campaigns. The Graduate Admissions Ad Administrative Program Assistant is a key member of the Admissions team, reporting to the Associate Director.

This position's key responsibly is ensuring that graduate admission support and information is accessible to applicants and campus partners, while maintaining compliance structures and business processes that are critical to ensuring academic and institutional integrity with respect to selection and pre‑enrollment processes for all the university’s graduate student populations.

The incumbent will be primarily responsible for managing the communication channels for the Office of Graduate Admissions, including phone, email, in‑person and chat‑bot communications. This position will also recruit, hire, and lead up to 6 student staff (primarily undergraduates) who fill customer service and office support positions. Given the tremendous variation between graduate programs, collaboration and communication are important aspects of this position. The incumbent will be expected to build collaborative relationships within their unit and with staff and faculty across the university, as well as to communicate effectively both internally and externally as representatives of the university and the Office of Graduate Admissions. In support of institutional and organizational growth, success in this position requires the incumbent to be future‑focused and to have the ability to adapt to changes in procedures and operational platforms. All Graduate Admissions Administrative Program Assistants (APA) are responsible for making primary determinations of whether or not prospective graduate students satisfy the university’s minimum requirements for admission, as well as ensuring compliance with various institutional policies, state requirements, and federal regulations. Motivated wholly by the OSU’s mission to help ensure student success, this position works with stakeholders across the institution to support best practices in graduate education in all pre‑enrollment processes.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Three years of office experience which included two years at full performance level and experience generating documents; and Lead work responsibility or coordination of office procedures.
• Demonstrated ability to think critically, while working both independently and collaboratively.
• Ability to produce work both accurately and efficiently.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate with administrative management and academic constituencies.
• Experience learning new software or business processes quickly.
• This position is designated as a critical or security-sensitive position; therefore, the incumbent must successfully complete a criminal history check and be determined to be position qualified as per University Standard: 05-010 et seq. Incumbents are required to self-report convictions, and those in youth programs may have additional criminal history checks every 24 months.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in university or educational setting.
• Experience using a CRM such as Slate.
• Experience with data reporting and management.
• Experience in a leadership role.
• Ability to self‑assess performance and to improve both personal and team efficiency.
• Working Conditions/Schedule: The work is primarily performed in a standard office environment that is public facing. Shift hours are 8 – 5pm with the open office hours 9 –4 pm. Some flexibility in scheduling is available with supervisor approval.

Salary Range: $20.98 - $31.63

Anticipated Start Date: 2026-10-01

Anticipated End Date: When applying, please keep in mind this posting will close at 11:59 pm the night before the posted "end date". Applications MUST be submitted prior to this deadline. We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability, protected veteran, and other protected status. OSU will conduct a review of the National Sex Offender Public website prior to hire. OSU is a fair chance employer committed to inclusive hiring. We encourage applications from candidates who bring a wide range of lived experience including involvement with the justice system. If this position has “critical or security-sensitive” responsibilities and/or driving duties and you are selected as a finalist, your initial job offer will be contingent upon the results of a job‑related pre‑employment check (such as a background check, motor vehicle history check, sexual misconduct reference check, etc.). Background check results do not automatically disqualify a candidate. Take a look at our Background Checks website including the for candidates section for more details. If you have questions or concerns about the pre‑employment check, please contact OSU’s Employee and Labor Relations team at [e-mail].

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability, protected veteran, and other protected status.

Treasurer Chief Budget Officer Senior VP of Finance & Administration and CFO AVP for Facilities & Infrastructure Chancellor and Dean for OSU-Cascades Dean, Lois Bates Acheson Dean of the Gary R. Carlson, MD, College of Veterinary Medicine Vice Provost for Ecampus Vice Provost for Enrollment Management Vice Provost for University Information and Technology Working for Oregon State University is so much more than a job! Oregon State University is a dynamic community of dreamers, doers, problem-solvers and change-makers. We don’t wait for challenges to present themselves — we seek them out and take them on. We welcome students, faculty and staff from every background and perspective into a community where everyone feels seen and heard. We have deep-rooted mindfulness for the natural world and all who depend on it, and together, we apply knowledge, tools and skills to build a better future for all.

FACTS: Top 1.4% university in the world More research funding than all public universities in Oregon combined 1 of 3 land, sea, space and sun grant universities in the U.S. 2 campuses, 11 colleges, 12 experiment stations, and Extension programs in all 36 counties 7 cultural resource centers that offer education, celebration and belonging for everyone 100+ undergraduate degree programs, 80+ graduate degrees plus hundreds of minor options and certificates 35k+ students including more than 2.3k international students and 10k students of color 217k+ alumni worldwide. For more interesting facts about OSU visit: https://oregonstate.edu/about

Locations: Oregon State has a statewide presence with campuses in Corvallis and Bend, the OSU Portland Center and the Hatfield Marine Science Center on the Pacific Coast in Newport. Oregon State’s beautiful, historic and state-of-the-art main campus is located in one of America’s best college towns. Corvallis is located close to the Pacific Ocean, the Cascade mountains and Oregon wine country. Nestled in the heart of the Willamette Valley, this beautiful city offers miles of mountain biking and hiking trails, a river perfect for boating or kayaking and an eclectic downtown featuring local cuisine, popular events and performances.

Total Rewards Package: Oregon State University offers a comprehensive benefits package with benefits eligible positions that is designed to meet the needs of employees and their families including: Medical, Dental, Vision and Basic Life. OSU pays 95% of premiums for you and your eligible dependents. Free confidential mental health and emotional support services, and counseling resources. Retirement savings paid by the university. A generous paid leave package, including holidays, vacation and sick leave. Tuition reduction benefits for you or your qualifying dependents at OSU or the additional six Oregon Public Universities. Robust Work Life programs including Dual Career assistance resources, flexible work arrangements, a Family Resource Center, Affinity Groups and an Employee Assistance Program. Optional lifestyle benefits such as pet, accident, and critical care insurance, giving you peace of mind and the support you need to thrive in all aspects of your life. Future and current OSU employees can use the Benefits Calculator to learn more about the full value of the benefits provided at OSU.

The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information.

At Oregon State University, no qualified person shall, solely by reason of disability, be denied access to, participation in, or the benefits of, any program or activity operated by the University. If requested, OSU will provide reasonable accommodation to applicants in order to provide access to the application, interviewing and selection process. You are not required to note the presence of a disability on your application to receive an accommodation. Please request any reasonable accommodations for disability as early as possible in the application and search process. Requests may be directed to the hiring unit, or to the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access at [phone]. See Request an Accommodation Procedures for the OSU policy. Oregon State University, in compliance with state and federal laws and regulations, including Title IX and its regulations, does not unlawfully discriminate and prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin (including ancestry and ethnicity), citizenship, marital or family status, pregnancy or related conditions, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status / service in the uniformed service, or any other status protected by law or OSU policy. Inquiries about Title IX may be referred to OSU’s Title IX Coordinator, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (link to https://ocrcas.ed.gov/contact-ocr), or both. OSU’s Title IX Coordinator is the Executive Director of the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access (EOA). For information on OSU’s nondiscrimination policy and procedures, including how to report information about conduct that may constitute discrimination or make a complaint of sex discrimination under Title IX, contact EOA by phone: [phone], email: [e-mail], mail/location: 330 Snell Hall, Corvallis OR 97331, or visit EOA’s website: eoa.oregonstate.edu. Know Your Rights Oregon Family Leave Act: Department of Labor Family and Medical Leave Act: