Faculty Education And Governance Officer

Salary: £29,605 to £30,487 with progression to £32,982 per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date: 02 April 2024

The Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences (HaSS) is an exciting, multi-disciplinary faculty, structured around ten academic schools covering subjects ranging from the arts (eg fine art and music) across the humanities (eg history and english) to the social sciences (eg law and economics).

The Faculty Education Team works closely with colleagues within the Faculty Office and within each of the Schools to deliver the Faculty’s education priorities. Our work covers both taught students and programmes, and research students. We are looking for a Faculty Education and Governance Officer to join our team.

We encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing team, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our Faculty and Student population.

The role

The Faculty Education Team is seeking a highly motivated and enthusiastic team member to take a leading role in the Education and Governance work of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.

As Faculty Education and Governance Officer, you will work across two core areas of Faculty business. You will lead on a range of educational governance processes and procedures working with the ten academic units that make up the Faculty (0.6 FTE).  You will also be responsible for providing an excellent level of support to key strategic committees (0.4 FTE) whilst demonstrating an understanding of the HE environment. This includes Faculty Steering Group and Faculty Executive Board which meet alternately on a weekly basis.

You will have a flexible approach to the role with an openness to new ways of working and the ability to build positive working relationships at all levels. You should be able to work independently, managing a complex workload with accuracy and efficiency.

We are committed to building and maintaining a fair and inclusive working environment and we would be happy to discuss arrangements for blended working for this role.

Informal enquiries can be made to Mary Davidson, Faculty Education Assistant Manager (mary.davidson@ncl.ac.uk).

Key Accountabilities

• Proactive organisation of two strategic Faculty committees - Faculty Steering Group and Faculty Executive Board – working with the Pro-Vice Chancellor, Director of Operations and Deputy Director of Operations

• Responsbility for forward planning committee business,  briefing those submitting papers, providing accurate and timely  meeting minutes and leading on communicating  and tracking actions

• Take a proactive approach to developing and implementing systems and processes for high quality efficient and effective service

• Responsible for implementing the annual educational governance processes and working closely with other colleagues in the Faculty Education Team and schools to ensure alignment with the University’s strategies, policies, guidelines and approaches

• Lead the annual module and regulation approval process, ensuring the timely receipt and approval of the updated programme regulations and new modules/module changes

• Deliver efficient customer service as the first point of contact for the effective resolution of queries including providing advice, support and guidance in relation to a range of University and Faculty educational policy and Governance processes

• Event organisation for Education activities, committees and initiatives within the Faculty

• Attend meetings on behalf of the Faculty Education Manager/Assitant Manager and, where appropriate, lead meetings on issues relating to core and routine business

• Provide administrative support for the Faculty Education Manager/Assistant Manager including diary management, meeting organisation and committee support

• Any other duties within the scope and general nature of the grade which may be required

The Person 

Knowledge, Skills and Experience 

• Excellent planning, organisational and time management skills, with the ability to work independently, prioritise own workload, and manage a range of tasks simultaneously
• An ability to effectively support in person, online and hybrid meetings and events, working independently to prepare agendas, take minutes, communicate with members and track actions
• Ability to solve problems and use own initiative effectively
• Ability to establish, review and monitor administrative systems
• Excellent team working skills and a versatile, proactive approach
• Excellent IT skills including the ability to manipulate and analyse information for management purposes and ability and drive to learn and use new systems as appropriate
• Administrative experience in higher education establishments or other large organisations

Attributes and Behaviour

• Has a positive can-do attitude and looks for ways to make improvements 
• Uses systems and tools to ensure records and audit trails are clear and up to date
• Uses clear, concise and accurate communication, tailoring the approach accordingly and encouraging a two way communication process
• Strives to deliver high quality results
• Keeps other team members up to date with progress
• Has an eye for detail, spotting errors and ensuring accuracy of information

Qualifications 

• Degree or equivalent level qualification or significant relevant experience in an administrative setting, demonstrating development through progressively more demanding, relevant roles

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 26839