Graduate Ambassador Widening Access and Participation

The Role - What will you be doing? The Graduate Ambassador (Widening Access and Participation) will provide support for the delivery of University widening participation activities and the relevant requirements of the University’s existing and future Access and Participation Plans. They will support Access and Participation initiatives, such as projects to support admissions pathways to the University and work with schools and colleges to encourage recruitment from under-represented backgrounds. This currently includes projects such as Durham’s School’s Membership Scheme, Supported Progre! ssion, th e Sutton Trust Summer School Programme, the STEP programme, DU Cares, wider work with schools and other initiatives such as the University’s partnerships with The Brilliant Club and Elephant Group. The post holder will be expected to work with colleagues to assist with current and future deliverables of the University’s Access and Participation Plan and associated strategies. The post holder will support activities for both internal and external stakeholders, including young people, teachers/advisers, parents/carers, collaborative partners and University colleagues. The postholder will be expected to create, organise and deliver activities and events both at Durham and offsite, for example in schools. Typical deliverables include presentations, workshops, school! visits, campus tours, day events and similar activities. The postholder will also help with wider functions within Student Recruitment and Admissions such as open days, UCAS Fairs and confirmation & clearing. The post holder will be part of the Widening Access and Participation Team within Recruitment and Admissions. In the first instance they will sit within a sub-team of 7 roles responsible for local and regional school engagement. They will report to a Widening Access and Participation Assistant Manager. The post holder will work collaboratively with colleagues across Recruitment and Admissions and will work closely with internal stakeholders such as academic departments, professional support services, colleges, wider student experience teams, Durham Student Union, Colleges JCR members and current students working as Durham Student Ambassadors, to ensure projects deliver a holistic representation of the University to participants. The Graduate Ambassador (Widening Access and Participation) will maintain an up-to-date knowledge of sector wide good practice and developments; using this to continuously develop service provision and improve outcomes, specifically, conversion rates. They will also monitor and evaluate delivery, with a focus on increasing the impact of activity in relation to rates of progression to Higher Education and to Durham University specifically. Working arrangements: This is a full-time, open-ended/permanent role. Working hours are usually 9 am to 5 pm, Monday to Friday as is standard in Recruitment and Admissions. However, due to the nature of the role, the post holder is frequently required to work outside of these times and occasionally on evenings or weekends. This role provides support to residential activity that takes place ! at certai n points of the year and therefore requires some working residentially. The role requires travel , especially around the North East but including nationally, which may include nights away from home. We are currently working in a hybrid way, meaning that some remote working is possible. The role will be required to spend a minimum of 40% of their time (2 days per week) on site or attending external events.