Human Resources

Job Description Summary

The Graduate School seeks an Administrative Aide who will provide administrative support to the Graduate School and friendly and efficient customer service to our visitors. The ideal candidate will positively represent the Graduate School and respond effectively via phone, in person, and electronically, as well as independently manage multiple duties and continuously improve our processes. Our office is dynamic, with routine tasks every day and seasonal duties throughout the year as we welcome new students and congratulate our graduates.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities (other duties may be assigned)

• Provide excellent customer service to a diverse population in a professional, friendly, and courteous manner while routing (as needed) phone calls, walk-in inquiries, and email to the appropriate staff member. Maintain appropriate confidentiality of student and applicant records.
• Continuously work with the Graduate School team to monitor, provide feedback, and improve Grad School communications and processes.
• Independently organize, prioritize, and manage multiple duties and determine actions needed to ensure timely and efficient completion of tasks on a daily basis.
• Prepare and submit check requests/purchase requisitions, reconcile departmental accounts, including the Graduate Student Emergency Loan program, and process Concur reports for submission and approval.
• Receive and route mail, manage the office supply inventory, maintain copy/printer equipment, and issue keys and building access for incoming employees and/or student staff.
• Provide administrative support for the Graduate School including assistance with special projects, web updates, blog posts, Tech Today articles, calendar management for the Associate Dean, and email communications.
• Analyze report data for student and applicant populations. Based on the analysis, create targeted communications, respond to inquiries by finding the appropriate resources, and independently resolve data entry discrepancies.
• Independently manage the data entry and data validation for the graduation application process.
• Independently manage the yearly curriculum form update process and communicate changes to Graduate School staff.
• Review and approve departmental EPAFs and offer letters for graduate student assistantships and process tuition-only award forms.
• Review termination of support requests to ensure that the requests comply with the policy. As needed, work with departments to explain the policy and obtain the necessary information for the request.
• Gather data and create reports and graphs, detailing benchmark universities as assigned to show comparisons (example: student insurance, tuition and stipend rates).
• Commit to learning about continuous improvement strategies and applying them to everyday work. Actively engage in University continuous improvement initiatives.
• Apply safety-related knowledge, skills, and practices to everyday work.
• Other duties as assigned.

Required Education, Certifications, Licensures (minimum requirements)

• High school diploma or an equivalent combination of education and experience from which comparable knowledge and abilities can be acquired

Required Experience (minimum requirements)

• Four years office/clerical experience.
• Four years of customer service experience
• Four years experience using personal computers including Microsoft Word and Excel..

Desirable Education and/or Experience

• Familiarity and experience with Banner and WebFocus.
• Experience updating websites.
• Experience working with graduate students.
  
  
  

Required Knowledge, Skills, and/or Abilities (minimum requirements)

• Excellent interpersonal and customer service skills.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Demonstrated willingness and ability to learn and follow instructions.
• Demonstrated ability to independently organize and prioritize multiple work assignments.
• Demonstrated ability to work with accuracy and attention to detail.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with frequent and multiple interruptions.
• Demonstrated knowledge of proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation.
• Demonstrated ability to work as a member of a team and contribute to the overall smooth operation of an office.
• Demonstrated commitment to contribute to a safe work environment.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively across cultural boundaries and work harmoniously with diverse groups of students, faculty, and staff.
  
  

Desirable Knowledge, Skills, and/or Abilities

• Working knowledge of University policies and procedures.
• Demonstrated ability to use Google suite applications (Calendar, Gmail, Drive, Forms, Sheets, Docs)
• Demonstrated ability to use advanced features of software such as sorting data, creating graphs, performing a mail merge, or creating pivot tables.
• Demonstrated success in, or potential future contributions to, working with persons from diverse backgrounds, creating a sense of belonging, and fostering a fair, objective, welcoming place to work for persons with a wide variety of personal characteristics and viewpoints. 

Work Environment and/or Physical Demands

WORK ENVIRONMENT: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, walk and reach with hands and arms. The employee is regularly required to sit; talk or hear; and use hands to finger, handle, or feel an object. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move boxes up to 25 pounds. 

The noise level in the work environment is usually low to moderate.

Required Training and Other Conditions of Employment

Every employee at Michigan Technological University will receive the following 4 required trainings; additional training may be required by the department.

Required University Training:

• Employee Safety Overview

• Anti-Harassment, Discrimination, Retaliation Training

• Annual Data Security Training 

• Annual Title IX Training

Background Check:

Offers of employment are contingent upon and not considered finalized until the required background check has been performed and the results received and assessed.

Other Conditions of Employment:

Please note that successful applicants are responsible for ensuring their eligibility to work in the United States (i.e. a citizen or national of the United States, a lawful permanent resident, a foreign national authorized to work in the United States without the need of an employer sponsorship) on or before the effective date of your appointment, and maintain eligibility without sponsorship throughout your appointment.

Michigan Technological University is an Equal Opportunity Educational Institution/Equal Opportunity Employer that provides equal opportunity for all, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities

1.0

FLSA Status

Non-Exempt

Appointment Term

12 months

Shift

1st Shift

Pay Rate/Salary

Contractual. External candidates will receive the minimum amount ($17.51/hr)

Title of Position Supervisor

Associate Dean

Posting Type

Dependent on Funding

Special Instructions to Applicants (if applicable)

• UAW Posting 06/27/2024 - 07/03/2024
  External applicants are encouraged to apply, however internal UAW applicants are given first consideration if they apply during the internal UAW posting dates.