Course Operations Assistant

Course Operations Specialist

The School of Social Work is seeking a qualified Course Operations Specialist to assist in technical and instructional support for course offerings in its certificate programs, degree programs, and post-graduate continuing education programs. This position will be appointed at 50% effort (20 hours/week) to the Learning Experience Design Team (LXD) and 50% to the Office of Continuing Education (CE), and report to the Learning Experience Design Lead and Director of Continuing Education, respectively.

The ideal candidate will bring experience in academic technical support, familiarity revising/maintaining academic courses, and supporting students in a Learning Management System (Canvas/ Canvas Catalog preferred), and online accessibility. There will be a variety of duties for this position. An exemplary candidate will thrive in a dynamic, fluid environment with priorities that may shift depending on project needs. Because this position's focus will be on initiatives within the School of Social Work (SSW), a demonstrated interest in the values of the social work community is a plus.

Responsibilities*

Below are the prospective duties of Course Operations Specialist for LXD and CE. This position will fulfill similar duties across the two offices:

• Managing Learner Issues (5%)
  • Registration
    • Manage learner enrollment and course registration processes
    • Manage course changes, substitutions, or withdrawals as required
  • Content/Learning Related
    • Provide learners with timely and effective support throughout their program
    • Monitor learner progress and engagement, offering guidance and assistance as needed
    • Coordinate with teams to ensure information is current and up-to-date
    • Provide limited content assistance to learners
  • Technical Support
    • Provide technical assistance to learners and instructors
    • Troubleshoot and resolve technical issues related to course access, content delivery, and platform functionality
    • Coordinate with the ITS Teaching and Learning team to provide support to address complex technical problems
• Organizing and Facilitating Live Sessions (5%)
  • Assist instructors in coordination and facilitation of live sessions
  • Ensure any important messages are being relayed to students via these live sessions
  • Ensure a recording of the live sessions is made available to learners
• Content Changes/Canvas (60%)
  • Coordinate with staff, instructors, and subject matter experts to create and update courses
  • Make necessary updates to course materials
  • Implement changes that ensure that course content remains aligned with School of Social Work standards, best practices, and accreditation requirements
  • Provide feedback on needed content updates, broken course links, etc.
  • Review accessibility of online content and work with instructors to ensure content meets accessibility standards
• Completion and Certificate Process (15%)
  • Track learner progress and verify that all program requirements have been met
  • Verify learner eligibility for certificates based on completion of audit results
  • Coordinate certificate and completion survey process through Canvas/ Canvas Catalog
  • Conduct audits to ensure the integrity and accuracy of completion records
  • Coordinate with relevant departments to address any discrepancies or issues identified during the audit process
  • Monitor certificate progress and provide outreach to learners, in collaboration with program leadership
• Program Evaluation (5%)
  • Offer suggestions related to continuous improvement based on learner feedback, performance data, and industry trends, with regular updates to course content and program features
  • Contribute to collection, analysis, and reporting of program data
• Additional Foundations (10%) The Course Operations Specialist will collaborate with the LXD and CE teams to enhance quality and accessibility across the entire catalog of SSW courses. Projects may include assisting in developing new, and iterating existing, online courses for the SSW catalog, pilot testing new platform features or changes, improving/enhancing the accessibility of all courses, and providing technical support to instructors and learners.

Required Qualifications*

• Bachelor's degree in a field related to the work (e.g., BSW, educational technology, instructional design, etc.) with at least 3 years of experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience
• Experience using online education platforms (e.g., Canvas/ Canvas Catalog, Blackboard, Coursera)
• Strong commitment to customer service
• Knowledge of assessing learning outcomes and project outcomes
• Strong organizational skills and ability to meet deadlines
• Strong communication skills
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and interest in working in a team environment
• Passion for teaching and learning innovation

Desired Qualifications*

• Experience revising, updating, and maintaining academic course content in a Learning Management System/LMS (e.g., Canvas/ Canvas Catalog, Blackboard, Coursera)
• Demonstrated experience working in higher education and supporting learners in fully-online course delivery
• Experience with digital accessibility and updating content to meet accessibility standards
• Experience with relational databases (e.g, Filemaker Pro, Airtable)
• Prior experience with online certificate programs
• Skills in visual communication and user experience design
• Skills in developing web-based interactives

Modes of Work

Positions that are eligible for hybrid or mobile/remote work mode are at the discretion of the hiring department. Work agreements are reviewed annually at a minimum and are subject to change at any time, and for any reason, throughout the course of employment. Learn more about the work modes.

In-person in Ann Arbor, with a possible hybrid schedule. The work location will be in the School of Social Work building (SSWB) at 1080 S. University, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1106.

Additional Information

Candidates must be currently eligible to work in the United States, as we are currently unable to sponsor visas for this job opening.

This position is included in the bargaining unit represented by University Staff United, AFT Local 284, AFL-CIO, which represents Employees in all matters with respect to wages, benefits, hours and other terms and conditions of employment.

U-M EEO Statement

The University of Michigan is an equal employment opportunity employer.