Program Assistant

Case Western Reserve University is committed to providing a transparent estimate of the salary for this position at the time of its posting. The starting wage rate is $19.41 per hour, depending on qualifications, experience, department budgets, and industry data.

Employees receive more than just a paycheck. University employees enjoy a comprehensive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare, retirement plans, tuition assistance, paid time off, and a winter recess.


Job Description


POSITION OBJECTIVE
Working under general direction, the Department Assistant 3 will provide administrative support to the Doctoral and Research and Training Program within the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences. The department assistant will have overall responsibility for the efficient functions of both departments and perform varied duties of an administrative/clerical nature requiring organizational skills and accuracy.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
1. Responsible for the administrative, non-academic aspects of the operations of the doctoral program. Coordinate student application, review and orientation processes. This includes: initial contact; scheduling interviews with prospective students; coordinating visits and giving tours; ensuring student application materials are complete; processing PhD applications and working the Slate system for applications and disposition of applications; preparing and sending mailings to those who have accepted offers of admission; providing assistance with housing information and other logistical matters; and assisting the chair in organizing new student orientations as well as ongoing student activities. Act as a liaison with the offices of Graduate Studies and International Students Services pertinent to the admission process. Participate in recruitment process and alumni relations through various media. Assist in designing, editing, and ordering marketing materials such as students defense notifications, job talks, program advertisements, webpage updates and program media. Records students¿ completion of essential training for human subjects review, graduate studies teacher training, student fulfillment of three curriculum projects, and other pertinent student information. Assist international students in navigating services and resources. Assist the associate dean with drafting letters of recommendation and nomination. (25%)
2. Maintain application database; set up, attend, and record doctoral program meetings and decisions of application review meetings. Maintain and update student database, including admissions records, student coursework records, and statistical data. Prepare reports as needed. Compile and prepare data in response to national surveys (for example, the Council on Social Work Education). Prepare data for annual reports to the constituent faculty. Collect and summarize data from annual student activity reports and prepare summary documents for review at doctoral executive committee meetings. Ensure that student acceptance, suspension, and withdrawal forms are completed, recorded and submitted. (10%)
3. Prepare financial aid paperwork, including award letters, tuition waivers, fellowships, and mentorships. Work closely with the office of finance and administration on payroll issues and MOAs. Process health insurance subsidies for eligible students. Monitor annual budget expenditures and prepare annual budget projections. Review all financial accounts for the PhD program. Complete day-to-day financial transactions ¿ requisitions, payment requests, and other financial transactions. Process student travel reimbursements or other reimbursements. (10%)
4. Responsible for coordinating research and training workshops hosted by the associate dean; coordinate schedules, send out announcements and reminders, and link to appropriate resources. Track faculty and staff research output in terms of published manuscripts, technical reports and other creative or intellectual products. This includes gathering information from Google Scholar and ORCID to obtain information related to faculty and staff publications. This will be combined with information from faculty web pages and other sources, and the compilation of a single list of products. (20%)
5. Develop research infrastructure to communicate with faculty, including a monthly research newsletter with targeted grant opportunities, conferences, updates, admin information, and highlights. Assist faculty with administrative grant submissions tasks such as updating biosketches, referring people for existing services, developing reference lists, collecting information from outside research partners, and identifying funding opportunities. (15%)

NONESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
1. Coordinate teaching assistantships for doctoral methods courses and process award letters associated tuition waivers, working with faculty and the vice dean for academic affairs under the direction of the associate dean. Track students¿ progress in the program. Ensure that students have all the necessary paperwork to complete graduation process. Assist students with the Graduate Studies application for Fellowship courses. Plan and coordinate all PhD meetings and social activities. Assist in scheduling research colloquia and workshops, ordering luncheons and correspondence for events co-sponsored by the doctoral program. (5%)
2. Coordinate teaching schedules with faculty. Assist in coordinating all scheduling, including scheduling classes, prospectus hearings, qualifying examinations, dissertation defenses, and doctoral program meetings. Notify faculty and staff of opening and closing dates of course evaluations. Make sure evaluations are distributed as appropriate and filed for individual students. (5%)
3. Annually work with office of research administration to create and disseminate reports regarding all grant activities through the Mandel School research office. (5%)
4. Communicate with faculty and staff about updates to research protocols and available trainings and research opportunities. (5%)

CONTACTS
Department: Daily contact with the Associate Dean of Research and Doctoral Education, faculty, and staff to exchange information and maintain workflow. Regular contact with finance and administration to work through issues.
University: Regular contact with School of Graduate Studies and International Student Services office to exchange information. Occasional contact with Student Receivables and the Provost¿s Office to exchange information.
External: Contact with external entities on an as-needed basis to exchange information.
Students: Daily contact with students to exchange information and address concerns.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY
This position has no direct supervision of staff employees.

QUALIFICATIONS
Experience: 5 years of related work experience required; experience in an academic setting.
Education: High school education required. Associates or Bachelor's degree preferred.


REQUIRED SKILLS
1. Strong verbal and written communication skills.
2. Strong interpersonal skills. Ability to interact with colleagues, supervisors, and customers face to face.
3. Computer skills required; proficient in Microsoft Programs (Word, Access, PowerPoint, and Excel), Slate, SIS, Canvas and Zoom.
4. Strong organizational and detail-oriented skills needed.
5. Ability to meet consistent attendance.
6. Ability to interact with colleagues, supervisors, and customers face to face.
7. Ability to demonstrate successful support, education, and advocacy for all students, aligned with the values, mission, and messaging of the university, while adhering to the staff policy on conflict of commitment and interest.
8. Willingness to learn and work with Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools and technologies.
9. Ability to handle confidential data with discretion.
10. Ability to multi-task while maintaining a supportive environment for applicants, doctoral students and doctoral program faculty.
11. Ability to establish management information systems and use data to make recommendations to the associate dean.
12. Ability to meet deadlines.
13. Good ability to plan workload requirements given the episodic busy times in the academic calendar.
14. Crisis management skills.

WORKING CONDITIONS
Office work environment. Workload demands are heavier than usual at certain calendar periods due to the cyclic nature of the program including admission, registration, graduation, and key dates related to events (e.g., workshops or trainings). The employee will perform repetitive motion using computer mouse and keyboard to type. This position is eligible for the university¿s hybrid work program after a successful orientation period.


Hybrid Eligibility


This position is eligible for hybrid work arrangement up to two remote days per week at the discretion of the department. New employees may begin a hybrid schedule upon approval from the supervisor, successful completion of an orientation period and signing the remote work checklist certification form.


EEO Statement


Case Western Reserve University is an equal opportunity employer. All applicants are protected under federal and state laws and university policy from discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national or ethnic origin, protected veteran status, disability, age and genetic information.

Reasonable Accommodations


Case Western Reserve University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act regarding reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities. Applicants requiring a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the CWRU Office of Equity at View phone number on click.appcast.io to request a reasonable accommodation. Determinations as to granting reasonable accommodations for any applicants will be made on a case-by-case basis.


.