Administrative Assistant, WISERD

17900BR

Cardiff School of Social Sciences

Administrative Support

Advert

Administrative Assistant, WISERD

Cardiff University School of Social Sciences is seeking to recruit an Administrative Assistant to work within the Wales Institute for Economic Research, Data & Methods (WISERD) that is located within the School

As part of a WISERD Hub Team, the Administration Assistant will provide an administrative service to the Wales Institute of Social and Economic Research and Data, (WISERD), engaging and completing a range of routine tasks to meet operational and customer service requirements. Providing support with administration and guidance on general administrative queries, ensuring the WISERD Hub team and academic colleagues across the Institute are supported, and that key tasks are undertaken.

The post will be based within WISERD (at Cardiff University) at SPARK and the role holder will be required to partially work on site in order to meet the needs of the centre. This role might be an ideal secondment opportunity.

This post is full-time (35 hours per week), is fixed term until 30th September 2024 and is immediately available.

Salary: £23,700 - £24,533 per annum (Grade 3) with 2 annual increments up to £24,533 per annum (final salary at top of grade).

Responsible to Kevin Jones, WISERD Administration Manager

For an informal discussion about the role please contact  Kevin Jones on 029 20870940 or [email protected].

Cardiff University offers many excellent benefits, including 40 days  annual leave (including bank holidays), blended working (meaning you will be able to work from home for some of your time), a cycle to work scheme and other travel initiatives, annual increments up the pay scale, and more. It is an exciting and vibrant place to work, with many different challenges and is a proud Living Wage supporter. 

As the biggest university in Wales – and a major employer, with more than 7,000 staff – we are an ambitious and innovative university located in a beautiful and thriving capital city. We can offer you the chance to work in a vibrant organisation, with great benefits and opportunities for progression. 

Date advert posted: Friday 15 December 2023 

Closing date: Friday, 5 January 2024

Please be aware that Cardiff University reserves the right to close this vacancy early should sufficient applications be received.

Cardiff University is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing, and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds who have the ambition to create a University which seeks to fulfil our social, cultural and economic obligation to Cardiff, Wales, and the world.  In supporting our employees to achieve a balance between their work and their personal lives, we will also consider proposals for flexible working or job share arrangements.

Job Description

Key Duties

• Deal with a range of enquires from internal and external customers in a professional manner, establishing their requirements and adapting the standard responses accordingly. To include acting as a first point of contact for all visitors to the centre, dealing professionally with correspondence to the centre.
• Collaborate with others in order to make recommendations for developments of established processes and procedures.
• Establish working relationships with key contacts to help improve service levels.
• Undertake a variety of administrative duties to support the team and department.
• Gather and analyse data to update administrative systems with accurate information, establishing basic trends and patterns in any data submitted.
• Contribute to the success of the team, leading others through example, and supporting the supervision and management of the team.

Specific Duties

• Produce documentation, plan and organise meetings, and ensure room bookings and travel arrangements are made.
• Provide diary management support to senior members of the Institute as required.
• Take responsibility for processing of expense claims, purchase orders, hospitality, and other similar financial tasks in conjunction with the relevant university teams.
• Updating databases and assisting with regular data cleaning tasks.
• Provide administrative support to various events including workshops, away days and conferences to include preparation of delegate packs and badges and front of house event duties.
• Support the centre by providing cover for reception for internal and external visitors to the ADR Wales/ONS Secure Suite research facilities and managing visitor requirements.

General Duties

• Ensure that an understanding of the importance of confidentiality is applied when undertaking all duties.
• Abide by University policies on Health and Safety and Equality and Diversity
• Perform other duties occasionally which are not included above, but which will be consistent with the role.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

NVQ 2/GCSE level A-C or equivalent

Significant experience of working in a busy administrative or office environment to include events support and processing basic finance documentation.

Proficient in using common office IT packages (e.g. MS Office)

Ability to set up and run effective standard administrative systems and procedures.

Ability to communicate effectively and professionally with a wide range of people.

Ability to work as an effective team member, providing advice and guidance to other team members where necessary.

Proven ability to deal with escalated requests for information or service, resolving customer issues and escalating requests as appropriate.

Ability to plan, prioritise and organise own workload within established time scales to meet multiple and overlapping deadlines.

Ability to use initiative in solving problems and responding to queries ensuring compliance with standard procedures and practices

A willingness to undertake further training and development

Desirable Criteria

• A-Levels or equivalent
• Fluency in Welsh, written and oral
• Experience of working in a Higher Education environment

IMPORTANT: Evidencing Criteria  

 It is Cardiff University's policy to use the person specification as a key tool for shortlisting. Therefore, candidates must evidence they meet ALL the essential criteria and, where relevant, the desirable.  

As part of the application process, you are asked to provide this evidence via a supporting statement. Please ensure that the evidence you are providing corresponds with the numbered criteria outlined in the person specification. Your application will be considered based on the information you provide for each criterion.  

 When attaching the supporting statement to your application profile, please ensure you name it with the vacancy reference number: XXXXBR.  

Your application will be at risk of not being progressed if you do not evidence you have met all essential criteria. The school welcomes the submission of CVs to accompany evidence of the job-based criteria.  

Please note that these are also the criteria shortlisted applicants will be assessed against at interview and/or by other means (e.g. a skills test). 

Additional Information

The Wales Institute for Economic Research, Data & Methods (WISERD) 

The Wales Institute for Economic Research and Data (WISERD) is a national, interdisciplinary, social science research institute. We have been designated by the Welsh Government as a national research centre. Using innovative approaches, our research spans the fields of economics, sociology, geography and political science.
We are a collaborative venture between the universities of Aberystwyth, Bangor, Cardiff, South Wales and Swansea – working together to improve the quality and quantity of social science research in Wales and beyond. Our research effects change by influencing the development of policy and practice across a range of sectors.
WISERD hosts the UK-wide WISERD Civil Society Research Centre, a major investment by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and the Administrative Data Research Centre Wales (ADRC-W) at Cardiff University, part of a project led by Swansea University. Other funded projects include IDEAL, WISERD Education, Global-Rural and Horizon 2020 IMAJINE.

Cardiff University School of Social Sciences
The School of Social Sciences is an internationally recognised centre of excellence in research and teaching across a range of subject areas, including Social Policy, Sociology, Criminology, Education, Social Psychology, and Social Work.

We deliver a substantial programme of research, both fundamental and strategic, funded by ESRC, AHRC, MRC, charitable foundations, the European Union, Central Government departments and agencies and voluntary associations.  In the 2021 UK Research Excellence Framework the School was returned to two sub panels, Sociology and Education. We were placed in the top ten in each sub panel by grade point average, joint first for impact in Education and fourth overall for research power in Sociology.

The School has a large student population, with almost 1000 undergraduates, and 300 postgraduates.  We have ESRC recognition for doctoral training in the fields of Criminology, Social Policy, Sociology, Education, and Science, Technology and Innovation and have secured a large number of ESRC collaborative doctoral awards. Our taught and postgraduate research programmes welcome students from around the world.

The School hosts a number of research centres and institutes, including the University’s  Police Studies Institute (UPSI), now part of the University’s Crime & Security Research Institute; the Wales Institute for Economic Research & Data (WISERD); the Children's Social Care Research and Development Centre (CASCADE); the Centre for Development, Evaluation, Complexity and Implementation in Public Health Improvement (DECIPHer); the Cardiff Unit for Research and Evaluation in Medical and Dental Education (CUREMeDE); and the Seafarers’ International Research Centre (SIRC). Many of the School’s research centres are housed in the University’s Social Science Research Park (SPARK) – a world first, and part of the University’s wider Innovation Campus.

The School of Social Sciences holds an Athena SWAN Bronze Award that recognises good employment practice and a commitment to develop the careers of women working in academia. Cardiff University is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status, or pregnancy and maternity. We actively encourage women to apply. We will also always consider proposals for flexible working or job share opportunities.

Job Category

Admin / Clerical