Postgraduate Programmes Team Leader

18039BR

School of Law and Politics

Managerial, Professional and Specialist Staff – MPSS

Advert

Postgraduate Programmes Team Leader
School of Law and Politics

We are looking to appoint a dynamic, reliable and self-motivated individual to be part of our Student Services Team.
As someone with experience of managing a team, ideally within a role in higher education, you will lead and manage the Postgraduate Student Services team of 3 staff, with responsibility on a day to day basis for ensuring the effective operation of all postgraduate academic programme administration (Masters and Research) undertaken within the School’s Student Services Team. You will work closely with the School’s academic teaching team and within a wider Student Services team in the School in a front facing role which supports postgraduate processes and provides a high quality service to the School’s postgraduate students. 

This is a full-time (35 hours), open-ended position. 

Salary: £32,332 - £34,980 per annum (Grade 5)

Date Advertised: 26 January 2024
Closing date: 18 February 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.  We therefore welcome applicants from all sections of the community regardless of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, or age.  We especially welcome and encourage applications from those from under-represented groups within the University workforce, such as those who identify as LGBT + BAME or those with disabilities. 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

Support the University within postgraduate academic programme administration (Masters and Research) for law and politics and international relations, carrying out supporting work, providing advice, guidance and support, and leading projects within this area.  You will work closely with the School’s academic teaching team and within a wider Student Services Team in the School in a front facing role which provides a high quality service to the School’s postgraduate taught and research students. 

Lead and manage the Postgraduate Student Services Team of three staff, with responsibility for ensuring the effective operation of all postgraduate academic programme administration (Masters and Research) for law and politics and international relations

Key Duties

• Provide professional advice and guidance on postgraduate taught and research programmes administrative processes and procedures to internal and external customers, using judgement and creativity to suggest the most appropriate course of action where appropriate, and ensuring complex and conceptual issues are understood. 
• Investigate and analyse specific issues within postgraduate taught and research programme administration, creating recommendation reports, supported by advances within the university’s procedures and regulations and external bodies, such as Research Funding Councils.
• Working with the Student Services Manager and Deputy Student Services Manager, ensure that the provision of services to the School’s postgraduate taught and research students is delivered, proactively changing the delivery according to customer requirements.
• Collaborate with others in order to make recommendations for developments of established processes and procedures.
• Manage the operation of the Postgraduate Student Services Team, planning, organising and delegating work, monitoring progress and intervening as required.
• Manage the performance, induction and development of the team.
• Support and guide team members in welfare issues, escalating as necessary to specialist support areas.
• Develop and deliver the training of others in areas relating to the team’s work.
• Establish working relationships with key contacts, developing appropriate communication links with the University’s Schools/Directorates and outside bodies as required.
• Create specific working groups from colleagues across the University to achieve school objectives.
• Supervise specific project teams on an occasional basis to accomplish key objectives.
• Undertake a variety of administrative duties to support the department.
• Instruct and guide other employees across the University within the areas of postgraduate taught and research administration as required.

• 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

The Person Specification is split into 2 sections: essential and desirable.  Please demonstrate clearly how you meet all of the essential criteria.  Where possible you should give examples of how, when and where you have used your experience, knowledge, specific skills and abilities to match those required for this particular job role.

Please ensure that you communicate this fully by creating a supporting statement document, listing all of the criteria and commenting against each one as to how you meet them.  This will need to be completed before you begin making your application on line as you will be required to upload it.  When uploading the supporting statement the document title needs to read “supporting statement and should also detail the post reference number ending in BR” (relevant to the job you are applying for).  The desirable section contains a list of skills, qualifications and experience that it would be beneficial for the jobholder to have.

All shortlisting decisions will be based initially on essential criteria, with desirable being used to further select or deselect candidates as appropriate.  We interview those candidates who are the closest match to the identified criteria.

Please note: shortlisting does not progress if any of the essential criteria is not evidenced as met

Essential Criteria 

Qualifications and Education
1.    Degree/NVQ 4 or equivalent Professional membership/experience.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience
2.    Substantial experience of supervising a team.
3.    Able to demonstrate professional knowledge within academic programme administration (or similar) to give advice and guidance to internal and external customers.
4.    Ability to set up standard office systems and procedures and make improvements as appropriate.

Customer Service, Communication and Team Working
5.    Ability to communicate conceptually detailed and complex information effectively and professionally with a wide range of people.
6.    Evidence of ability to explore customers’ needs and adapt the service accordingly to ensure a quality service is delivered.
7.    Experience of managing the work of others and of dealing with performance. 

Planning, Analysis and Problem solving
8.    Evidence of ability to solve expansive problems using initiative and creativity; identifying and proposing practical solutions and resolving problems with range of potential outcomes.
9.    Evidence of ability to work unsupervised to deadlines, planning and setting priorities for own work and that of the team, monitoring progress, and reacting to changes in workload and prioritisation.

Other
10.    A willingness to undertake further training and development

Desirable Criteria 
11.    Postgraduate/Professional qualification
12.    Experience of working in a Higher Education environment
13.    Fluency in Welsh, written and oral

Job Category

Admin / Clerical