Administrative Assistant

• Job Type: Support Staff - Union
• Bargaining Unit: Local 2110
• Regular/Temporary: Regular
• End Date if Temporary:
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Salary Range: Commensurate with experience

Position Summary

Reporting to the Associate Director of Administrative Operations, the Administrative Assistant provides administrative support across several areas in the School, including the Office of Student Affairs (including the Dissertation Office), and the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Responsibilities include performing data entry and data analysis, preparing reports, drafting email correspondence on behalf of the Student Affairs and the Dean’s Office, and organizing tasks and maintaining records in GSAS’s project management platform (Asana). The incumbent will have specific oversight of projects assigned on a cyclical basis in sync with the academic calendar: distributing ID cards, processing forms, preparing reports and surveys, organizing application materials, handling various aspects of event planning. The administrative assistant will provide primary backup support to front desk operations in both the Office of the Dean and the Office of Student Affairs.

Responsibilities

Operational support (40%)

• Provides primary, daily back-up to front desk operations in 107 Low, which supports Offices of Student Affairs, Admissions, Financial Aid, Academic Diversity, and Compass (Career Development); assesses and interprets individual student needs to make appropriate referrals; makes competent, informed determinations and judgments on a range of GSAS-specific inquiries, as well as confidential and/or sensitive issues;
• Provides regular administrative assistance to the Office of the Dean as the primary back-up to the Associate Director of Administrative Operations;  
• Receives and directs emails, phone calls and walk-in inquiries; provides information to current and prospective students, as well as Facilities, Public Safety, and other university support offices;
• Assists in the training of Federal Student Workers (4-6); assists the associate director of administrative operations with the hiring, onboarding, and scheduling of the Federal Work Study program; supervises the work study students and manages assignments; 
• Assists the Associate Director of Administrative Operations in administrative details of searches, search procedures, training, and onboarding new employees; 
• Seeks team-building opportunities for the advancement of GSAS staff and the office community; 
• Organizes internal and external communications, administrative contacts, and databases; 

Office of Student Affairs support (25%)

• Has oversight of projects assigned on a cyclical basis in sync with the academic calendar: distributing ID cards to all new PhD and MA students; processing forms; preparing reports and surveys;
• Is assigned Advanced Excel work, i.e. VLOOKUP, organizing, manipulating, and verifying data;
• Uses SSOL and SIS to verify student information and contributes confidential student information to various projects;
• Provides ad-hoc support for units within the offices of Academic and Student affairs in areas of academic records, academic programs, student life, dissertations, academic diversity and inclusion, and alumni relations;
• Responds to emails from GSAS student affairs in-box;
• Assists in small research assignments assigned by the Associate Dean of Academic and Student Affairs;
• Assists in on-going data retention and archival projects;

GSAS Dissertation Office support (20%)

• Data entry (updating academic advisor data) in university’s Student Information Systems and the Graduate School’s student record database (CRM) and updating student records as needed; 
•  Prepares the dissertation defense packet; Monitors all dissertation defense committee materials  
•  Reviews deposits of the doctoral dissertation: shepherds each dissertation through formal electronic deposit for PhD, DMA, JSD, and EngScD degree candidates

GSAS programming and events: operational support (10%)

• Provides additional support as needed for GSAS events, programs, and meetings held throughout the year for Office of Student Affairs and the Office of the Dean; (such as faculty committee meetings, events for students, Orientation and Convocation);
• Event support preparation includes, but is not limited to: outreach and confirmation of participants and guests; signage and printed materials; registrations; collecting materials (digital slides, handouts, bios); organizing materials for committees (applications, rank lists); also assigned day-of duties.

Other tasks as assigned (5%)

Minimum Qualifications

• High School diploma or its equivalent required. Minimum of three years' related experience required.  

• Excellent oral and written communication skills required as well as excellent organizational and computer skills. Demonstrated ability to manage projects independently with competing deadlines. Strong interpersonal skills and ability to interact well with faculty, staff and students essential. Must be able to maintain confidentiality, be customer-service oriented, and use tact and discretion. Ability to prioritize, multitask and proofread essential. Willingness and ability to learn new applications as needed.  

Preferred Qualifications

Other Requirements

• Interested individuals must supply a resume and cover letter to be considered an applicant. 

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.