Senior Administrative Associate - Research Administrator, McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering

Job Posting Title:

Senior Administrative Associate - Research Administrator, McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering

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Hiring Department:

Cockrell School of Engineering

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Position Open To:

All Applicants

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Weekly Scheduled Hours:

40

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FLSA Status:

Non-Exempt

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Earliest Start Date:

Immediately

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Position Duration:

Expected to Continue

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Location:

UT MAIN CAMPUS

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Job Details:

Purpose

This position is responsible for providing administrative support to the three research groups within the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering.

Job Details

The McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering’s undergraduate and graduate programs are both top-10 ranked programs in the nation according to U.S. News & World Report. The department leads pioneering research and education in vital areas such as energy and the environment, human health, materials and manufacturing. Our faculty includes 12 members of the National Academy of Engineering and two National Medal of Technology and Innovation recipients. Our students go on to transform industries, benefit society and improve quality of life.

Position can be filled at less than 40 hours based on discussion with hiring managers and mutual need. Part-time employment may effect benefits. Published salary is based on a full-time, 40 hour per week schedule and will be prorated if position is filled on a part-time basis.

This position is eligible for a Flexible Work Arrangement  which may include remote work, adjusted working hours, or a combination of these.

Responsibilities

• Pre-Award Support: Assist Principal Investigators (PIs) and research group members with funding proposal preparation and submission including budgets, justifications, bio-sketches, and other necessary forms to ensure all requirements of the funding agency and the university are met. Navigate internal (UT RMS) and external sponsor (NSF, NIH, DOE, industry, foundations, etc.) proposal systems such as Research.gov.

• Post-Award Support: Assist with award set-up and fiscal management of awards, which may include grant budgeting, grant modifications (no-cost extensions, reallocations, etc.), annual reporting, and review of expenditures.  Assist PI with effort certification.  Monitor post award activities to ensure compliance for issues involving allowable costs, cost transfers, budget adjustments and reporting requirements. Work with Discovery to Impact office on non-disclosure requests (NDA) and sponsored research agreements (SRA). Assist with material transfer agreements (MTAs).

• Financial Management: Monitor discretionary and research account balances, reconcile all research grant accounts on a monthly basis. Process payments, reimbursements, Payee Information Forms (PIF), as well as other accounting documents as needed for group members and PIs.  Process requests for travel authorizations for PIs, research staff and students traveling on grant funding as well as travel reimbursements.

• Human Resources / Onboarding: Work with PIs to determine budget placement of graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, researchers, and handle HR assignments; work in conjunction with  Chemical Engineering administrative offices on HR related matters including submission of J1 / H1B visa requests. Assist new group members with onboarding activities. Review and approve timesheets.

• Other duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree plus one year of relevant experience at the Administrative Assistant or Administrative Associate level. Demonstrated tact, diplomacy, and discretion required in dealing with sensitive student issues. Professional demeanor, and ability to work well in a team or independently, and strong organizational skills.

Equivalent combination of relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.

Preferred Qualifications

Strong Excel and data tracking skills. Experience with website updates, marketing, event or conference planning, preparing budgets and tracking expenditures. Five or more years of research administration experience. Experience working with University systems including Workday, DEFINE, RMS, myIO, and FRMS. Experience in a research or higher education setting working closely with faculty and graduate students.

Salary Range

$60,000 - $65,000+ depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

• May work around standard office conditions

• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation

• Some weekend, evening and holiday work

Required Materials

• Resume/CV

• 3 Work References with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor

• Letter of Interest

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded.  Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left-hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled into your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.

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Employment Eligibility:

Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.

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Retirement Plan Eligibility:

The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

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Background Checks:

A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.

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Equal Opportunity Employer:

The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer , complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.

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Pay Transparency:

The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information.

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Employment Eligibility Verification:

If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form.  You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States.  Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment.  Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.

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E-Verify:

The University of Texas at Austin use E-Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires effective May 2015. The university’s company ID number for purposes of E-Verify is 854197. For more information about E-Verify, please see the following:

• E-Verify Poster (English) [PDF]
• E-Verify Poster (Spanish) [PDF]
• Right To Work Poster (English) [PDF]
• Right To Work Poster (Spanish) [PDF]

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Compliance:

Employees may be required to report violations of law under Title IX and the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). If this position is identified a Campus Security Authority (Clery Act), you will be notified and provided resources for reporting. Responsible employees under Title IX are defined and outlined in HOP-3031 .

The Clery Act requires all prospective employees be notified of the availability of the Annual Security and Fire Safety report. You may access the most recent report here or obtain a copy at University Compliance Services, 1616 Guadalupe Street, UTA 2.206, Austin, Texas 78701.