Senior Writer/Editor

Job Posting Title:

Senior Writer/Editor

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Hiring Department:

Education - Office of the Dean

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Position Open To:

All Applicants

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Weekly Scheduled Hours:

40

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FLSA Status:

Exempt

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Earliest Start Date:

Mar 18, 2024

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Position Duration:

Expected to Continue

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Location:

UT MAIN CAMPUS

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Job Details:

General Notes

The university provides employees a competitive benefits package that includes health insurance (premiums covered 100% for full-time benefits-eligible employees), retirement plans, and paid leave, in addition to other programs and services. Additional information is available at https://hr.utexas.edu/prospective/benefits.

Purpose

We are seeking a talented and experienced individual to join the Marketing and Communications team in the College of Education team as a Senior Writer/Editor. The selected individual should have a strong background in editorial content creation for colleges/universities, speech writing and storytelling for a wide range of audiences within higher education, non-profit or similar organization. In collaboration with the MarCom team and COE stakeholders, the Senior Writer/Editor will be responsible for developing and executing editorial content strategy, overseeing the creation of high-quality written and visual content, crafting impactful speeches and managing writers and content creators. This role will be critical in sharing the voice of the dean, in shaping the college’s brand voice, engaging our target audiences and creating compelling narratives that resonate with our stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Editorial: Develop an effective editorial and content strategy aligned with the college’s brand objectives and target audiences. With the Director and creative team, develop a distribution plan for content across all relevant channels, including social media platforms, email newsletters, digital magazines and other online platforms. Oversee the editorial content process, including researching and assigning topics, establishing editorial deadlines and ensuring adherence to style guidelines and brand voice.

• Content Creation: Conceptualize, research, write and edit engaging content across various channels and for a wide range of the college’s and the dean’s initiatives (e.g., blog articles, website copy, social media posts, whitepapers and more). Utilize storytelling techniques to develop compelling academic, research and related narratives that effectively communicate the college’s message, vision and values.

• Thought-Leadership Writing: Craft persuasive and impactful speeches, op-eds and other content for the dean (and leadership team as needed), ensuring clarity of voice and mission alignment. Utilize experience in writing for academic journals or magazines to bring a research-oriented approach and credibility to content creation efforts.

• Content Optimization: Collaborate with the MarCom team to analyze, evaluate and optimize content for search engines, web and social, ensuring maximum visibility and organic reach. Work with the Sr Web Developer to monitor content performance metrics, such as engagement, traffic and conversion rates, and use insights to refine content strategy and improve future content creation efforts. Stay abreast of industry trends, best practices and emerging content formats in higher education to drive innovation and maintain a competitive edge in content creation, speech writing and storytelling in the field.

Required Qualifications

• A bachelor’s degree in journalism, English, communications, marketing or a closely related field.

• At least 3 years of experience in content creation, including speech writing, grant writing or storytelling in an editorial or academic writing role. Prior experience in managing a publication is desirable.

• Academic Writing Experience: Proven experience in writing in within a higher education, non-profit or similar environment, preferably with academic journals or magazines, showcasing the ability to translate complex ideas into accessible content for diverse audiences. Writing samples are required.

• Writing Skills: Demonstrated ability to write engaging and persuasive content. Strong storytelling skills and experience in crafting impactful speeches are essential. Writing samples are required.

• Creative Thinking: Strong creative thinking and problem-solving skills to develop innovative content ideas and compelling narratives that resonate with the target audience.

Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s or PhD in a field related to Journalism, English, Communications, Marketing or Education.

• 5+ years of experience in editorial management, speech writing, storytelling or content strategy in an academic or non-profit environment.

• Project Management: Proven ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously, set priorities, meet deadlines, and adapt to changing requirements in a fast-paced environment.

• Team Collaboration: Excellent interpersonal and communication skills to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, content creators and stakeholders.

• Attention to Detail: Meticulous attention to detail to ensure accuracy, consistency and adherence to brand guidelines in all content deliverables.

• Tech Savvy: Proficiency in content management systems (CMS), social media platforms and analytics tools. Basic knowledge of HTML and image editing software is a plus.

Salary Range

$65,000 + depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

• Typical working environment.

• May work around standard office conditions.

• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation.

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 in to 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.