About UMass Amherst
UMass Amherst, the Commonwealth's flagship campus, is a nationally ranked public research university offering a full range of undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University sits on nearly 1,450-acres in the scenic Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts, and offers a rich cultural environment in a bucolic setting close to major urban centers. In addition, the University is part of the Five Colleges (including Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, and Smith College), which adds to the intellectual energy of the region.
Job Summary
Provides administrative support for the College of Information & Computer Sciences' (CICS) Advising Center. This position supports the Associate Dean of Student Affairs, the Director of Academic Advising, the Director of Career & Student Development, and other advising staff. The Coordinator is the first point of contact for people who call or visit the building's main office.
Essential Functions
- Evaluates student inquiries and triages requests to determine urgency and the best person to assist them. Answers basic questions regarding academic policies and procedures. Directs students to online resources or peer advisors when appropriate. Assists students in scheduling advising appointments with professional advisors using the University's electronic system. Assembles student files and data for each advising appointment that is scheduled.
- Creates, maintains, and updates thousands of student files. Works to convert paper files to electronic files whenever possible. Adds notes to paper or electronic files as needed to document meetings, academic progress, or discipline.
- Serves as the coordinator for the building's main office. Responds to in person, phone, or email inquiries and requests from faculty/staff/students/visitors. Directs people to the appropriate person or location. Hires, trains, and supervises student workers; ensures they complete their daily checklist and communicates any performance concerns to the College's Human Resources team. Completes all student checklist items in the absence of student workers. Performs general clerical duties such as photocopying and booking meeting rooms. Manages mail and packages delivered to the building's main office as necessary. Ensures the advising center and adjacent kitchen and mailroom are kept organized and presentable. Reports any building maintenance issues to the College's building coordinator.
- Manages petition submissions, submitted via an online form, for review by the Associate Dean of Students Affairs and/or the Director of Academic Advising and Student Success. Includes verifying form data and qualifications and managing all associated communications and processing in SPIRE.
- Helps coordinate student recruitment activities such as open houses and prospective student information sessions. Helps administratively with career development events such as career fairs as needed.
- Drafts emails, memos, or other correspondence to students on behalf of the Associate Dean or Directors (e.g., notifications that they will be placed on academic discipline).
- Helps administratively with New Student Orientation; prepares necessary paperwork and schedules counseling sessions for incoming first year and transfer students.
- Uses Spire to run queries for various categories of academic discipline and advising. Provides findings to the professional advisors so they can follow up with these students.
- Creates and updates forms for use by the academic advisors. Looks for ways to streamline administrative processes in the office to save time and create a better experience for our students.
Other Functions
- Performs related duties as assigned or required to meet Department, College, or University goals and objectives.
- Understands responsibilities with respect to conflicts of interest and behaves in ways consistent both with law and with University policy.
- Contributes toward creating a positive and respectful workplace defined by personal and professional competence, integrity, and collaboration.
- Understands and contributes to implementation of departmental and institutional goals for achieving non-discrimination and creating a respectful, inclusive environment that is supportive of diversity.
- Uses access to sensitive and/or not yet public university related information only in the performance of the responsibilities of position and exercises care to prevent unnecessary disclosure to others.
Minimum Qualifications (Knowledge, Skills, Abilities, Education, Experience, Certifications, Licensure)
- High school diploma or equivalent and a minimum of one (1) year of experience providing high quality customer service in an office setting.
- Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to interact effectively, and create and maintain harmonious relationships with a diverse population of staff, faculty, students, and off-campus constituents. Ability and willingness to work empathetically with a diverse student population and contribute to their success.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills. Ability to write concisely, express thoughts clearly, and develop ideas in a logical sequence.
- Independent initiative. Must have the ability to stay on task and work productively with a minimum amount of supervision or guidance.
- Willingness to take on a variety of tasks related to the successful operation of the academic and career advising programs. The ability to adapt and work effectively as the College and advising team grows.
- Strong organizational skills and attention to detail with the ability to complete assignments in a timely manner, balancing the demands of concurrent and potentially competing projects.
- Ability to exercise sound judgment and maintain confidentiality. The ability to think through problems, organize and seek out data/information, identify key factors and underlying causes, and generate solutions.
- Strong computer skills including at least intermediate expertise with:
- Email.
- Calendar systems such as Outlook or Google.
- Word processing software such as Microsoft Word or Google Docs.
- Spreadsheets such as Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.
- Databases such as Microsoft Access or FileMaker.
Physical Demands/Working Conditions
Typical office environment.
Work Schedule
- Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 5:00pm.
- May be required to work some nights and weekends.
Salary Information
Grade 13
Special Instructions to Applicants
Please complete online application, submit a cover letter, resume and provide contact information for three (3) professional references to ensure consideration.
To apply, please follow this link: https://careers.umass.edu/amherst/en-us/job/520236/clerk-iv-advising-center-coordinator
UMass Amherst is committed to a policy of equal opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, caste, creed, sex, age, marital status, national origin, disability, political belief or affiliation, pregnancy and pregnancy-related condition(s), veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, genetic information, natural and protective hairstyle and any other class of individuals protected from discrimination in employment, admission to and participation in academic programs, activities, and services, and the selection of vendors who provide services or products to the University. To fulfill that policy, UMass Amherst is further committed to a program of affirmative action to eliminate or mitigate artificial barriers and to increase opportunities for the recruitment and advancement of qualified minorities, women, persons with disabilities, and covered veterans. It is the policy of UMass Amherst to comply with the applicable federal and state statutes, rules, and regulations concerning equal opportunity and affirmative action.
