Administrative Specialist: Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering - UTK

The position serves as the administrative assistant to the Department Head and assists the faculty in administrative matters of the department. The graduate students rely on this staff member to be there to help them with every aspect of their time in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. This position is also cross-trained with the other staff members in the office as a backup for various tasks.

• Maintain Department Head’s calendar (MicroSoft Outlook software), receive email of events for Department Head to attend, ensuring alignment with departmental priorities and upcoming events. Proactively track deadlines, meetings, and commitments, providing timely reminders and updates
• Provide day-to-day administrative support to the Department Head, Associate Department Head and Business Manager
• Schedule Board of Advisors, Mid Cycle Review, Trotter Distinguished Lecturer Series; work with other staff members to contact venue and set up the location, order food/beverages
• Create materials for meetings (folders and binders containing all material needed for meeting)
• Review and respond to departmental emails weekly on various questions, forward emails that require another department’s attention
• Provide minimal administrative support to faculty, research professors and research staff (post docs/associates)
• Create and maintain search files for faculty searches, maintain excel spreadsheet on applicant information, assist search committee chair
• Attend faculty meetings; take and archive minutes
• Assist in scheduling departmental conference room through 25Live calendaring system
• Assist in sorting mail for the department, route mail to proper location
• Notify faculty of upcoming meeting dates/times; send meeting invites to faculty
• Maintain and provide materials for ABET report
• Organization of annual review materials for faculty, schedule individual reviews, Faculty Review System Proxy for Department Head, word processing support for promotion/tenure packages
• Provide statistical information to Business Manager for surveys: student counts, gender, etc.
• Work with faculty to determine seminar speakers each semester
• Interface with the Office of Communications to spotlight the research accomplishments of the faculty. Assist in the drafting and execution of both external and internal communications regarding scholarly accomplishments by faculty
• Update current faculty, staff and student photos for posting
• Point person for department Compliance Assist
• Place textbook orders through VolShop Faculty Textbook Adoption system
• Coordinate monthly research poster presentations with Knoxville/Oak Ridge AIChE chapter
• Departmental contact with TCOE communication office for projects such as, CBE annual newsletter, update departmental brochures, and graduate recruiting booklet
• Provide oversight and direction to office work study students
• Schedule prospective student meetings/tours of the department
• Maintain all Graduate Student Files (file all graduate forms for current Graduate students; Admission to Candidacy, Doctoral Appointment form, pulls and files folders when professors request them)
• Process Graduate Applications for the Department
• Correspond with graduate applicants to assist them in completing submission of documents
• Prepare and e-mail all offer letters to graduate students
• Forward signed offer of admission letters to Graduate Admissions, and CBE Business Manager
• Use CollegeNet system to print off graduate applications packages including transcripts, GRE scores, TOEFL scores, and any other information that the Graduate School receives
• Maintain Graduate Students Access database
• Sign up GTA’s requiring OPIC testing on UT website
• Coordinate Graduate recruiting weekend agenda; along with any other graduate recruiting visits
• Department representative for Graduate School Recruiting Group
• Save TNVoice reports in the share drive for department head and faculty
• Assist students with registration issues
• Provide administrative support for PhD qualifying exam and oral portion of the exam
• Provide administrative support for graduate teaching assistantship assignments
• Enroll GTAs in workshop training
• Submit dissertations into iThenticate, provide report to advisor
• Ensure that any tasks that are assigned to this position are carried out efficiently and within the guidelines and fiscal policies of the university
• Other duties as required

Required Qualifications

• Education and Experience:
• High school diploma/GED and 3-4 years of experience, or associate’s degree and 2 years of experience
• Experience working in and administering an office utilizing MS Word and a computer-based storage system;
• Experience working in office setting with direct responsibility to supervisor who has multiple responsibilities in a demanding environment, and working with a variety of constituencies while engaging in a variety of tasks with deadlines and time pressures;
• Experience working within a setting controlled by policies and procedures established by a larger organization.
• Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:
• MS Office with mastery of Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Outlook, Adobe, One Drive, video-capture software, and upload and download software
• Use of standard office equipment
• An understanding of the expectations of those working in professional work environment and of standards for professional oral and written communication
• Knowledge of web-based search engines
• Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Attention to detail and ability to produce high-quality, error-free work.
• Strong interpersonal skills, with the ability to interact effectively with faculty, staff and students.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and exercise discretion in all matters.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneDrive) and all standard office equipment, including telephone, copier, fax, and video-conferencing equipment.
• Ability to interact with all kinds of people in a professional and courteous manner; to analyze and solve common problems
• Attention to detail, dependability, punctuality, ability to follow instructions, to keep supervisors informed of progress, and seek assistance as needed.
• Ability to self-start and self-motivate, work in a support role, supervise student workers, stay on task, work in high-pressure situations, maintain productivity when working in a highly trafficked work setting, and work in a professional setting.

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis without need now or in the future for sponsorship for employment visa status.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience:
• Preferred 2 years’ experience working in higher education/office setting.
• Experience with long-term scheduling and communications is highly desirable.
• Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:
• Prior work history at a comprehensive research university
• Working knowledge of Banner, Slate, Argos, OnBase, Microsoft Office Suite or equivalent software.

Work Location

• Onsite, at Dougherty Engineering, UTK Campus (Knoxville)

Compensation and Benefits

• UT market range: MR05
• Anticipated hiring range: $45,000 - $49,000
• Find more information on the UT Market Range structure here
• Find more information on UT Benefits here

Application Instructions

To express interest, please submit an application with the noted below attachments.

• Resume
• Cover Letter

About The Department

The Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering leads research for both traditional chemical and energy industries as well as new areas of application and innovation, such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, advanced materials, and sustainable energy.

Our primary mission is to educate future leaders and innovators through the creation of fundamental knowledge and technologies in the chemical and biomolecular sciences and engineering. We prioritize fostering creativity, nurturing and recognizing excellence, and promoting a collegial and cohesive research and educational environment while emphasizing the value of access and engagement.