Department

PSD Chemistry: Administrative Staff

About the Department

One of the first departments founded at the University of Chicago was the Department of Chemistry.
Since its inception, the Department of Chemistry has embodied the University's central mission of excellence in both research and teaching. The University of Chicago has been the recipient of more than 73 Nobel Prize recipients, 15 of which came from the Department of Chemistry. Our current faculty has considerable strength in inorganic, organic, and physical chemistry, as well as in interdisciplinary research that delves into biology, physics, and materials science.

The Department is a community of over 500, including faculty, students, postdoctoral scholars and staff. Our academic support group operates the graduate and undergraduate educational programs for the department, including 60 undergraduate Chemistry majors and nearly 300 graduate students. Close student-faculty interactions have been a hallmark of our department for over a century. These have fostered a unique intellectual environment that both ensures superb graduate education and continues to produce important and exciting scientific discoveries.

Job Summary

The Program Administrator supports achievement of Chemistry’s scientific and educational goals by providing administrative assistance, project management and program planning in service to faculty, students, and staff. The Administrator provides project management and operational leadership with special focus on seminar programs, academic programs/events, and administrative processes. The role requires the effective management of project scope, budget, and timelines. The position serves under the guidance of the undergraduate program chair and the direct supervision of the department manager.

Responsibilities

• Serves as process owner and principal coordinator for seminars (recurring program and named lecture series), and other conferences and workshops hosted by the department.

• Provides staff support to the department seminar committee and manages overall seminar calendar and event publicity.

• Coordinates logistics and itinerary for speakers and special guests, including but not limited to delivering invitations, and arranging accommodations, travel, reimbursements. Represents the department as a point of contact with external speakers and guests.

• Manages facility scheduling for all seminar-related events and ensures all room requirements are satisfied, including but not limited to, ensuring audio-visual equipment supports issue-free presentations.

• Provides planning and support for academic operational processes and programs including, but not limited to, quarterly undergraduate meetings, Spring convocation reception, Honor’s Thesis process, department award events, and student recruiting.  

• Serves as the department’s principal facility scheduler in collaboration with the Registrar’s office, department administration and building managers, to secure space reservations for classes and department programs/events.   

• Coordinates logistics and itinerary prospective student visits, and student academic milestone events.

• Serves as a resource to organize logistics for special events (e.g. space reservation, communications, vendor management, catering orders, set-up, and clean-up).

• Maintains undergraduate electronic distribution lists (listservs) and laboratory assignment listings.

• Provides planning and support for undergraduate research outreach programs.

• Gathers and analyzes data concerning program performance and writes reports. Develops and monitors program budgets.

• Serves as back-up support for the Student Services Administrator and other administrative staff as needed.

• Responsible for processing and tracking financial transactions such as GEMS expense reports, reimbursements and paying departmental invoices to vendors (using GEMS card, ePayments).

• Responsible for office management to include ordering and troubleshooting office equipment and maintaining office supplies.

• Provides administrative support for department. Stays informed of activities relating to programs and initiatives, apprising the leader of issues when deemed necessary. Coordinates information flow from leader's office

• Provides office coverage including receiving and guiding visitors, vendors, students, faculty, and staff upon arrival in the administrative office suite.

• Coordinates special projects. Prepares write ups for recommendations for operational and administrative problems. Manages a portion of the leader's budget, monitoring, and reconciling accounts. Prepares financial and/or administrative reports.

• Supports the delivery of services to program participants and/or beneficiaries.

• May interact with faculty, researchers and staff for committee work or information.

• Performs other related work as needed.

Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include vocational training, apprenticeships or the equivalent experience in related field (not typically required to have a four-year degree).

Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 5-7 years of work experience in a related job discipline.

Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Education:        

• Bachelor’s degree in a science or business discipline.

Experience:       

• Experience in a STEM related field or area.

Technical Knowledge or Skills:

• Considerable knowledge of standard office practices and procedures.
• Computer and technical proficiency.

Preferred Competencies

• Excellent communication and organizational skills.
• Ability to interact with staff, faculty and students with tact and courtesy.
• Able to categorize and prioritize work activities.
• Able to develop and implement solutions to varied problems.
• Complete numerous activities in a multi-task environment.
• Effectively communicate in both written and verbal format.
• Able to use a personal computer and standard software packages.
• Able to maintain confidentiality.

Application Documents:

• Resume (required)
• Cover Letter (required)

Job Family

Administration & Management

Role Impact

Individual Contributor

Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5

Drug Test Required

No

Health Screen Required

No

Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No

Pay Rate Type

Hourly

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FLSA Status

Non-Exempt

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Pay Range

$29.23 - $35.91

The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting.

Benefits Eligible

Yes

The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.

Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

 

Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

 

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history.  A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment.  Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

 

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