Undergraduate Advisor

Job title: Undergraduate Advisor

Job description: Overview

The Undergraduate Program Advisor is responsible for management and delivery of services designed to enhance, promote, and advance Physics and Astronomy’s undergraduate programs. The scope of the position encompasses managing the administration of the Physics & Astronomy undergraduate program, managing the advising program for Physics undergraduate students, course scheduling, and supporting student events, wellness, and engagement initiatives.

Responsibilities

Program Administration

• Manages a portfolio of student-related functions from orientation to graduation and develops critical administrative systems and processes, updating, refining and streamlining as necessary
• Manages the implementation of departmental and faculty databases
• Central resource for a wide range of UG information pertaining to programs, requirements and university systems and policies
• Ensures continuity when transitioning academic administrators through effective record keeping, training and mentoring
• Advises Curriculum committee on planning and implementing changes to Physics degree requirements and course offerings; Prepares submissions for Science Undergraduate Advisory Council
• Monitors, evaluates, and communicates departmental data; Works with Science Undergraduate Office to provide statistical reporting
• Monitors deadlines and ensures participation in programs, workshops and competitions
• Develops and executes strategies for promoting courses with low enrollment
• Develops and maintains content for undergraduate web pages

Student Support & Advising

• Serves as a first point of contact and resource for undergraduate students in Physics plans
• Establishes a reputation as a trusted advisor among students
• Manages and develops systems for receiving and answering all departmental advising inquiries promptly
• Manages advising calendars and systems for the Undergraduate Officer and departmental advisors
• Ensures regular training and best practices are up to date and provides training and development to other Physics undergraduate advisors
• Provides confidential advising and assists students in resolving routine problems, schedules meetings for non-routine problems with appropriate plan specialists
• Advises students on plan requirements, strategies for completion, co-op sequencing and policies
• Advises and provides solutions to course scheduling and exam conflicts
• Processes undergraduate forms for students and provides assistance with Quest and LEARN
• Assists students in crisis; issues range from academic concerns to personal difficulties. Immediate action may be required to connect students with university resources or provide practical assistance

Scheduling

• Departmental Calendar representative; updates ACMS
• Independently develops a well distributed course offerings draft and provides recommendations regarding faculty and adjunct teaching assignments
• Collects and summarizes department teaching constrains for the Associate Chair’s approval
• Monitors schedule through the registration process and tracks enrolment numbers to identify potential conflicts, low enrolment classes, and resolve problems
• Inputs schedule, constraints and course combinations into the DCU; Notifies scheduling office of changes
• Create listings of all courses and faculty teaching for the academic year
• Ensures midterm and exam timeslots are current, complete and conflict free on SCI exams outlook calendar

Student Wellness

• Promotes community awareness by ensuing students have access to, knowledge of all wellness supports and services available, on and off campus
• Act as a resource to faculty in their efforts to understand student experience
• In consultation with campus partners, initiate and coordinate workshops to improve student wellbeing
• Collaborate with advisors and faculty to identify and help students in need of counselling and guide those students to appropriate resources
• Work with campus partners to develop a strategic framework to respond to specific factors that affect student wellbeing, success, and engagement, as well as emerging issues or problems within the department
• Keep current on trends, issues, and approaches to proactively promote student wellness

Student Events and Engagement Support * Manages students related event by developing itineraries and schedules, arranging travel logistics, and catering, creating promotional materials, and managing registration processes

• Provides direction and support for undergraduate social clubs; maintains active communication with students and groups using a wide range of communication tools
• Recruit volunteers for events, peer mentorship programs and student representation
• Responds to a wide range of enquiries from prospective students and alumni

General Departmental Support

• Books internal rooms for faculty members and students
• Monitors teaching supply cabinet stock
• Collects and stores course exams/midterms, arrange for shredding as per retention standards
• Provides assistance to other administrative staff, as needed
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications

• Undergraduate degree or equivalent combination of experience and education

Experience in an academic environment, including sound working knowledge of UW policies and procedures as they relate to undergraduate students is strongly preferred * 3+ years of experience advising students is required

• Experience scheduling courses in a large department
• Experience with event planning
• Must possess excellent organizational, analytical, and problem-solving abilities
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities with a high level of initiative, flexibility, accuracy, and detail with minimum supervision
• Ability to execute duties to completion with tight and often conflicting deadlines
• High degree of initiative in finding solutions to problems when roadblocks are met
• Ability to extract information through electronic resources and to collate data for scheduling and administration purposes
• Ability to manage and handle confidential and sensitive information
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office and Adobe
• Advanced knowledge of the DCU and Quest
• Intermediate knowledge of WCMS, e-valuate preferred

Equity Statement

The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is co-ordinated within the .

The University values the diverse and intersectional identities of its students, faculty, and staff. The University regards equity and diversity as an integral part of academic excellence and is committed to accessibility for all employees. The University of Waterloo seeks applicants who embrace our values of equity, anti-racism and inclusion. As such, we encourage applications from candidates who have been historically disadvantaged and marginalized, including applicants who identify as First Nations, Métis and/or Inuk (Inuit), Black, racialized, a person with a disability, women and/or 2SLGBTQ+.

All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

The University of Waterloo is committed to accessibility for persons with disabilities. If you have any application, interview, or workplace accommodation requests, please contact Human Resources at or 519-888-4567, ext. 45935.

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