Senior Admissions Officer (9-Months Maternity Cover)

The Graduate Admissions team is responsible for all admissions to UCL’s graduate taught, research and affiliate programmes. It handles approximately 97,000 applications per cycle and is responsible for admitting approximately 18,500 students in each academic year. The Admissions function is critical in ensuring that UCL secures the desired number of students to meet UCL’s aspirations in terms of securing and maintaining a well-qualified, balanced student body and associated tuition fee income.

We are seeking an experienced admissions professional to join UCL’s central Admissions team as a Senior Admissions Officer. The team is responsible for managing applications to a diverse portfolio of postgraduate programmes and plays a key role in ensuring a high-quality, efficient and applicant-focused admissions service.

In this role, you will lead on a range of postgraduate admissions activities, combining operational expertise with people management responsibilities. You will oversee a team of admissions staff, support the delivery of admissions processes and work closely with academic colleagues to agree and implement selection criteria. You will assess applications and make admissions decisions against agreed entry requirements, ensuring decisions are fair, consistent and aligned with UCL policy.

The role also involves advising on complex admissions matters, including fee status assessments and immigration-related requirements. You will prepare and review documentation to support applicants requiring sponsorship under the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) Student route, helping to ensure compliance while delivering an excellent applicant experience.

This position is offered as maternity cover until 16th May 2027, or until the return of the substantive postholder, whichever is sooner. The role is offered on a hybrid working basis with a minimum onsite criteria of 1-day per week (subject to change) in our Kings Cross office. This role does not meet the requirements for a Skilled Worker visa certificate of sponsorship under UK Visas and Immigration legislation. UCL will not be able to sponsor individuals who require a right to work in the UK.

We are seeking a highly capable and experienced admissions professional who combines strong operational expertise with confident team leadership in a high-volume, service-driven environment. You will bring proven experience of working within Higher Education admissions, ideally within a postgraduate context, alongside experience of operating in a high-volume, data-driven and customer-focused administrative environment. Experience of staff supervision or line management is also essential, including supporting team performance, workload allocation and delivery against service standards.

You will be able to lead, motivate and manage a team effectively, fostering a culture of accuracy, collaboration and service excellence. Strong organisational skills are essential, with the ability to prioritise competing demands, manage a varied workload and remain calm under pressure while consistently meeting deadlines and service standards.

You will have excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with the ability to engage effectively, tactfully and diplomatically with a wide range of stakeholders. You will be able to produce clear, accurate and well-structured written communications tailored to different audiences.

Additionally, you will demonstrate the ability to understand, interpret and consistently apply policies, procedures and regulatory frameworks, exercising sound judgement when assessing applications against agreed criteria. You will be confident working with and interpreting numerical data, including fee status and admissions-related information.

What we offer:

• 41 days’ holiday (27 days annual leave, 8 bank holidays, 6 closure days)
• Option to purchase 5 additional days’ annual leave
• Defined benefit career average revalued earnings pension scheme (CARE)
• Cycle to work scheme, season ticket loan, and immigration loan
• Relocation support for eligible posts
• On-site nursery and gym
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, and adoption pay
• Staff Support Service (employee assistance programme)

As London’s Global University, we know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. We particularly encourage applications from candidates underrepresented in UCL’s workforce, including those from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds, disabled people, and – for Grade 9 and 10 roles – women.