Senior Administrator - School of Biosciences - 107673 - Grade 5 in Birmingham

Job Description

School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK.

• Position Details
• Grade: 5
• Full time, Fixed Term contract up to November 2028.
• Closing date: 23rd July 2026.
• Salary: £30,062 to £31,900 per annum, with potential progression to £35,883.
• Our Offer to You

We offer a generous benefits package including 40 days paid holiday per year, one paid day for volunteering, occupational sick pay, a pension scheme and three high‑quality subsidised day nurseries.

Flexible working arrangements are available.

Background

The NIHR Health Protection Research Unit in Public Health Genomics focuses on robust sequencing methods to respond to future epidemics and Gates Foundation Project Cholera Persistence.

This senior administrator role supports both projects, advancing our professional services provision and providing expertise to academic partners.

Role Summary

As a senior administrator within a team/department, you will provide support for a broad range of administrative duties, some of which may be complex.

You may also have supervisory responsibilities and the opportunity to work across departments.

Main Duties

• Handle complex queries and procedures, providing advice and independent judgement.
• Resolve day‑to‑day complex queries without managerial referral.
• Line‑manage staff or coach team members as required.
• Maintain high‑profile stakeholder relationships and disseminate information.
• Organise events: booking venues, invitations, refreshments, liaising with speakers, and reporting.
• Manage small projects independently and conduct research and data sourcing.
• Use University systems and processes to analyse complex data and produce bespoke reports.
• Support operational process and system development and implementation.
• Process and monitor complex data (financial, HR, student, etc.) for accuracy.
• Provide specialist advice and training to colleagues.
• Provide secretarial support to relevant committees and meetings.
• Monitor budgets, process payments, authorise expenditure, and raise concerns.
• Procure goods and services through the University system.
• Update and write departmental communication content.
• Address health and safety, facilities, and HR tasks (absence, induction, leavers).
• Manage arrangements for international visitors, ensuring compliance.
• Treat everyone with dignity and respect in line with equality legislation.
• Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience
• Education to A Level standard or equivalent Level 3 qualification; relevant work experience evidencing ability.
• Minimum grade C/4 in Mathematics and English at GCSE or equivalent.
• Highly proficient IT skills, including complex electronic diaries, MS Office suite, and enterprise resource planning packages. Able to learn new IT tools swiftly.
• Strong planning and time‑management skills, able to anticipate requirements and manage concurrent tasks.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills for diverse audiences and deadlines.
• Strong interpersonal skills, inspiring confidence, and providing excellent customer service.
• Professionalism, tact, discretion, privacy in handling sensitive information.
• Initiative, judgement, flexibility, self‑motivation.
• Ability to work effectively within a large, complex organisation and understand university processes.
• Understanding of policy and procedures, and how to apply them.
• Commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, and ability to respond to related issues.
• Use of AI in Applications

We want to understand your genuine interest in the role; applications that rely heavily on AI tools may appear generic and lack the detail needed to assess your skills.

Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

Contact

Informal enquiries: Jonathon Sturdy, email: j. sturdy@bham. ac. uk.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Statement

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of University staff.

Diversity in all its forms strengthens our community.

We are committed to addressing barriers and hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter, and Disability Confident accreditations.

The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Centre continuously works to improve our university as a fair and inclusive place to work.

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