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Career Engagement Specialist

  • Career Engagement
  • Staff Full-time

Position Title: Career Engagement Specialist

Department: Career Engagement

Advertised Pay: $19.99/hour

Campus Location: Washburn University

The screening committee will review all eligible applications submitted by November 29, 2024

Position Summary: Washburn University is a student-centered public institution with a diverse population. Washburn is a 2024 best college to work for, according to the Great Colleges to Work For® program. Located in the heart of Topeka, we are proud to be a cornerstone of the community. Our mission is to provide opportunities for our students to realize their full potential; we can’t do it without our dedicated faculty and staff. Join us at Washburn, and you will be part of a long tradition of excellence.

Washburn employs more than one thousand faculty and staff on our campuses throughout Topeka. We strive to offer competitive wages, an excellent benefits program, a supportive culture and a healthy work/life balance. Washburn seeks to create an environment that reflects our core values for creating positive IMPACT: inclusion, modernization, partnership, achievement, community and transformation.

The Career Engagement Specialist is the initial point of contact for students, employers, staff, and faculty interacting with the office of Career Engagement and is responsible for providing prompt, accurate, exemplary customer service to these diverse constituencies regarding recruitment, events, and procedures. This position requires a high level of service, effective communication skills, the ability to exercise sound judgement in a variety of situations, and exceptional organizational and administrative skills.

Essential Functions:
• Serve as the department's career management system (CMS) power user and administrator.
• Provide initial employer training and send documentation to employers seeking assistance with the CMS software.
• Assist students and employers with Career Engagement Software (Handshake) accounts and practices, referring to support as needed.
• Monitor the system and approving or declining new employer requests and job postings per department guidelines throughout the business day.
• Verify eligibility of alumni to use the program per department guidelines using the student information system's confidential records.
• Respond to employer inquiries regarding recruiting at Washburn University, including fairs, interview sessions, flyers/bulletin boards, and other campus recruiting options. Manage interview schedules for employers interviewing on campus.
• Collaborate with department staff to coordinate campus recruiting efforts and event coordination. Assist in coordination of fairs and other in-person and virtual recruiting events on campus and in Handshake.
• Arrange information tables for employers in collaboration with University Scheduling, including accepting requests, scheduling, tracking request dates, and corresponding with employers to provide campus information about parking and dining.
• Design forms, posters, and other graphics for social media and Handshake in collaboration with other staff to publicize events and facilitate registration by employers and participants.
• Provide event and meeting coordination. Organize and schedule meeting space, catering, registration, participant notification, prepare meeting materials, take meeting notes, and provide follow-up information.
• Schedule and contribute to the planning of staff meetings. Coordinate multiple advisory board meetings connected to career engagement on- and off-campus. Assist the director with planning the agenda and creating minutes.
• Enlist, coordinate, and schedule volunteers to assist with events.
• Serve as the receptionist greeting and assisting visitors or directing them to the appropriate staff member. Responsible for providing all administrative support for both departments and associated staff.
• Monitor, reconcile, and assist with fiscal administration. Process registration and vendor payments, invoices, and receipts. Record check and credit card payments. Make deposits according to university policy. Create payment, purchasing and travel vouchers. Submit appropriate forms and documentation with correct codes and signatures to initiate payments for purchases or to request refunds as required by university procedures.
• Create and maintain budget spreadsheet(s) to track transactions and assist with budget management. Periodically reconcile financial records with Finance staff to confirm data.
• Schedule appointments and maintain electronic calendars to facilitate scheduling. Schedule and check-in students seeking support according to unit policies and processes. Manage equity of student appointment load among staff.
• Look for ways to improve process development and implement steps to improve the workflow efficiency of the department (e.g., create flow charts, and databases).
• Assist with onboarding, training, and supervising student employees.
• Maintain department files for next-destination data in accordance with unit policies.
• Record and track information for reporting purposes, as requested by staff.
• Performs additional job-related duties as assigned or as appropriate.

Required Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree and work experience in higher education, administrative, recruitment or a closely related area, or an equivalent combination of post-secondary education and work experience in higher education, administrative, or recruitment.
• Proven ability to provide effective customer service and communicate effectively in various formats.
• Demonstrated proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook).
• Proven ability to create and maintain financial records and reports.
• Ability to work effectively independently and in teams.

Physical Requirements:
• May be required to move or maneuver materials weighing as much as 50 pounds.

Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience planning events involving multiple organizations or vendors.
• Experience recruiting and scheduling volunteers.
• Proficiency in Ellucian Banner, Argos, Zoom, graphics software (Publisher, InDesign, Illustrator or similar).
• Career services management software (Handshake or similar).

Full-time, Hourly, Mon-Fri    
Background Check Required

Washburn University is committed to providing an environment for individuals to pursue educational and employment opportunities free from discrimination and/or harassment. The University prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, age, national origin, ancestry, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, veteran status, or marital or parental status.

Washburn University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants for employment. If you are an applicant who needs a reasonable accommodation to participate in the application or interview process, please email benefits@washburn.edu or call 785-670-1538 at least five (5) business days in advance of the date you need the requested accommodation.

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