Dean’s Office Administrator - Princeton University

Overview

The Office of the Dean of the Graduate School seeks to fill the position of Dean’s Office Administrator. Reporting to the Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager, and working closely with the dean, executive assistant to the dean, and deputy dean, this is a multifaceted role that combines responsibilities in reception and office operations, high-level administrative support, event management, and financial management in a fast-paced office. This position is essential for ensuring the smooth and efficient functioning of the office and supporting various administrative and operational needs.

The Dean’s Office Administrator role sits at the center of the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School and is the first person with whom visitors and guests interact. As a first-line of contact for students, faculty, University administrators, staff, alumni, and visitors, the person in this role will need to demonstrate a high degree of professionalism and represent a positive image of the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School and its services at all times. This crucial role requires a proactive, detail-oriented individual with excellent communication skills who can handle sensitive information, use sound judgment, and manage a range of administrative tasks and projects seamlessly in the office and be flexible as demands and priorities change.

This professional will join an office that offers a challenging and supportive work environment.  Engaged and dedicated staff members within the office collaborate to improve the educational experience of all graduate students at Princeton. The work itself is extraordinarily rewarding: it is multifaceted, always evolving, and meaningful. 

Applicants are required to submit a cover letter and resume for full consideration. Review of applications will begin immediately; for priority consideration applicants should apply no later than January 10, 2025.

Responsibilities

Office Operations and Customer Service:

• Greet and welcome all guests and visitors to the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School, and answer multiple telephone lines.
• Monitor multiple inboxes to direct inquiries as appropriate, and respond promptly to complicated or sensitive requests that can necessitate triaging, prioritizing, and managing expectations. Follow up on all inquiries from internal and external stakeholders to completion.
• Handle sensitive information with discretion and maintain confidentiality.
• Maintain representation of the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School when communicating with campus constituents and external parties.
• Maintain and update new staff orientation and offboarding guides as well as assist the Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager with conducting onboarding and offboarding activities of office staff.   
• Develop and document office policies and procedures; maintain and update an "office policies" handbook under the direction of the Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager.
• Serve as the telephone coordinator for the office to maintain an updated directory of phone lines and assign, reassign, and deactivate phone lines as requested.
• Manage all room reservations for the building in the University’s Event Management System (EMS) and communicate and troubleshoot system issues with the EMS team.
• Manage the distribution process for all incoming mail and packages.
• Serve as backup Building Access Coordinator to assign building access.
• Report building maintenance and janitorial issues and requests to Facilities and place service calls as needed with vendors for office equipment; communicate status updates to office staff as needed.
• Support Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager with managing office renovations, relocations, and department keys.
• Schedule annual officewide safety and emergency preparedness trainings and coordinate logistical arrangements.
• Serve as the Resource Recovery coordinator for the office.

Administrative Support:

• Lead and organize the annual review and update of the resource handbooks for the Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate Program Administrators.
• Establish and maintain a central calendar highlighting significant key dates within the Graduate School office and campus partners.
• Undertake special projects and duties as needed under the direction of the Assistant Director for Administrative Planning & Office Manager.
• Draft, format, edit, and proofread documents, training materials and correspondence; acknowledge and confirm receipt of correspondence as necessary.
• Coordinate logistical arrangements in support of select meetings including catering, room reservations, and technical support through University providers (e.g., media, dining services, building services) and outside contractors as necessary.
• Provide high-level administrative support under the direction of the Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager including scheduling meetings, organizing and maintaining a variety of shared network files, and transferring administrative files to electronic format in OnBase.
• Staff and support meetings for the Faculty Committee on the Graduate School (approximately six per year)
• Maintain and update directories for graduate program chairs, directors, managers; directors of graduate studies and graduate program administrators.
• Serve as a back-up to the Executive Assistant to the Dean to manage the Dean’s calendar, and provide high-level administrative support.
• Be able and willing to run errands to campus offices and local business as needed.
• Update and highlight content on the Graduate School’s website as needed.
• Provide support to the academic affairs team and executive assistant to the dean related to the annual academic prizes and fellowships management workflows and processes.
• Attend, participate, and contribute in biweekly meetings with coordinator-level and administrative office support staff.

Event Management:

• Responsible for planning all logistics related to approximately five annual departmental staff events, and jointly assists the Graduate School’s student affairs team with planning and executing logistics pertaining to graduate student events including the Honorific Fellowship reception, Tribute to Teaching reception, as well as campus partner events such as the Fall reception, and other additional special events for the dean. Logistics include reserving rooms; determining menu and ordering catering; advertising the event; preparing and circulating invitations and materials; maintaining guest lists; collaborating with Building and Media Services; monitoring the event budget; on-site supervision; and troubleshooting issues as they arise.
• Conduct post-event evaluations to gather feedback and identify areas for improvement.
• Prepare and distribute thank you notes and follow-up communications to attendees and presenters as needed.
• Ability and willingness to work outside of regular business hours with advanced notice.
• Assist the Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager with event logistics related to the bi-annual Dean’s Leadership Council meetings including arranging travel for graduate alumni council members ensuring that the travel is optimized and efficiently coordinated; processing travel reimbursements; securing breakout meeting rooms; organizing meeting materials and supplies; and on-site event support.
• Provide support with major annual Graduate School events including Graduate Student Orientation and the Hooding and Recognition Ceremony.

Financial Management:

• Assist the Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager in providing regular and proactive financial report management of the Graduate School’s office administration and events budgets, including validating numeric accuracy of spreadsheets and reports.
• Coordinate with Graduate School staff to provide data and support for stewardship, budgeting, financial planning, year-end close, and other key financial activities.
• Responsibility for all general office supply and equipment management, inventory and purchasing, as well as processing and reconciling expenditures and related receipts in a timely fashion.

Qualifications

Essential Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience
• At least five years of relevant work experience
• Demonstrated evidence of excellent interpersonal, oral and written communications skills, including ability to actively listen, understand and articulate needs among a wide-ranging population such as University leadership, staff, faculty, students, alumni and visitors
• Ability to develop professional working relationships with key operational contacts, both internal and external
• Flexibility to assume a range of assignments and to work cooperatively and effectively with others in a fast-paced and productive work environment to deliver successful and efficient daily operations
• Self-starter with demonstrated ability to take initiative, prioritize, work autonomously
• Ability to manage multiple tasks, meet deadlines, and handle unexpected and urgent situations independently and effectively
• Maintain a positive attitude and open to accepting constructive criticism to enhance performance and improve outcomes
• Professional demeanor with a strong work ethic and high standards of performance
• Disposition to pitch in wherever needed without hesitation as circumstances require and a positive approach to handling changes to processes and systems
• Strength in writing, proofreading, and editing documents, reports, and websites
• Commitment to enhancing service through teamwork and using technology to advance goals
• Meticulous judgment, project coordination skills, keen attention to detail, accuracy and follow-up
• Tech-savvy and high proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint); Google Suite (Docs, Sheets, Forms, Slides), Adobe Acrobat, and Zoom Workplace
• Discretion in handling confidential information and material
• Flexibility and adaptability to changing priorities and work demands
• Strong problem-solving and organizational skills
• Must be able to handle high pressure situations with tact and calm demeanor
• Ability to function as a thought partner to Assistant Director for Administrative Planning and Office Manager to improve and streamline office operations
• Ability to maintain objectivity and treat all individuals with respect and empathy

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working within an institution of higher education or organization in an executive setting
• Knowledge of/experience of Princeton University community
• Familiarity with PeopleSoft, Concur, and OnBase
• Ability to assess, develop, and implement new workflow efficiencies
• Experience with mail merges
• Familiarity with maintaining and editing websites in Drupal
• Knowledge of basic accounting principles

Princeton University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

Standard Weekly Hours

Eligible for Overtime

Benefits Eligible

Probationary Period

Essential Services Personnel (see policy for detail)

Physical Capacity Exam Required

Valid Driver’s License Required

Experience Level