Job Purpose

In partnership with other cognate roles in Student Services the Graduate School Manager will lead the College of Arts & Humanities Graduate School.

The role holder will be responsible for overseeing a comprehensive support service for Postgraduate Research (PGR) students; liaise with and advise academic teams in the Academic Schools and manage and critically review the policies and procedures governing the PGR student journey. Informed by the Arts & Humanities Strategy 2023-2028, the role will collaborate with other Student Services Managers to define, implement and deliver an excellent service to PGR students and academic supervisory teams.

College of Arts & Humanities Graduate School

The Graduate School is overseen by the Dean of Graduate Studies and is the centralised hub for the PGR student support function. The duties of the Graduate School are wide-ranging and provide support through the PGR student life cycle including, but not limited to, support for pre-arrival arrangements, changes to study, academic project funding and funding opportunities, skills development training, annual monitoring of progress, thesis submission and examinations, wellbeing and sign-posting to expert services. The Graduate School will also work closely with other university services and units, providing advice and guidance for supervisors and other relevant colleagues.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

1.      Enabling the delivery of the College of Arts & Humanities strategic objectives for Postgraduate Research students (PGR).

2.      In partnership with other Student Services roles, leading and managing the provision of advice and support for prospective, new and continuing students and staff and supervisory teams as appropriate.

3.      Responding to student-related enquiries and requests for advice from other academic and professional services staff across College.

4.      Collaborating with relevant teams on the development of student-related communications and online content.

5.      Enabling student success by leading on the delivery of skills development and training for both students and staff.

6.      Providing direct support or sign-posting students, supervisory teams and other colleagues to sources of advice and expert input, including, but not limited to, wellbeing advice, support for disabled students and financial support.

7.     Providing guidance and support on the interpretation of university regulations and College policy.  This includes delivering relevant training to professional services, academic staff and other internal audiences.

8.     Critically evaluating existing PGR student-related policies, processes and systems; ensuring efficiency and continuous improvement of practices, managing change as required.

9.     Contributing to the delivery and review of effective PGR governance structures and ensuring appropriate oversight of key areas of activity and managing support for formal College committees and other forums relevant to PGR students.

10.   Contributing to college and university project groups and the development of best practice across the institution

11.   Ensuring the accuracy and integrity of student records and student case history, ensuring the application of appropriate technology and compliance with regulatory and university policies for managing personal and confidential data.

12.   Provide clear leadership to the Graduate School, managing staff and staff performance as well as team development; and promoting flexibility to ensure service resilience and sharing of knowledge and best practice.

13.  Managing the delivery of an excellent customer service (including ‘in-person’ service) and contributing to the development of a service excellence model and culture across the broader Student Services unit.

14.  Collaborating with relevant central University units to ensure key risks are managed including but not limited to compliance with student visa and immigration policy, obligations arising from the Equality Act 2010 and health and safety legislation and policy.

15.   Manage internal and external postgraduate research opportunities.

16.   Undertaking any other duties reasonably assigned by the Line Manager.

Knowledge, Qualifications, Skills and Experience

Knowledge/Qualifications

Essential:

A1 Either: Ability to demonstrate the competencies required to undertake the duties associated with this level of post having acquired the necessary knowledge and skills in a similar or number of different roles. Or: Scottish Credit and Qualification Framework level 9, (Ordinary Degree, Scottish Vocational Qualification level 4), or equivalent (including professional accreditation with relevant formal training), and experience of personal development in a similar or related role(s).

A2 Extensive knowledge of developing, operating and critically reviewing administrative systems.

A3 High degree of computer literacy, including familiarity with databases and spreadsheets.

A4 Knowledge of administrative and support systems, process design and improvement.

Desirable:

B1 Knowledge of PGR student provision and services.

B2 Process Improvement or Project Management certification (Six Sigma/Lean/PRINCE2/APMP etc.).

Skills

Essential:

C1 Proven organisational skills, including the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.

C2 Highly effective leadership and management skills and ability to work independently, setting own priorities and those within a team.

C3 Excellent interpersonal communication and influencing skills and the ability to co-operate with colleagues across organisational boundaries.

C4 Ability to challenge the status quo effectively and with a focus on continuous improvement.

C5 Proven track record of leading change, applying strategic thinking and planning skills and implementing process improvement delivery across a complex organisation.

C6 Excellent analytical skills and problem-solving capability.

C7 Proven track record of successful project management.

C8 Ability to deliver under pressure, to meet tight deadlines and the ability to maintain momentum in the face of challenges and setbacks within a complex organisation structure.

Experience

Essential:

E1 Significant experience of demonstrating high levels of autonomy within a student-facing, or equivalent customer focused, environment within a complex matrix organisational structure.

E2 Significant experience of managing and developing colleagues and teams and of managing staff performance.

E3 Demonstrable prior experience of providing high quality advice, guidance and data analysis to others on governance, compliance and service delivery matters.

E4 Significant experience of initiating and working collaboratively to implement and manage change.

E5 Experience of service delivery design and creation of operational plans to improve efficiency

Desirable

F1 Previous administrative experience within Further or Higher Education.

Terms and Conditions

Salary will be Grade 7, £40,497 - £45,413 per annum. Relocation assistance will be provided where appropriate.

This post is full time and open ended.

The University of Glasgow has a responsibility to ensure that all employees are eligible to live and work in the UK.  If you require a Skilled Worker visa to work in the UK, you will be required to meet the eligibility requirements of the visa route to be assigned a Certificate of Sponsorship.

Please note that this post may be eligible to be sponsored under the Skilled Worker visa route if tradeable points can be used under the Skilled Worker visa rules. For more information please visit: https://www.gov.uk/skilled-worker-visa.

As a valued member of our team, you can expect:

1 A warm welcoming and engaging organisational culture, where your talents are developed and nurtured, and success is celebrated and shared.

2 An excellent employment package with generous terms and conditions including 41 days of leave for full time staff, pension - pensions handbook https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/payandpensions/pensions/, benefits and discount packages.

3 A flexible approach to working.

4 A commitment to support your health and wellbeing, including a free 6-month UofG Sport membership for all new staff joining the University  https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/staff/healthwellbeing/.

We believe that we can only reach our full potential through the talents of all. Equality, diversity and inclusion are at the heart of our values. Applications are particularly welcome from across our communities and in particular people from the Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) community, and other protected characteristics who are under-represented within the University. Read more on how the University promotes and embeds all aspects of equality and diversity within our community https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/.

We endorse the principles of Athena Swan https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/humanresources/equalitydiversity/athenaswan/ and hold bronze, silver and gold awards across the University.

We are investing in our organisation, and we will invest in you too. Please visit our website https://www.gla.ac.uk/explore/jobs/ for more information.

Closing date: 23:45 on Tuesday 8th July 2025