Student Service Specialist

Overview:
**Term: 1 Year**

The Student Service Centre (The Centre) is a unique one-stop service unit for undergraduate and graduate students that allows them the opportunity to have many of their non-academic needs met in one place. Partner departments include the Registrar’s Office, Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs, Student Awards & Financial Aid, Student Financial Services, Student Success Office, and WatCard.

The incumbent represents these partner departments and provides proactive, student-focused, exceptional front-line service in a variety of formats to our diverse student population. The incumbent handles each interaction professionally, effectively, empathetically, and in accordance with The Centre’s and the University’s values with regard to student service, diversity, accessibility, and inclusion.

**Responsibilities**:
Service Delivery
- Support future and current students by providing information in an accurate, friendly, empathetic, student-focused, and timely manner. The range of knowledge required is wide and varied
- Assist students by providing information primarily regarding admissions, student records, awards, financial aid, and the student financial account
- Triage the nature and complexity of inquiries and determine actions to be taken, consulting with, or handing off to partners, as appropriate
- Maintain a student-focused mindset throughout, despite workload demands and challenging interactions with students, parents, and guardians
- Proactively look for ways to enhance the student’s experience beyond their immediate request by being knowledgeable of additional or alternative options and resources available.
- Produce official University documents including enrolment letters, transcripts and diplomas.
- Ensure a high degree of accuracy by conveying accurate and clear information to students and when producing official documents. Errors in this position can result in major negative implications to students and alumni. A high level of accuracy and attention to detail is required
- Excellent professional, yet welcoming and friendly, verbal and written communication is required as this position represents the university to prospective students, current students, and off campus stakeholders
- Verify student enrolment and alumni degrees for various purposes including employment, immigration, regional transit, etc.
- Verify the identity of an individual using procedures in place and have the discernment to recognize deception
- Update student records including name changes and course enrolment
- Must use discretion, tact, sound judgement and problem-solving skills, and be able to know when and where to escalate an issue
- Remain friendly, calm, and clear-headed during situations where a student, parent, or guardian is upset and displeased
- Uphold privacy and confidentiality of student information as per Policy 46
- Propensity to work collaboratively in a team environment, in particular with others who are performing the same role and who all rely on each other to complete the job duties
- Knowledgeable of our partner departments’ business processes and of faculty and university guidelines, policies and procedures especially pertaining to academic progression, student experience and success, and privacy

Administration, Operations and Systems Support
- Understand and support our various technology systems The Centre utilizes including the queuing system, staff training and resource platform, ticketing platform, and digital credentialling system
- Able to adapt to new technologies and new business processes
- Responsible for opening and closing The Centre daily
- Receive payment for official documents, bursary repayments, and fines. Handle payments via cash, debit, credit card, cheque, or WatCard payment
- Maintain and organize confidential student records, documents and forms
- Prepare packages for courier and regular mail often on tight timelines

Knowledge Expertise and Continuous Improvement
- Participate in ongoing training to ensure a deep knowledge-base in a wide variety of student service areas (i.e., Registrar’s Office, Graduate Studies & Postdoctoral Affairs, Student Financial Services, Student Awards & Financial Aid, Student Success Office) and the various Faculty Undergraduate and Graduate Offices
- Participate in training that involves equity, inclusion, diversity, and accessibility
- Continuously contribute to maintaining the integrity of the information resource platform that provides clear, concise, relevant, up-to-date information to assist Specialists when interacting with students
- Be cognizant of new trends and issues surfacing for students that need to be addressed, and provide insight and perspective into how to solve the issue
- Be adaptable to a changing environment where new trends and continuous improvement will influence business processes

Career Progression:

- Typically incumbents will begin the role as USG 5. The first 6 weeks in the role