Awards and Communications Officer, Faculty of Graduate Studies

Note: The work described in this posting will be conducted in-person.

All members of the UW Community and anyone who seeks entry to indoor campus spaces are required to comply with the University of Winnipeg’s Mandatory COVID-19 Vaccination Policy: https://www.uwinnipeg.ca/institutional-analysis/docs/policies/vaccine-policy.pdf

Responsibilities:

• Advises current and prospective students on eligibility requirements of awards to ensure compliance with award regulations and guidelines, including interpreting the regulations and guidelines of external agencies at provincial, national, and international levels.
• Acts as the designated resource to staff, faculty members, and committees across campus regarding graduate student scholarships
• Represents Faculty of Graduate Studies as a member of the Senate Student Services Committee.
• Liaises with external agency contacts seeking clarification of regulations, advocating for students, confirming deadlines, and filing submissions/applications.
• Evaluates applications for internal scholarships and prepares applications for further adjudication and reporting to programs, the Graduate Studies Scholarship and Awards Committee, and the Dean of Graduate Studies
• Supports Scholarship and Awards Committee in application vetting processes by informing them of application criteria, creating appropriate tools for providing ranking materials, compiling and analysing data, and coordinating meetings.
• Communicates all competition results.
• Advises the Senate Graduate Studies Committee and the Scholarship and Awards Committee on policies regarding funding, researching best practices across the country, and building consensus to align UW practices with these models.
• Maintains contact with federal and provincial government program officers, research foundation and institutes staff, and other university scholarship liaison officers to ensure that the university is aware of current funding opportunities, quota, and changes to policies, and to ensure that the University is adhering to funding agency guidelines and regulations.
• Updates and produces statistics for senior management to support decision-making and long-term and short-term planning. Researches new funding opportunities for graduate students through government, NGO, and private databases to maintain sustainability and competitiveness of existing graduate programs, including facilitating internal scholarship fundraising campaigns in collaboration with Graduate Program Chairs. Writes grant applications for participation in new awards.
• Develops awards budgets by analyzing data, projecting future needs, providing information on historical trends, and monitoring expenditures.
• Directs all public relations matters related to Graduate Studies, including the design of the website; manages social media communications; designs and procures marketing materials and merchandise; coordinates the marketing activities of the unit; and represents FGS at events as needed.
• Communicates news, events, and student achievements to various Graduate Studies audiences via website, newsletter, and social media. Liaises with Marketing and Communications to broadcast FGS news.
• Facilitates graduate student thesis exams by advising students and supervisors on the process; coordinates schedules with committee, confirms a Chair; prepares and disseminates materials to Chair and external examiner; and completes all requisite FGS paperwork.
• Coaches students on thesis presentations.
• Trains thesis supervisors and exam chairs on thesis process and policies.
• Advertises thesis examinations to internal UW audiences and facilitates attendance at the open portion of thesis examinations.
• Designs, coordinates, and evaluates events for the Faculty of Graduate Studies that focus on student success and achievement, such as orientation sessions, award receptions, the 3MT Competition, and Research Week. Liaises with programs and other departments and individuals in the University to coordinate these events.
• Supports student leaders in designing, coordinating, and evaluating student events.

Qualifications:

• Undergraduate Honours degree required.
• A graduate degree would be an asset.
• Experience in communications in a variety of media (e.g., writing press releases, managing social media, managing websites) required, with a minimum of three years in an office environment preferred.
• Experience in grant writing would be an asset.
• Excellent written and oral communications skills required.
• Excellent interpersonal skills required.
• Excellent organizational and time management skills required.
• Must have effective word-processing and spreadsheet applications (such as Word, Excel, etc.) and other related (e.g. Microsoft Office) computer skills.
• Experience in website design (creating new pages and navigation routes) would be an asset.
• Experience using In Design, Publisher or similar programs to create flyers, posters etc. would be an asset.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills.

An equivalent combination of education, experience, skills, knowledge and abilities may be considered.

Condition(s) of Employment:

• Must be legally entitled to work in Canada.
   

The University of Winnipeg is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and recognizes that a diverse staff and faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research environments, and is essential to academic and institutional excellence. We welcome applications from all qualified individuals and encourage women, racialized persons, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, and 2SLGBTQ+ persons to confidentially self-identify at time of application.

If you require accommodation supports during the recruitment process, please contact Sheena Laurin, HR Assistant at sh.laurin@uwinnipeg.ca or 204-988-7648. 

The personal information of applicants is collected under the authority of the University of Winnipeg Act and 36(1)(b) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. All personal information collected via the recruitment process is used to assess the applicant’s suitability, eligibility, and qualifications for employment, and to otherwise support recruitment activities. This information will be provided to participating members of the recruitment process. Questions regarding the collection of your personal information may be directed to the Director, HR Services, 515 Portage Avenue, Winnipeg, MB, R3B 2E9 or 204.786.9066.