Job Summary
Are you passionate about providing exceptional support to students and contributing to their academic journey? The University of Exeter is seeking dedicated Education Support Assistants to join our dynamic Education Support team. We are looking for fantastic people from a wide variety of backgrounds to join us at a time of change and opportunity at the University. We would love you to join us on this journey!
- Do you enjoy direct contact with people?
- Do you enjoy supporting people with their queries and helping to deliver a brilliant customer experience?
- Do you enjoy providing administrative support?
- Are you fantastic at organising, communicating and making things run smoothly?
- Do you want to work for an excellent employer with some fantastic career and training opportunities?
If so, our Education Support Assistant role, in Education and Academic Services, could be for you.
As key members of the Education Support team on the Streatham campus, you'll be part of a Hub team, contributing to the vibrant learning environment at the University of Exeter. These roles offer a unique opportunity to grow as an administration and customer services professional. In this role, you will provide advice, guidance, and administrative support to students and staff, collaborate within a cross-Faculty team to support undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, and have the flexibility to work across various service areas and Information Point locations within the University.
This role is part of the Graduate Business Partnership (GBP) scheme and offers part time hours (29.2 per week) with an immediate start date until the end of January 2027. This role offers the opportunity for hybrid working - some time on campus and some from home. Staff new to the service will be asked to work full-time from campus while training is delivered.
Key Dates
Closing Date: 27/07/2026
Interview Date: To be confirmed
Start Date: ASAP after interview
End Date: 31/1/2027
Salary: 28,029 per annum, pro rata
Purpose of the Role
As a first responder for student enquiries, you will be responsible for contributing towards an excellent student experience.
This role is expected to provide an excellent first-line enquiry and standard transaction education support service for students and academic teaching staff, to provide high-quality general administration support as required for all taught programmes, and to work effectively within the wider administrative team to deliver a seamless and high-quality service. This role will be allocated to a “hub” location but all role-holders in the context of Education Services are expected to have a flexible and adaptive attitude and may be asked to provide critical support across all activities or locations in order to meet peak demand needs across the service when these occur.
These roles form a vital part of our support services, including delivering a face-to-face service for students and staff, as such, role holders will be expected to work from campus for a minimum of two days per week, as well as full time whilst training is completed.
Please also note that as busy roles with peaks in workload at specific points in the academic cycle, there may be periods in June, September, and October when leave may be restricted.
Duties and Responsibilities
- Act as a first point of contact for internal and external enquirers, including face-to-face, telephone and online enquiries, maintaining the highest standards of customer service. Responding to, triaging, or resolving enquiries appropriately.
- Effectively manage and prioritise incoming enquiries, ensuring that service level expectations are maintained.
- Accurately process and input data and maintain records relevant to the role, such as maintaining student data in the Student Record system, including entering student marks and managing module enrolments and changes
- Provide effective administrative support for programme delivery, such as processing examination scripts, setting up assessment records and releasing student marks and feedback.
- Support the processing of student requests for mitigation, including signposting to support services, updating assessment records and responding to students, within service level expectations.
- Maintain and enhance the student experience across the student lifecycle where appropriate to the role, and in support of Directorate objectives. Suggest improvements and be responsible for their implementation where directed.
- Use systems and software effectively and efficiently, adhering to any relevant compliance and undertaking training as offered and required.
- Ensure processes, procedures and codes of practice are adhered to and best practice is followed and shared where relevant.
- Maintain a central information point for Education Services; collating and updating relevant information through a variety of media, including website maintenance where required.
- Maintain a working knowledge of Education Support processes and policies, including for assessment, mitigation, module and programme enrolments and progression and award, , being able to signpost these to others and provide support to staff and students as required.
- Accountability/ responsibility for discrete areas of work, as delegated by your line manager or other senior stakeholders.
All role holders at Grade C are expected to:
- Work under direction within a team, and collaboratively within and across teams within the Directorate
- Liaise with internal and external stakeholders as required, building and developing effective communications and working relationships.
- Provide administrative support for areas such as a project, system, set of procedures, website, event, student facing activity, of the Directorate, or act in general administrative support role for a team or group.
This job description summarises the main duties and accountabilities of the post and is not comprehensive: the post-holder may be required to undertake other duties of similar level and responsibility.
Training and Development - What Skills and Experience will this Opportunity Provide?
- Specific skills that can be developed or built upon - This role will enable the post holder to develop administrative experience, using a number of complex databases and systems, as well as experience of delivering excellent customer services to our students, contributing to the student experience at Exeter. The post holder will develop their team working, prioritisation and IT skills as well as gaining experience of working in a dynamic and fast-paced team.
- Any potential for progression for the right candidate - Though a fixed-term role, Education Services is a fast-paced and dynamic team which has the potential to lead to many other roles within the institution, as the role gives an excellent grounding in Education Support activities. There are regular opportunities to apply for more senior roles within the service.
- How this experience can help the intern/graduate with their future career - the post holder will gain experience of higher education administrative systems and processes , as well as key transferable skills, such as customer services and administration.
You will be asked to complete the university’s mandatory online training in:
- Safeguarding on our Campuses
- Diversity in the Workplace
- Health and Safety Introduction
- Information Governance and Security
Support Available
The university offers extensive support to staff, including a structured Professional Development Review and Wellbeing Service plus 1:1 support from the Internships Team.
The Benefits
You will have access to a wide range of benefits, rewards and recognition from the University including:
- Flexible/hybrid working
- Generous pension
- A holiday allowance of 39 days per year
- Totum Card (student discount)
- Salary Exchange Schemes such as the Cycle to Work Scheme
- Discounted membership to the university's sports facilities including cricket centre, indoor/outdoor pools, squash courts and fitness centre’s.
- The university offers extensive support to staff, including a structured Professional Development Review and Wellbeing Service plus 1:1 support from the Internships Team.
- All Graduates are offered a ‘how to make the most of your internship’ guide.
- You will have access to the university’s Career Mentor Scheme and career consultancy opportunities.
- You will have access to the university’s extensive suite of online training which includes Excel, presentation skills, and negotiation skills.
- You will be invited to quarterly networking and professional development events through ‘The Graduate Network’.
About You (Person Specification)
Degree and Attainment
- Graduate from a UK University in the last 3 years
Skills
- Excellent customer service skills
- Excellent organisational and planning skills and the ability to prioritise and meet deadlines under pressure.
- High levels of accuracy and attention to detail.
- Fast and accurate database inputting skills and experience of maintaining and using a database for retrieval of information.
- Ability to communicate effectively with precision and accuracy in person, in writing and email, and by telephone with a diverse range of people.
- Excellent IT skills including proficiency in MS Office (especially, Excel, Word and PowerPoint) and web-based programmes.
Personal Qualities and Attributes
- Strong desire to build a career in administration and customer services.
- Ability to be flexible and deal with frequent interruptions whilst maintaining focus and accuracy.
- Ability to present a professional image of the University of Exeter at all times.
- A keen interest in building skills, experience and a career in administration and customer services.
- Confidence and ability to work independently with appropriate supervision.
- Ability to be flexible and adaptive to changes in task allocation and areas of responsibility
- Self-motivated with a willingness to learn and actively seek training and development.
- Ability to remain calm under pressure and demonstrate resilience in the workplace.
- Ability to show empathy and sensitivity for customers and a desire to seek the best possible outcome for them.
- Willingness to work outside normal working hours when required by business need (paid as overtime with prior arrangement).
Prior Experience
- Experience of delivering excellent customer service and managing difficult customer encounters.
- Experience of working collaboratively and proactively in a team and with multiple team members to deliver multiple objectives and high service standards.
You must have valid right-to-work documents with you for verification if appointed, copies are not accepted. See here for a full list of acceptable documents to confirm your right to work in the UK.
About the University Department
This role is within the Education Support Team which provides the core and critical operational support for teaching administration and support for delivery of all University of Exeter taught programmes for Undergraduate and Postgraduate Taught students. This is a large team of approximately 150 staff working across multiple “hub” locations and three campus locations.
The Education Support Team is responsible for providing an excellent experience for staff and students for teaching support. This includes acting as the first line of enquiry for all student queries concerning teaching administration; and supporting both students and academic staff with processes that support the teaching delivery cycle such as: facilitating coursework submission and return; maintaining student records; module selection support and module and programme changes; administration of student mitigation requests and mitigation committees; and facilitation of Assessment, Progression and Awarding Committees (Exam Boards). On a day-to-day basis, the work of the Education Support Assistant will be managed by an Education Support Advisor who will have responsibility for a range of education operational delivery and who will be line-managed by an Education Support Manager.
Graduate Business Partnership (GBP) Scheme Requirements
- To undertake a graduate role through the GBP scheme, you must have either achieved your degree or be nearing completion of your final year at any UK-based university.
- If you are nearing completion of your final year, your working hours may be reduced to 15 hours per week (for undergraduates) or 6 hours per week (for postgraduates) to ensure you have the capacity to successfully complete your degree. More hours can be completed if your academic agrees and provides written confirmation.
- If you do not pass your degree, the GBP role will end early.
- You must have graduated in the UK within the last 3 years of your most recent degree (we will consider extenuating circumstances of potential applicants that may have prevented them from undertaking a graduate role within 3 years of graduation).
- The University of Exeter is committed to developing an environment which promotes equality of opportunity, values diversity and inclusivity.
- We are committed to creating an inclusive culture and engage with evidence-based charter frameworks for gender (Athena SWAN and Project Juno for Physics), race equality (Race Equality Charter Mark) and LGBTQ+ inclusion (Stonewall Diversity Champion)
- Learn about the university’s commitment to the Disability Confident scheme here
- At the time of starting employment, the successful candidate must have permission to work in the UK and evidence must be provided in advance of the appointment. Examples of suitable evidence can be found here. Candidates should continue to have permission for the duration of the GBP contract. This includes British citizens, individuals with an EU Pre-Settlement or EU-Settlement Status; and those with a Graduate Route Visa.
- All graduates need to reside in the UK whilst undertaking this role.
Further Guidance and Support
- (Exeter graduates only) Job application and interview resources can be found on the Career Zone webpages.
- (Exeter graduates only) If you need support with your application, you can book an appointment through the Career Zone.
- Unless stated, interview expenses will not be paid.
- It is recommended that you check your online presence on social media to ensure it represents you well, as some employers may undertake online research of their applicants.
- If you have any questions, you can email the Internships Team at [email protected]
Education and Academic Services
In collaboration with the academic Faculties, the Education and Academic Services (EAS) Directorate provides all of the key administration and education support and enhancing activities that underpin the student experience from Welcome Week to Graduation. Service divisions within EAS include Education and Student Support, Learning Experience and Innovation, Faculty and Cornwall Operations, Sport and Wellbeing.
The Graduate Business Partnership scheme supports final year students and recent graduates to launch their careers at the University of Exeter and with recommended employers in the southwest.
- GBP roles provide graduate-level employment.
- Build experience and develop your skills in a supportive environment.
The GBP scheme is open to everyone who has graduated from a UK-based university in the last 3 years. If you are an international student, you can also apply for GBP roles if you have a Graduate Visa.
