Location: 2 roles available, both Newcastle-based
Contract Type: Full-time / Permanent
Salary: £26,660 per annum
Hours: Monday-Friday, 9AM-5:30PM. We are looking for the right candidate and while we envisage this being a full-time role (37.5 hours per week) we are very open to flexible working arrangements such as part-time, compressed hours and flexitime.
Start date: Monday 17th August 2026, or as agreed with candidate
The Opportunity
The Aspiring Professionals Programme Coordinator (APPC) postholder is responsible for the delivery of the Aspiring Professionals Programme across all programme years.
1. Project Delivery
- Deliver key projects including recruiting and onboarding students, creating digital resources and student events
- Support with programme pilots, scoping (and delivering on) new activity
- Collaborate and build relationships with our employer partners, schools, and universities to support our young people in their applications for university, internships and graduate roles
- Deliver on allocated events relating to our programme model (university applications, skill development, work experience and mentoring), presenting content to a high standard and in line with the Social Mobility Foundation messaging
2. Monitoring and Evaluation
- Follow established procedures to monitor the progress of your work area, using accurate data to inform decisions
- Reflect on your work areas at key points in time, offering suggestions for efficiencies and process improvement
- Maintain accurate records across relevant databases, updating data accurately and in a timely manner
- Contribute to evaluation for key work areas (residentials, events, internships etc), produce high quality evaluation reports where required.
3. Stakeholder Management
- Communicate to internal and external stakeholders in a timely and professional manner
- Proactively update external partners (i.e. employers) on your work areas, flagging risks in a timely manner with relationship managers
- Manage internal student queries and maintain consistent stakeholder (e.g. students) processes through regular communication
4. Activity Delivery
- Coordinate planning and delivery of skills sessions, partner events, university visits, and other activities, both virtually and in person across the Social Mobility Foundation’s target cities across the UK
- Coordinate logistics of sixth form and S5/S6 and undergraduate internships, including but not limited to, student selection, liaising with students and employers throughout internship delivery
- Coordinate and support with the organisation, logistics and delivery of in-person residential programmes for students, including staying on site for day and overnight visits when needed
- Coordinate student services including personal statement checking service and recruitment success service
- Create digital resources to support all provisions
Please see full job description attached for more details.
We need someone who will demonstrate our organisational skills-based competencies - as listed below.
Technical knowledge, understanding and experience required:
- Basic Microsoft Office, particularly Microsoft Excel
- A basic understanding of the barriers young people face in accessing university and particular careers
Ways of working:
- Most of our work is office based, but you will spend a lot of time collaborating with other teams and clients via email, telephone and other communications channels such as Teams or Zoom.
- This role requires you to staff residentials for students on our Programme. This means that during the summer period (Jul – Aug) you will be expected to stay overnight on-site (in the UK - exact location to be confirmed closer to the time) for a period of up to two-weeks, help run the residential and be responsible for the welfare of the young people involved.
- Please note this role may require some travel during our student recruitment period (September – November) and peak delivery period (February - May).
Please see full job description attached for more details.
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36/37 days' annual leave (England & Wales and Scotland respectively - includes bank holidays) with 3 of these days reserved for the annual end of year office closure
- Cycle to Work Scheme
- 5% Salary sacrifice pension scheme with enhanced matching employer contributions
- Employee Assistance Programme available to staff and their family
- Flexible work options such as hybrid working, flexitime, part-time
- Regular staff team building and business planning “away days”
Interested candidates should apply by submitting to our application portal Pinpoint the following information by 23:59pm, on Thursday 18th June 2026:
- Please write a statement of suitability for the position of Aspiring Professionals Programme Coordinator, demonstrating how your experience lends itself to the Key Responsibilities of the role. (500 words maximum)
- The SMF’s values of justice, empathy, optimism, integrity and collaboration are integral to how we work together and with our various stakeholders.
Please tell us about a time (or times) where you have demonstrated two of the SMF's values in your professional life—this can be in a job, at university or during training, in volunteering, etc.—and how you would demonstrate those values while working with young people who face significant barriers to higher education, degree apprenticeships and careers. (500 words maximum)
Please note that generic applications and CV’s will not be considered. If
you have any questions about the role, please contact Chris Savage;
[email protected]
Interviews: First round interviews will take place on week commencing 29th June 2026, with slots throughout the working day. Interview candidates may be asked to complete online tests; this will be arranged after interview.
The Social Mobility Foundation is an award-winning national charity that aims to make a practical difference in social mobility.
It is our mission to unlock potential, broaden horizons and create opportunities with and for ambitious young people who face structural barriers in education and work because of where they grew up, went to school or the occupation of their parents or guardians. We do this by:
- directly supporting students aged 16+ with university applications; professional mentoring; skills sessions and internships, through our Aspiring Professionals Programmes
- influencing employers through our Employer Index as well as speaker events and training to ensure people from working class backgrounds can get in and get on in professional life.
- advocating for social mobility and seeking to influence policy making at both local and national government level through our campaigns.
