"Education Programs Specialist"

Job Summary

The University of Colorado BioFrontiers Institute encourages applications for an Education Programs Specialist that is responsible for the management and support of education programs. This includes communicating with university staff, faculty, and trainees including graduate students to implement academic programs and curriculum and to manage student administration. Our flagship academic program is the Interdisciplinary Quantitative Biology (IQ Biology) PhD Certificate Program. IQ Biology is a cross-departmental program training PhD students to be interdisciplinary researchers. While this job description describes the primary responsibilities, the Education Programs Specialist may be occasionally asked to complete additional tasks to help ensure the success of Institute initiatives.

CU is an Equal Opportunity Employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment. We are committed to creating a workplace where all individuals are treated with respect and dignity, and we encourage individuals from all backgrounds to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.

Who We Are

At the University of Colorado BioFrontiers Institute, researchers from the life sciences, physical sciences, computer science, and engineering are working together to uncover new knowledge at the frontiers of science and working with industry to transform their discoveries into new tools. The BioFrontiers Institute is uniquely defined both by our excellent faculty, research, and leadership and by the scientific and geographical ecosystem that empowers our work. BioFrontiers has a unique “frontier” culture that allows our researchers to explore new areas of bioscience by employing the resources and talents across the Institute and the university system. The Institute integrates faculty members from eleven academic departments, allowing them to work across disciplines. BioFrontiers drives innovation without boundaries.

What Your Key Responsibilities Will Be

Coordinate Educational Programs

• Manage daily programmatic responsibilities for BioFrontiers education initiatives.
• Coordinate academic programming and courses of BioFrontiers education programs on the academic cycle, such as updates in course offerings for our students, course catalog, course scheduling, and classroom reservations.
• Collaborate with Graduate Program Administrators in BioFrontiers partner departments to implement education procedures and policies for BioFrontiers students.
• Maintain Institute and graduate student records, including student forms and records, education program data and student progress, and basic institute tracking of student performance needed for records and reports.
• Coordinate the academic programs of BioFrontiers education, such as curricular activities, interdisciplinary courses, and program events with BioFrontiers partner departments. Manage education-related events to include graduate student seminars, catering, and coordination of travel and honoraria of invited speakers with the BioFrontiers operations team.
• Initiate and integrate meetings and events, including meetings of the IQ Biology NSF Principal Investigators and Advisory Board, Admissions Committee, and Academic Advising Committees.
• Maintain IQ Biology listservs, roster, and website with BioFrontiers communication staff.
• With the Director of Interdisciplinary Education, provide grant management to align with meticulous requirements associated with our external funding with federal and private agencies and foundations, such as the National Science Foundation (NSF) and National Institutes of Health (NIH), to include annual reporting, implementation strategies and plans, and retaining graduate students.

Graduate Student Management for IQ Biology

• Assist in onboarding BioFrontiers trainees, including working with BioFrontiers HR on graduate student appointments, tuition and fee payments, fellowship payments, and course registration.
• Advise BioFrontiers graduate students on curriculum requirements, e.g. interdisciplinary coursework and research.
• Track student progress for the IQ Biology Program to ensure timely progress towards degree and compliance for application, enrollment, tuition remission, in-state status, and timely processing of tuition/fee payments in university systems (PeopleSoft: CU-SIS, HCM, Degree Audit).
• Work directly with students to plan student-run events, including a monthly student seminar, an annual IQ Biology Program orientation, and a biennial symposium.
• With the Director of Interdisciplinary Education, run an annual graduate student recruitment and admissions process for IQ Biology. This includes using the CU Boulder admissions system (Slate) to supervise and disseminate application materials and admissions processes, connect with applicants, assist in coordinating applicant travel, plan recruitment meetings and events, and share application outcomes with applicants and other constituents.
• Maintain financial records for accurate budgeting and refunding of expenses accrued by education programs.
• Help transition IQ Biology students into their affiliated academic STEM departments after the completion of their first-year IQ Biology Program certificate requirements.
• Access student data systems to include CU-SIS, Slate (admissions and enrollment), course catalog, and Degree Audit.

Graduate Student Administration

• Keep up to date on university policies and procedures affecting BioFrontiers trainees, including knowledge from the Graduate School, Office of the Registrar, Bursars Office, Office of Financial Aid, and CU Colleges.
• Work directly with the BioFrontiers HR Coordinator and other departments to determine standard processes for graduate student appointments.
• Work with BioFrontiers staff to determine appropriate sources of funding and handle the entry of tuition remission information in CU-SIS.
• Coordinate with the Graduate School for Scholarship Payment Forms to accurately handle student tuition, fees, and insurance, as well as cost-share funds from a variety of partner units.

What You Should Know

This is a hybrid position with two days per week in the office, and as needed for additional in-person events, as well as on rare occasions after hours.

What We Can Offer

The annual hiring range for this position is $60,000 - $72,000.

Benefits

The University of Colorado offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, retirement, paid time off, tuition benefit and ECO Pass. The University of Colorado Boulder is one of the largest employers in Boulder County and offers an inspiring higher education environment. Learn more about the University of Colorado Boulder.

Be Statements

Be engaged. Be supportive. Be Boulder.

What We Require

• A bachelor’s degree and 1+ years of relevant professional experience.
• An equivalent combination of education and experience may substitute.

What You Will Need

• Familiarity with undergraduate or graduate student program administration.
• Ability to work independently and responsibly for initiating and completing tasks.
• Effective communication with a variety of professionals and continuant groups.
• Ability to plan, organize, implement, and coordinate sophisticated activities and programs.
• A high level of attention to detail.
• Proficient computer knowledge and skills with Adobe Acrobat and MS Office applications, particularly with Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
• Willingness to learn new systems.
• Demonstrated ability to work as a member of a team within an interdisciplinary work environment.

What We Would Like You to Have

• A master’s degree in a related subject area (STEM, Higher Education, or related field).
• 2+ years of experience in higher education working across units, and with undergraduate or graduate student program administration.
• Experience advising undergraduate or graduate students.
• Experience working in Slate, including student application management, downloading data, and building inquiries.
• Demonstrated skills using technology that supports academic advising and university practices (e.g. CU-SIS, HCM, Degree Audit).
• Experience with education program evaluation and assessment.

Special Instructions

To apply, please submit the following materials: 1. A current resume. 2. A cover letter that specifically tells us how your background and experience align with the requirements, qualifications, and responsibilities of the position. We may request references at a later time. Please apply by 10/2/2025 for consideration. Note: Application materials will not be accepted via email. For consideration, applications must be submitted through CU Boulder Jobs. In compliance with the Colorado Job Application Fairness Act, in any materials you submit, you may redact or remove age-identifying information such as age, date of birth, or dates of school attendance or graduation. You will not be penalized for redacting or removing this information.

Posting Contact Information

Posting Contact Name: Boulder Campus Human Resources Posting Contact Email: Recruiting@colorado.edu