"Financial Administrator - Postgraduate Research Studentships"

The Role and the Department

Based within Research and Innovation Services, you will play a key role in the financial administration of postgraduate research studentships across Durham. You'll work closely with the newly launching Doctoral School, academic departments, and other central departments (for example Student Immigration and Funding Service, HR/Payroll) to support our research training programmes.

You'll specialise in the post-award management of Training Grants, managing their financial lifecycle from initial allocation through to final reconciliation. This includes coordinating matched and commercial funding with external partners. You'll develop expertise in funder financial regulations whilst helping to establish processes for Durham's new Doctoral School.

Key Responsibilities

Financial Management & Reporting

• Deliver comprehensive financial management for UKRI training grants (AHRC, ESRC, EPSRC, etc.) and non-UKRI studentships (Leverhulme, Wellcome Trust, commercial sponsors)
• Authorise stipend, fee, and salary payments in accordance with funder terms and conditions
• Manage grant reconciliations, ensuring accurate financial data for funder reports, final claims, and partner reporting
• Prepare and submit financial reports, support annual returns, and provide data for grant monitoring and audits
• Manage invoicing for commercial sponsors and lead partners, ensuring timely recovery of funds
• Set up and maintain project codes, student codes, workpackages, and purchase orders for Training Grant consortia

Compliance & Data Management

• Provide guidance on funder financial rules and budgetary requirements
• Ensure full compliance with funder financial regulations and University financial procedures
• Track studentship quotas against funding codes for accurate external reporting
• Maintain accurate financial records and data integrity across multiple systems

Match Funding & External Partnerships

• Support the translation of planned match commitments into formal external contracts (e.g., converting cash match for Centres for Doctoral Training into contract requests with appropriate financial and project details)
• Track University studentship match funding commitments, working to convert internal contributions into external partner funding where feasible
• Coordinate financial setup for industry co-funded studentships (e.g., IDLA arrangements)
• Provide financial information and guidance on funder regulations to support training grant competitions

Planning & Stakeholder Engagement

• Plan, organise, and prioritise your workload autonomously, balancing operational demands with longer-term projects
• Build productive working relationships with the Doctoral School, academic departments, and central finance teams
• Provide clear management information and data analysis to the Doctoral School and Postgraduate Research (PGR) Faculty Leads
• Explain complex financial regulations to non-financial stakeholders in an accessible way
• Contribute to establishing effective financial processes as the Doctoral School launches
• Work collaboratively, championing respect, inclusivity, equality, and diversity

The base location for this role is Boldon House, our exciting new professional services hub. Boldon House is situated on the outskirts of Durham near the Arnison Centre in Pity Me. Boldon House brings a number of professional services teams together in a vibrant office environment which supports collaborative working and is designed to embrace hybrid working.