Education Support Manager at University of Birmingham — BranchFactor

BranchFactor Summary

The original posting with the fluff stripped out

Level: Grade 7
Management level: People management
Contract: Full-time

Compensation

Base salary	£36,500 – £48,000 / yr

Role speciality

No unique specialisation

Useful technologies

Microsoft Office

Preferred qualifications

Study levelBachelor's

Original posting

Position Details

College of Engineering and Physical Sciences

University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £36,636 to £46,049, with potential progression once in post to £48,822

Grade:7

Full Time, Fixed Term contract up to October 2027

Closing date:26th July 2026

This role is also open as an internal secondment opportunity which would need to be agreed by your current line manager.

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide-range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham

Background

This role is based within the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences and plays a vital role in supporting the management and development of educational provision working closely with senior academics and Professional Services colleagues to enable the College to deliver excellence in teaching.

Role Summary

The post holder will possess a broad understanding of how academia operates as a business and will be responsible for the management and optimisation of administration for all learning, teaching and quality administrative processes. They will work with Education Support Office staff across the College, lead on defined Education projects and make a major contribution to strategic discussions, developing policy and procedure in Schools ensuring consistency of practice and delivery of the College strategy.

The post holder will work on their own initiative and exercise a high level of judgement, skill and understanding to conceive, develop and implement long term improvements to service delivery and effective ways of working within their areas of responsibility.

Main Duties

To work closely with School Heads of Education, and the wider College Education team to enhance and maintain the quality of education in line with University, College and School education strategy and the College strategic plan.
Work independently, whilst consulting with senior academic staff, senior College staff and Heads of Operations on the development and implementation of procedures to support change using an open and inclusive leadership style to gain commitment from all staff for any initiatives they implement. This will involve working with a variety of staff and may involve significant changes, gaining commitment and handling potentially difficult HR situations
Manage education-related administrative processes, ensuring they are robust, flexible and operate effectively interfacing with colleagues at both College and University level.
Undertake regular reviews of education processes and systems to ensure that they remain efficient, integrated, fit for purpose and in line with current University, College and School quality assurance practices, current sector guidance and best practice. The post holder will identify the need for improvements where necessary and contribute to the delivery and implementation of action plans to respond to those needs, with agreement from the College Head of Operations (Education)
Ensure that the shape of support in each School is fit for purpose, reviewing and balancing the allocation of responsibilities within the teams to ensure that an effective and efficient service is delivered, and communicate with Schools to ensure the delivery of a high-quality service which meets local and College needs.
Offer specialist advice about University systems, policies and regulations concisely in addition to reviewing, interpreting and implementing any new systems, policies or regulations using own specialist knowledge and expertise in this area to ensure administrative compliance.
Maintain an overview of curriculum development, taking responsibility for the integrity of information held at School, College and University level.
Represent the College on Committees and Groups as directed by the Deputy Director of Operations (Education) and Head of Operations (Education).
Work with professional services and academic colleagues to support the delivery of change projects across the College, planning and ensuring delivery within set timescales.
In relation to teaching, learning and assessment the post holder will be expected to keep abreast of, analyse, interpret and provide professional expert advice and guidance within the School context on relevant University regulations, codes of practice and other external statutory obligations (including new legislation, CMA, QAA requirements etc.) taking into account the wide range of programmes delivered.
Take the lead on projects or new initiatives relating to the University’s education agenda as required.
Prepare and where appropriate, present reports, proposals and papers for stakeholders and senior meetings.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

You will need to evidence:

First Degree (or equivalent qualification), or equivalent relevant work experience.
Significant experience of working in Higher Education senior administration and/or management.

You will be:

Knowledgeable of the environmental, economic and political factors impacting on Higher Education.
Experienced in analysing complex information and of contributing to action plans, strategic plans and quality reviews.
Experienced in working within a customer centric organisation.
Experienced in managing staff, delegating work to colleagues and collaborating with others at a senior level to deliver change and/or projects.

In addition to the above, you should be able to demonstrate and/or evidence the following:

High level of competence in the use of IT with proficient experience of using Microsoft Office, databases (preferably student record systems) and online learning resources.
Excellent interpersonal skills, experience of working collaboratively with the ability to establish good working relationships with colleagues at every level of an organisation.
Excellent organisational skills.
The ability to cope with change in a fast moving, dynamic environment where change is often required immediately.
Ability to demonstrate effective negotiating and positive influencing skills.
Ability to demonstrate tact and diplomacy, and the ability to deal discreetly with confidential and sensitive matters.
Excellent communications skills.
Ability to work with minimum supervision, and be self-motivated but also able to work as part of a larger team.
Exemplary attention to detail and the ability to work confidentially, use judgement and make appropriate decisions within the constraints of the role.
Excellent understanding of delivering excellent customer service and the ability to influence others to deliver.
Demonstrate a flexible, positive and creative approach to work and meticulous attention to detail.
Demonstrate ability to acquire knowledge and understanding of detailed University policies and procedures and apply them in practice with the ability to interpret policy and offer advice to colleagues.
An understanding of the importance of equality and diversity in the workplace.
Ability to identify and respond to equality and diversity issues in line with relevant policies and procedures.

Informal enquiries to Melissa Fletcher, email: m.l.fletcher@bham.ac.uk

View our staff values and behaviours here

Use of AI in applications: We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.