Administrative Assistant

• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Bargaining Unit:
• Regular/Temporary: Temporary
• End Date if Temporary: 6 months
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Standard Work Schedule:
• Building:
• Salary Range: $58,500-$65,000

• Job Type: Officer of Administration
• Bargaining Unit:
• Regular/Temporary: Temporary
• End Date if Temporary: 6 months
• Hours Per Week: 35
• Standard Work Schedule:
• Building:
• Salary Range:

Position Summary

Reporting to the Associate Director, Budgeting & Financial Analysis at the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, the incumbent will be part of an administrative team that supports the Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics and its faculty and staff. The incumbent will perform a variety of administrative and financial-related support tasks.

Responsibilities

Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Financial/Procurement

• Process vendor invoices, travel and business expense reports (Concur) and check requests for payment/reimbursement by entering information into ARC & Concur and uploading requisite support documentation. This includes preparing and processing expense reports for employees and guests/visitors to the department.
• Serve as principal liaison with vendors for order tracking, error corrections, returns, and adjustments.
• Coordinate and place orders with vendors for goods and services.
• Reconcile p-card purchases weekly using the University's online financial management tool (ARC) and the departmental financial database.

Floor Operations

• 
  Coordinate and initiate all facilities requests for services to the department and manage keys for all MPT spaces.
• Assist with space management and maintenance of department directory/room signage. Manage all office supply inventory, and restock and order supplies as needed. Ensure copier and printers are stocked with paper and ink cartridges.
• Maintain the professional cleanliness and orderliness of the entire office space. Take corrective action as needed including scheduling the response of maintenance personnel.
• Daily retrieval of mail from the loading dock. Sort and distribute the same. Perform hand-delivery and retrieval of inter-office mail items to/from campus locations.
• Sign for, receive, record, and process all incoming shipments that are the result of placed orders. Ensure orders reach their final destination and have been received in good working condition. Prepare, coordinate, and route outgoing mail, correspondence, and packages.

Event Planning, Seminars, and Meetings

• Coordinate and plan the logistics for departmental events.
• Coordinate monthly department faculty meetings: coordinate schedule, order food, and send email reminders.

MPT Graduate Program

• Coordinate MPT graduate students' activities including courses, laboratory rotations, qualifying examinations, and thesis committee meetings.
• Assist MPT graduate students in constructing their Individual Development Plans in accordance with NIH recommendations.
• Oversee the distribution of MPT Graduate Program recruitment materials and participate in recruitment events.
• Work with the MPT Director of the Graduate Program to plan and actualize interview days for MPT Graduate Program applicants.
• Work with the MPT Director of the Graduate program to create and update the MPT Graduate Curriculum.
• Coordinate with the MPT Associate Director, Budgeting & Financial Analysis to track the financial support for the MPT graduate students including placement on training grants, individual fellowships, and funding sources from individual faculty.
• Serve as the central contact person for MPT graduate students and applicants to the MPT Graduate Program with questions about the MPT Graduate Program.
• Coordinate with finance and human resource staff to process the start and end dates of the rotating period.
• Prepare and coordinate all student-related activities on a departmental level including travels, meetings, etc.
• Create and maintain a database to keep track of student status and provide reports to various labs and senior management teams.

Minimum Qualifications

• 
  

  Bachelor's degree or equivalent in education and experience.

  
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Two years of related experience.
• Experience in an academic setting.
• Knowledge of the University's financial accounting systems, ARC is preferred.
• Excellent knowledge of Columbia's travel policy is a plus.
• Excellent interpersonal, oral, and communication skills.
• Ability to write in a clear, concise, informative, and professional manner.
• Proven ability to take initiative and meet deadlines.
• Good business-level knowledge and functional use of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook).
• Basic to intermediate knowledge of Adobe Acrobat (and know how to create and manipulate PDF files).
• Knowledge of document scanning and electronic document management.
• Ability to interact well with a broad spectrum of people.
• Be highly organized and highly proactive; detail oriented and possess strong analytical skills.
• Ability to work independently and multi-task are key qualities that are desired.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.