Job Posting Title:
Senior Research Program Coordinator, Center for Energy and Environmental Resources in Cockrell School of Engineering
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Hiring Department:
Cockrell School of Engineering
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Position Open To:
All Applicants
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Weekly Scheduled Hours:
40
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FLSA Status:
Exempt from FLSA
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Earliest Start Date:
Immediately
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Position Duration:
Expected to Continue
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Location:
PICKLE RESEARCH CAMPUS
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As a top-10 engineering school with the No. 1 program in Texas, the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin) has been a global leader in technology innovation and engineering education for over a century. With 11 undergraduate and 13 graduate programs, over 20 research centers and a faculty community that boasts one of the highest number of National Academy of Engineering members among U.S. universities, Texas Engineering has launched some of the nation’s most accomplished leaders and pioneered world-changing solutions in virtually every industry, from space exploration to energy to health care. Situated in the heart of Austin — named “America’s Coolest City” by Expedia and “The Best Place to Live in the U.S.” by U.S. News and World Report — the Cockrell School embodies the city’s innovative spirit. Major companies with Austin campuses, such as Dell, National Instruments, Apple, IBM, Samsung, Google and many others, continue to recruit Cockrell School students at a remarkable rate, launching thousands of successful careers and developing Texas Engineers into industry leaders.
At UT Austin, we say “What starts here changes the world.” As a member of the university community, you will be part of an organization that is internationally recognized for our academic programs and research. Your work will have meaning and make a difference not only in the lives of our faculty, staff, and students, but also those who are impacted by our first class academic and research programs. UT Austin provides outstanding employee benefits and total rewards packages that include:
Competitive health benefits (employee premiums covered at 100%, family premiums at 50%)
Voluntary Vision, Dental, Life, and Disability insurance options
Generous paid vacation, sick time, and holidays
Teachers Retirement System of Texas, a defined benefit retirement plan, with 8.25% employer matching funds
Additional Voluntary Retirement Programs: Tax Sheltered Annuity 403(b) and a Deferred Compensation program 457(b)
Flexible spending account options for medical and childcare expenses
Robust free training access through LinkedIn Learning plus professional conference opportunities
Tuition assistance
Expansive employee discount program including athletic tickets
Free access to UT Austin's libraries and museums with staff ID card
Free rides on all UT Shuttle and Austin CapMetro buses with staff ID card
The Senior Research Program Coordinator is a key administrative and program support role within the Center for Energy & Environmental Resources (CEER), a dedicated research center of the Cockrell School of Engineering located at the J. J. Pickle Research Campus. The position supports four research programs/projects and provides advanced coordination across research administration, grant proposal processing, compliance, financial tracking, reporting, travel, human resources, electronic office operations, building security, and site access agreements.
Research Administration—Pre-Award and Post-Award Support: Supports research unit leadership for pre-award and post-award submissions. Provides guidance and administrative support for proposal development, budget preparation, application submissions, award acceptance, compliance monitoring, financial reporting, and closeout processes. Ensures adherence to sponsor, institutional, and regulatory requirements while facilitating communication among principal investigators, research unit staff, sponsors, and central administrative offices.
Financial Administration and Sponsor Reporting: Manages financial administration for research unit and sponsored-project accounts. Reviews and reconciles account activity, investigates discrepancies, initiates corrections, monitors expenditures and available balances, and maintains supporting documentation in accordance with University and sponsor requirements. Develops expenditure projections and prepares recurring, ad hoc, and sponsor-required financial reports to assist principal investigators and research unit leadership with fiscal planning, project oversight, and timely closeout.
Human Resources Coordination : Coordinates research unit human resources activities and serves as the unit’s Workday liaison with Cockrell School of Human Resources Department. Initiates and monitors recruitment, hiring, onboarding, appointment, compensation, funding allocation, timekeeping, leave, payroll, and separation processes for researchers, staff, students, and other personnel. Maintains accurate employment records, resolves routine discrepancies, communicates requirements and deadlines, and helps ensure compliance with University policies and applicable employment regulations.
Electronic Office and OHS Contacts Administration: Serves as the research unit’s Electronic Office Management and OHS Contacts System administrator. Establishes and maintains electronic office structures, document-routing authorizations, research unit contacts, delegates, and administrative system access based on assigned responsibilities and approved authority. Periodically reviews roles and permissions, coordinates updates with central offices, and helps maintain appropriate access controls, continuity of operations, and segregation of duties.
Technical Project Report Support: Provides administrative and editorial support for technical reports and other sponsor-required project deliverables. Coordinates reporting schedules and contributor submissions; compiles narrative, financial, and supporting materials; and reviews documents for completeness, consistency, formatting, and adherence to sponsor instructions. Tracks approvals and submission deadlines, maintains final records, and works with principal investigators and project personnel to facilitate timely submission.
Annual Sponsor Event Coordination: Plans and coordinates annual sponsor meetings, project reviews, workshops, and related events. Develops schedules and planning timelines; coordinates venues, technology, catering, materials, presentations, participant communications, and visitor arrangements; and serves as the administrative point of contact for sponsors, presenters, attendees, vendors, and University offices. Monitors event expenditures and complete required purchasing, payment, reimbursement, and post-event documentation in accordance with University procedures.
Domestic and International Travel Administration: Coordinates domestic and international business travel for faculty, staff, students, visitors, and project participants. Prepares and processes travel authorizations, registrations, reservations, direct-bill arrangements, and expense reimbursements; verifies account information, business purpose, receipts, and allowable costs; and monitors requests through final approval and payment. Advises travelers of applicable University, sponsor, and international travel requirements and coordinates required approvals, documentation, and exception requests.
Other Duties Performs other related duties as assigned
Bachelor's degree in a related field and
Five (5) years of experience in program administration or program coordination
Experience working with sensitive information or Category I data
Experience with university financial accounting experience
Proficiency with various project management tools, systems, and analytics
Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint
Skills in negotiating and managing contracts
Ability to work independently
Relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.
Education and/or experience with international business operations and regulatory compliance
More than five years of experience with advanced administrative and/or university financial accounting functions
Excellent time management, project management, and planning skills
Demonstrated success working with all levels of an organization in roles with increasing responsibility
Training in university administrative applications, compliance, and policy
Demonstrated problem-solving and critical-thinking skills
Ability to establish strong working relationships with business contacts
Strong service orientation with exceptional interpersonal skills
$63,000+ depending on qualifications
May work around standard office conditions
Occasional evening and weekend work
Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation
Use of manual dexterity
Resume/CV
Letter of interest
3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional required materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.
Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left-hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled into your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.
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Employment Eligibility:
Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.
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Retirement Plan Eligibility:
The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.
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Background Checks:
A criminal history background check will be required for finalist(s) under consideration for this position.
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Equal Opportunity Employer:
The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.
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Pay Transparency:
The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information.
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Employment Eligibility Verification:
If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form. You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States. Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment. Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.
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E-Verify:
The University of Texas at Austin use E-Verify to check the work authorization of all new hires effective May 2015. The university’s company ID number for purposes of E-Verify is 854197. For more information about E-Verify, please see the following:
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Compliance:
Employees may be required to report violations of law under Title IX and the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Crime Statistics Act (Clery Act). If this position is identified a Campus Security Authority (Clery Act), you will be notified and provided resources for reporting. Responsible employees under Title IX are defined and outlined in HOP-3031
The Clery Act requires all prospective employees be notified of the availability of the Annual Security and Fire Safety report. You may access the most recent report here or obtain a copy at University Compliance Services, 1616 Guadalupe Street, UTA 2.206, Austin, Texas 78701.
