Job Description

Position Details

College of Life and Environmental Sciences

Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range £33,002 to £35,608 with potential progression once in post to £39,906

Grade: 6

Full Time, Permanent

Closing date: 6th September 2026

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

The University of Birmingham is a global institution working within a diverse and vibrant City, offering an inspiring education to our students, and undertaking critically important research. We are a place of open, critical thinking, and the creation, sharing and dissemination of knowledge. Professional Services put students at the heart of all they do and enable an exceptional educational experience. They provide outstanding support to our researchers and help the University to grow its influence regionally, nationally, and globally. They ensure the University’s resources are used wisely, manage and improve the infrastructure which sits at the heart of the institution, and support decisions to be made quickly and based on sound evidence. Our Birmingham Professional programme operates across the University, supporting colleagues to network and collaborate, offering opportunities to learn and develop, contributing to the delivery of the University’s objectives, and helping everyone to understand the broader context within which we work.

Department overview

The Student Experience Team is a Professional Services function responsible for the coordination and delivery of student experience activity at School and College level. The team plays a key role in ensuring that students receive a high-quality, inclusive and engaging experience throughout their time at the University, tailored to the needs of their discipline and programme.

Working in close partnership with students, student representatives, academic colleagues, Professional Services teams and the Guild of Students, the team delivers a coherent programme of activity that supports student transition, belonging, engagement and success. This includes coordinating local student experience initiatives, supporting student voice and representation mechanisms, and ensuring that student feedback is acted upon effectively. The team operates within the University’s Student Experience Framework and contributes to shared institutional priorities through functional coordination, working collaboratively with central teams and colleagues across other Colleges. While delivery is tailored to local context, the team ensures consistency of standards, alignment with University-wide activity (such as Welcome and student engagement campaigns), and a strong focus on continuous improvement informed by data and student insight.

Through its work, the College Student Experience Team provides a key link between students, academic departments and central services, ensuring that activity is joined-up, responsive and impactful, and that students are supported to engage fully with their university experience.

The Student Experience Officer plays a key role in supporting and enhancing the student experience through the coordination and delivery of student-centred activities, projects and communications across the student lifecycle, from transition and induction through to progression and graduation.

Operating within the University’s Student Experience Framework, the post holder will work under the guidance of the Student Experience Manager and in close partnership with academic leaders, College Professional Services teams, Student Services, and the Guild of Students to deliver a coherent programme of engagement activity, support effective student feedback and representation mechanisms, and contribute to the continuous improvement of the student experience. The role is strongly student-facing and requires regular engagement with students to understand their needs, experiences and priorities.

The post holder will hold an important role in building relationships, supporting inclusive practice and gathering insight from students to inform service development. Working within defined priorities and frameworks, the role requires organisation, initiative and a proactive approach to identifying opportunities to enhance student engagement, belonging and satisfaction.

Main Duties

Student Experience Delivery and Coordination

• Coordinate and deliver student experience activity across the student lifecycle, including transition and induction activity, engagement initiatives, events and campaigns, in line with agreed plans and priorities.
• Support the delivery of a coherent and inclusive programme of student engagement activity,
  ensuring students receive a consistent experience across Schools and services.
• Act as a key operational contact for student experience activity within designated areas, working closely with students, academic colleagues and Professional Services teams.
• Provide continuity of delivery for core student experience activity, escalating issues or risks to the Student Experience Manager as appropriate.

Student Voice, Engagement and Partnership

• Support the effective operation of student feedback and representation mechanisms, including Staff Student Forums, Student Representatives and student surveys.
• Work with students and academic colleagues to gather feedback, insight and ideas, and support the coordination of actions in response to student feedback.
• Contribute to visible feedback loops (e.g. ‘You Said, We Did’) by supporting the communication of actions and outcomes to students.
• Encourage student participation and partnership in student experience activity, including student-led and co-curricular initiatives.

Communication and Engagement

• Support the delivery of student experience communications within agreed communications plans and frameworks, working with relevant communications colleagues to ensure messaging is clear, timely and appropriate for the student audience.
• Coordinate and promote student engagement activity through a range of channels, including digital platforms and events.
• Monitor engagement with communications and activity, providing feedback and insight to inform continuous improvement.

Insight, Evaluation and Continuous Improvement

• Collect and analyse feedback, engagement data and other insight to support evaluation of student experience activity.
• Contribute to the identification of trends, issues and opportunities, sharing insight with the Student Experience Manager and wider teams.
• Identify and implement agreed improvements to processes, activities and ways of working, using student insight to enhance the quality and effectiveness of student experience delivery.

Collaboration and Team Working

• Work collaboratively as part of a network of Student Experience teams, contributing to shared projects, Communities of Practice and cross-College or University-wide initiatives.
• Build effective working relationships with colleagues across academic and Professional Services areas to support joined-up delivery across the student journey.
• Share good practice and learning with colleagues to support consistent standards and continuous improvement.

Equality and Diversity

• Support inclusive practice across all student experience activity, ensuring activities and
  communications are accessible and responsive to diverse student needs.
• Work with colleagues to support engagement with underrepresented or priority student groups, escalating barriers or concerns where identified.
• Promote a welcoming and inclusive environment for students.
• Promote equality and value diversity, acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.

General Duties

• Work flexibly, including occasional evenings and weekends, to support key student experience activity (e.g. Welcome and events).
• Supports the University’s sustainability agenda through resource efficient working.
• Undertake other duties commensurate with the grade.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent qualifications) - where no equivalent qualification is held, significant practical relevant experience and expertise in a similar role will be required
• Considerable experience of supporting students in higher education or a similarly complex student-facing environment (paid or voluntary).
• Understanding of the student lifecycle (undergraduate, postgraduate and international students) and the factors that influence student engagement, transition, progression and retention.
• Experience of coordinating and delivering student experience activities, projects and events to agreed objectives, timelines and quality standards, with the ability to manage competing priorities, use initiative and work independently within a defined framework of support and supervision.
• Knowledge of, and experience working with, student feedback and representation mechanisms (e.g. surveys, Staff Student Forums, Student Representatives) and supporting the delivery of actions in response to feedback.
• Ability to analyse data and feedback and use insight to inform planning, delivery and continuous improvement of student experience activity.
• Strong written, verbal and interpersonal communication skills, with the ability to build effective working relationships, collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders and contribute to shared objectives across Student Experience teams.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver a high-quality, inclusive student-facing service, including experience of working with or supporting diverse, underrepresented or priority student groups.
• Confident user of IT and digital systems, with experience of using tools to support communication, engagement and reporting (e.g. Microsoft Office, VLEs, digital communications platforms).
• Commitment to continuing professional development and engagement with training and learning opportunities.
• Willingness to work flexibly, including occasional evenings and weekends, to support key activities (e.g. Welcome and events).
• Evidence of literacy and numeracy, with the ability to write clearly, and to analyse information and data.
• Knowledge of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act 2010, and how to actively ensure in day-to-day activity in own area that those with protected characteristics are treated equally and fairly.

Informal enquiries to Grace Page, email: g.page@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 everyoneon our website