Executive Assistant - College of Medicine and Health - 97177 - Grade 6

Position Details

College of Medicine and Health

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: 22nd 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 College of Medicine and Health (CMH) EA to the Head of College is integral to the operation of the College, acting as Executive Assistant (EA) to the Head of College and other senior leaders as required, supporting College Board and ensuring the effective operation of the College Hub Admin office. The post-holder’s role will involve liaison with the College Director of Operations, College/University Officers and internal and external agencies. The working relationship between the EA and the Head of College is of paramount importance to the success of the College and its efficient operation. The post holder will therefore be required to use a high level of communication, negotiation, organisational, administrative and secretarial skills. The role requires complete confidentiality, ability to work independently, with discretion and the use of initiative.

The post holder will need to be able to adapt quickly and professionally to the needs of the day and be able to cope well and harmoniously with conflicting demands.

Role Summary

The post holder will proactively supervise the College Hub administration team, to direct and develop the team to assist in the delivery of the College Hub’s administration. This requires the post holder to provide specialist advice and support in the continuous monitoring, review and enhancement of the Hub’s administrative systems, projects and communications, to ensure they remain fit for purpose, effective and efficient.

The office is a busy environment and the ability to cope with conflicting demands is essential, as the post requires a significant amount of initiative and personal responsibility. Much of the work is confidential in nature and the post holder will be expected to exercise judgment, be pro-active and have the necessary confidence to interact appropriately with a wide range of people, both internal and external, and at all levels. Flexibility is essential, as is an ability to take on a wide range of responsibilities, work to tight deadlines and think creatively.

Main Duties

1. Provide a comprehensive and high quality administrative and EA support, including proactively coordinating and researching work required for meetings (including agendas, papers etc.), attending high level meetings including College Board; taking minutes as appropriate and following up subsequent actions; typing of correspondence etc. whilst retaining a high level of confidentiality.
2. Manage diaries as appropriate, prioritising and allocating time for meetings and appointments using own discretion and judgement. This may include organisation of travel/accommodation producing travel plans and itineraries.
3. Inbox management for senior leaders and, where applicable, independently manage correspondence, determining which items should be actioned by self and others, composing correspondence, delegating tasks to other members of staff, ensuring that background papers are prepared and available and urgent items drawn to the attention of the Head of College or appropriate person.
4. To support the Head of College and Director of Operations in the management and delivery of projects, as appropriate. This will involve compiling information and writing short reports on particular topics, tracking and reporting back.
5. To organise hospitality events and travel schedules associated with the Head of College’s work, including identifying and booking suitable accommodation, equipment and hospitality, organising invitations, delegate lists, preparing event programmes, agendas and delegate packs etc. Ensure that events and travel are managed within budgets.
6. To proactively supervise the College Hub administrative team (i.e. PAs and Administration Assistants) to ensure that the Hub’s processes and procedures are carried out effectively and accurately.
7. Working and networking with Senior PAs (including VC office and UEB member EAs) from across the College and University in sharing best practice and imparting new ideas.
8. Collaboratively working across the College, to ensure that all committees are well-supported and effectively organised.
9. Promotes equality and values diversity, acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.
10. Any other duties commensurate with the grade as directed by the Head of College/Director of Operations/College Executive Officer.

Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience

• Good all-round education preferably to degree or ‘A’ level standard.

• Previous experience as a Personal Assistant at Director/senior officer level, preferably in a higher education environment.

• Experience of leading, managing and developing staff.

• Proven excellent organisation and interpersonal skills, with ability to work on own initiative with minimal supervision, manage a diverse workload, anticipate problems, work under pressure, determining priorities and managing conflicting deadlines.

• Demonstrate exceptionally high level of verbal and written communication skills, including establishing effective working relationships with a wide range of people and the ability to work as part of a team.

• Ability to deal courteously, diplomatically and confidentially with a wide range of people, including individuals of national or international standing.

• Proven ability to adapt to change and develop services to meet changing needs to deliver a customer focussed service and to work flexibly in order to ensure tasks are achieved on schedule.

• Ability to make decisions, using own discretion and judgement and be able to work under pressure to tight deadlines.

• Significant previous experience in servicing committees including minute taking and drafting skills of a high order.

• Knowledge and/or experience of managing and tracking small projects.

• Wide ranging IT skills, to an advanced level, including an in-depth knowledge of all aspects of the Microsoft suite of programmes and in particular, Outlook; an ability to learn the use of bespoke packages as required.

• 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 Wade Taylor, email: ***email_hidden***

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 .