The Administrative Manager/HCM Specialist provides administrative support to the Graduate Department of Religion and the Program in Theology and Practice ; maintains all GDR student academic records ensuring each student’s progress through the program, oversees both departmental and program budgets, serves as primary HCM Specialist for all Divinity/Graduate Department of Religion students and as back-up for Divinity School faculty and staff; maintains Divinity School listservs, and handles all procurement requests for the Graduate Department of Religion, Program in Theology and Practice, Field Education, and various Divinity School programs and faculty.

The Graduate Department of Religion offers work toward the M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in religion. All students enroll in one of nine primary areas – Critical Studies in Asian, Islamic, and Jewish Traditions, Ethics and Society, Hebrew Bible and Ancient Israel, Historical Studies, Homiletics & Liturgics, Jewish Studies (M.A. only), New Testament and Early Christianity, Religion, Psychology, and Culture, and Theological Studies. The Program in Theology and Practice supports students in previously awarded fellowships through 2028, to students beginning Ph.D. studies in Religion at Vanderbilt. These fellows may earn their Ph.D. degrees in any of the eight areas which the Graduate Department of Religion offers the degree.

About the Work Unit:

The Divinity School administrators and staff comprise a team committed to excellence in theological education. From different composite areas: admissions, community life, academics, special programming, communications, theological and religious library resources, and development and alumni relations, each person contributes to an innovative and collegial environment. The unit as a whole is committed to the mission of both the University and the Divinity School. We make equity, diversity, and inclusion a priority from a theological foundation of social justice, and we seek to lead the nation in the care, preparation, and professional qualification of our students to the religious and theological professions.

In a global and multi-religious world, the Divinity school seeks to fulfill the following objectives:

• to engage in theological inquiry;
• to help persons prepare for the practice of Christian ministry and public leadership;
• to encourage personal and spiritual formation;
• to prepare agents of social justice; and
• to educate future scholars and teachers, locally and globally.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Program Administration: Graduate Department of Religion and the Program in Theology and Practice

• Provide administrative support ensuring smooth day-to-day operations to:
  • Graduate Department of Religion (GDR)
  • Program in Theology and Practice (T&P)
• Maintain calendars for Associate Dean of Graduate Education and Research, Chair of the Graduate Department of Religion, and Director of the Program in Theology and Practice.
• Interpret and develop GDR and T&P policies and procedures.
• Monitor/Ensure Program Progress for GDR and T&P students.
  • Register students for courses.
    • Track student progress in the program and communicate approaching/missing deadlines.

• Enter courses into CPI (Campus Planning Interface).
  • Ensure faculty advising has been completed.
  • Administer qualifying and language exams.
    • Report results of exams and dissertation defenses.
  • Assign Research Assistants and Teaching Assistants following VDS RA and TA Policies.
  • Write recommendation and enrollment verification letters.
  • Post dissertation proposals and course descriptions.

• Responsible for submitting course additions, changes, and/or deletions to Graduate School Catalog.
• Coordinate with Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs to cross list courses on schedule, as needed.

• Financial Aid
  • Prepare and enter Graduate Awards, covering tuition, health insurance, student services and student health fees, fees, and/or prizes and awards.
  • Process stipends for GDR/T&P students in Oracle Cloud HCM module.
• Financial Coordination
  • Coordinate budget expenses related to guest speakers and prospective/incoming students.
  • Handle disbursement of funds and expenditures for travel and honorariums.
  • Ensure correct Task used when costing so that Budget is more easily reconciled and run costing verification report in Oracle when costings are updated.
• Maintain records and files for both programs.
• Process applications for admission into GDR and T&P.
  • Correspond and meet with prospective students.
  • Receive incoming applications.
  • Upload applications to admissions committee for review.
  • Coordinate committee review of applications.
  • Prepare official acceptance and rejection letters/emails.
  • Submit letters for Honors Fellowships.
  • Submit Recommendation for Action Form in Slate.
• Coordinate with Vanderbilt departments to ensure successful matriculation.
• Act as liaison with the Office of International Student & Scholar Services (ISSS) and International Tax Office for international students, as appropriate.
• Maintain databases for student progress and placement data .
• Record minutes for meetings, including, but not limited to, GDR faculty, GPAC, and T&P steering committee.
• Act as institutional research liaison.
  • Gather and maintain placement data.
  • Maintain SACSCOC reporting.
• Provide administrative support on all grants awarded to the Graduate Department of Religion (Wabash, FTE, etc.).

Program Administration: Doctor of Ministry in Integrative Chaplaincy (DMin)

• Work with the Office of Admissions, Vocation, and Stewardship on administrative details for Orientation and Financial Aid questions pertaining to DMin students.
• Provide administrative support, as needed, for organizing VDS’s portion of each semester’s intensives in coordination with the DMin graduate student assistant, DMin Director, and MHICS staff.
• Receive inquiries from current and entering students concerning all matters administrative (registration, finances, VU inoculation and all such enrollment requirements) and facilitate communications with appropriate VDS and VU offices.
• Work with Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs or other appropriate VDS and VU offices on all the matters listed in the previous point, as needed.
• In the second half of DIV 8038 receive those students’ itemized lists of professors they want as second readers on their Final Projects (for the defenses to take place in DIV 8039). Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs will assign those professors to students, but the DMin Administrative Manager will need to facilitate any follow-up communication between the students and relevant faculty to ensure timely scheduling of the defenses.

HCM Specialist

• Monitor and respond to items submitted to the DIV_HCM mailbox for student employees.
• Responsible for the hiring, termination, and any assignment changes for all Divinity and GDR students.
• Enter and ensure costing is correct for all assignments
• Send reminders to both students and supervisors when timesheets are due.
• Prepare and submit off-cycle requests and retroactive costing requests for student payments, as needed.
• Serve as point of contact for Divinity School student HR complaints and grievances.

Field Education

• Set up new field education supervisors each year as a supplier in the Oracle Cloud Procurement module.
• Responsible for the hiring, termination, and any change in assignment for field education students
• Line manager for above students - approving/rejecting biweekly timecards.
• Process honorarium payments for all supervisors via the Oracle Cloud Procurement module.
• Monitor budget for both supervisors and students.

Finance

• Monitor and respond to items submitted to the DIV_Finance mailbox, as appropriate. Specifically, assist faculty, staff and students with travel bookings, processing honorariums, creation of expense/travel reports, setting up suppliers and processing Non-PO and POs, etc.
• Create and maintain DIV Finance and HR webpage.
• Manage and reconcile One Card expense reports in accordance with university policy.

Marketing and Communications

• Update website content for GDR and T&P using Omni, People Manager, and Accordion.
• Update Graduate School Bulletin.
• Coordinate mailings as advertisement for events.
• Design and prepare promotional material for events on Lucid Press, Microsoft Publisher or other design software.
• Circulate announcements for job openings, fellowship deadlines, housing options, VU lectures, GDR events, etc.
• Update listserv recipients.
• Maintain and approve emails sent to the Divinity School listservs.
• Submit orders for business cards and stationery for both department/program and occasionally for various Divinity School faculty/programs.

Event Coordination

• Plan and coordinate all prospective and incoming student events.
• Plan and implement professional development workshops and retreats.
• Reserve meeting spaces both on and off campus.
• Arrange for parking for guests.
• Plan and coordinate meals and receptions through contacting and maintaining relationships with caterers.
• Coordinate lectures and conferences to ensure no conflicts with other events.
• Coordinate travel arrangements for guest lecturers, conference participants, and prospective/incoming students including hotel arrangements, booking flight arrangements, and preparing reimbursement expense forms.
• Coordinate set-up and clean-up of all events.
• Attend each event to oversee logistics and handle any last-minute issues.
• Prepare itineraries for visitors.
• Coordinate registration and scheduling for all events.
• Provide back-up support to the Assistant to the Deans in EMS (Online Room Reservation System).

Supervision

• Line manager for all GDR students.
• Line manager for all Field Education students.
• Assign and oversee GDR Research and Teaching Assistants.

Supervisory Relationships:

This position does have supervisory responsibility for student timecards. This position reports administratively to the Associate Dean of Graduate Education and Research and functionally to the Associate Dean of Graduate Education and Research and Chair of the Graduate Department of Religion.

Education and Certifications:

• A Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited institution of higher education is preferred.

Qualifications:

• List of qualifications
• 3-5 years’ experience of directly relatable experience is necessary .
• 3-5 years’ experience in a higher education administrative position is preferred .
• Strong verbal and communication skills is necessary .
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office – Word, Excel, Microsoft Teams, Outlook is necessary .
• Knowledge in additional applications: Adobe Acrobat, Box, Concur, EMS, HireaDore, Kuali, Oracle, PeopleSoft, People Manager, REDCap, Slate, YES, Zoom is preferred .
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team is preferred .
• Demonstrated ability to multi-task is necessary .
• Demonstrated attention to detail is necessary .

Commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

At Vanderbilt University, we are intentional about and assume accountability for fostering advancement and respect for equity, diversity, and inclusion for all students, faculty, and staff. Our commitment to diversity makes us who we are. We have created a community that celebrates differences and lets individuality thrive. As part of this commitment, we actively value diversity in our workplace and learning environments as we seek to take advantage of the rich backgrounds and abilities of everyone. The diverse voices of Vanderbilt represent an invaluable resource for the University in its efforts to fulfill its mission and strive to be an example of excellence in higher education.

Vanderbilt University is an equal opportunity, affirmative action employer. Women, minorities, people with disabilities and protected veterans are encouraged to apply.

Please note, all candidates selected for an offer of employment are subject to pre-employment background checks, which may include but are not limited to, based on the role for which they have been selected: criminal history, education verification, social media review, motor vehicle records, credit history, and professional license verification.