Help Desk Specialist

Choate is recruiting for the role of Help Desk Specialist to join our Information Technology Systems team. The Help Desk Specialist provides frontline support for a variety of information technology, telecommunications, and computer-use issues. This role identifies, researches, and resolves common technical problems; responds to phone, in-person, and email support requests; and documents issues to ensure timely resolution. The Help Desk Specialist escalates more complex issues to a Technical Specialist or another member of the department. This is an entry-level role with full training provided by our internal team - no prior Help Desk experience is required, just strong customer service instincts and a willingness to learn.

Job Responsibilities and Essential Functions of the Position:

• Answer incoming calls, greet walk-in visitors, and respond to email inquiries, providing frontline troubleshooting for software, hardware, and general computer and tablet use issues.

• Create, triage, and route support tickets to the correct queue or technician based on issue type and priority.

• Analyze and resolve common end-user issues, following up to confirm the request was resolved to the user's satisfaction.

• Reset passwords and manage user account access, including multi-factor authentication (MFA) resets.

• Use remote support software to diagnose and resolve issues on end-user devices.

• Monitor network and associated devices for potential issues; identify and escalate critical incidents with a strong sense of urgency and ownership.

• Escalate tickets to other appropriate resources when an issue is beyond the Level 1 scope.

• Notify and coordinate with field technicians when a new ticket comes, to support faster on-site response.

• Provide basic troubleshooting support for commonly used software packages (e.g., learning management systems, Microsoft Office).

• Assist with training end users on basic Mac and iPad skills and computer usage policies.

• Assist clients with access issues to faculty, staff student, and parents' portals.

• Create, update, and maintain articles in the ITS knowledge base to support self-service and consistent issue resolution.

• Use the ITS Help Desk ticketing and knowledge base system to record, assign, track, close, and analyze all Help Desk requests.

• Assist the Procurement and Budget Administrator with maintaining the Purchase and Asset database.

• Participate in internal training provided by the ITS team to build skills and take on more responsibility over time.

• Perform these Office Coordinator functions:

• Oversee departmental supplies and mail

• Orders items for the kitchen

• Sort mail and distribute to the correct mailboxes

• Receive incoming mail and shipments and record them in the Purchase and Asset database

• Provide support for Standardized testing on Saturdays (six times a year).

• Create signage and coordinate details for ITS events on campus (TechConnect during registration periods).

• When open, cover shifts in the ITS Extension, a satellite location near the Dining Hall.

• Perform other duties as assigned, including attending department, organizational, or outside meetings and trainings as requested.

Leading Others: No

Position Requirements/Skills/Abilities:

• Strong Mac skills and working knowledge of Windows; PC experience a plus.
• Previous experience working in a Help Desk environment is beneficial.
• Previous experience working in a school, college, or university is desirable.
• Strong customer service, phone, and organizational skills.
• Willingness to learn and be trained on internal systems and processes.
• Basic understanding of networking fundamentals.
• Basic understanding of client-server concepts.
• No prior Help Desk experience required - comprehensive training is provided.

Working at Choate: Choate Rosemary Hall is a coeducational, independent secondary school located in central Connecticut with 865 boarding and day students and over 400 employees. Choate serves intellectually gifted and motivated students of diverse backgrounds from across the globe whose commitment to serious study is enhanced in an academically challenging and personally supportive setting.

Choate provides students with transformative and meaningful experiences that instill lifelong habits of learning, leadership, and service, shaped by innovative and passionate educators. Teaching faculty at Choate are innovative, collaborative, and committed to our students' intellectual, social, emotional, and character development. Our faculty understands that each of our students has the potential for growth and works to encourage students to develop their own ideas and voices in learner-centered environments.

For its students and employees alike, Choate strives to be a diverse and inclusive community where all feel valued and embraced. On our campus, principled individuals from diverse backgrounds are united through common purpose, active engagement, and mutual respect. We celebrate differences and the richness of our varied backgrounds and experiences. Recognizing that working in an inclusive community can also present challenges, we embrace those challenges through ongoing dialogue and interaction, enhancing empathy and appreciation for those whose perspectives differ from our own.

Choate prohibits in all its programs, including hiring and employment practices, discrimination against or harassment of any member or group based upon age, gender, race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, marital status, sexual orientation, disability, genetic information, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other category protected by Connecticut or federal law, except in the case of a bona fide occupational qualification.