Senior Administrative Assistant, ISPS

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Overview

The Institution for Social and Policy Studies (ISPS) at Yale University seeks a highly organized, tech-savvy professional to manage the full lifecycle of academic events and conferences while supporting the institution's digital presence. This position is well-suited to a collaborative, detail-oriented professional who thrives in a dynamic university environment and brings expertise in both event logistics and web-based communications. The Institution for Social and Policy Studies (ISPS) advances interdisciplinary research in the social sciences that aims to shape public policy and inform democratic deliberation. Under the direction of the Operations Manager and Director, this position will be an integral member of the ISPS team, working closely with faculty, staff, and students to provide high-level administrative and operational support for the institution's mission.

Required Skills and abilities:

1. General experience with events, such as with event planning and/or hosting guest speakers. Managing hotel room blocks, arranging catering, and managing reimbursements. Proficiency using Zoom for meetings, events, webinars.

2. Proficiency with content management systems (Drupal or similar) and web editing tools. Familiarity with Microsoft 365 (Outlook, Teams, SharePoint) and experience managing shared calendars. Comfort with basic graphic design tools for creating web and promotional imagery.

3. Demonstrated outstanding interpersonal and organizational skills. Excellent record of attendance and punctuality. Proven ability to take initiative and follow through, work both independently and in a team.

4. Proven high level of accuracy and attention to detail, ability to manage multiple projects and effectively meet deadlines.

5. Superior verbal and written communication and excellent customer service skills with the proven ability to interact with all levels of faculty and staff. This position must be able to independently reach out to faculty, students, staff, schedule Zoom or in-person meetings to directly communicate, respond to inquiries in a timely manner, and provide continuous follow-up when required.

Primary job responsibilities:

Events Management & Logistics

1. Plan, coordinate, and oversee ISPS events and conferences from inception through wrap-up, managing attendance, logistics, contracts, and budgets for multiple simultaneous events. Including in-person, hybrid and zoom events.

Serve as the primary expert resource for faculty organizers, assessing event needs and developing execution plans.

2. Research, negotiate, and procure event services including hotel room blocks, catering, and off-campus venues.

3. Maintain the master ISPS events calendar aligned with the Yale academic calendar, proactively identifying scheduling conflicts and advising faculty on optimal event dates.

4. Coordinate post-event activities including guest travel reimbursements, budget finalization, and distribution of conference materials.

5. Support for programming associated with various ISPS centers and initiatives, such as various speaker series.

Digital Communications & Website Management:

1. Create and maintain ISPS event websites and the CSAP program website using Drupal and Yale Campus Press platforms.

2. Design and distribute event announcements via email and Yale Message to targeted internal and public audiences.

3. Build and manage online registration forms; track attendance data and generate reports such as rooming lists and catering headcounts.

4. Create and edit graphics and images for use on ISPS websites and event announcements.

5. Proofread the ISPS Newsletter and provide editorial feedback.

Systems & Special Projects:

1. Administer ISPS shared Outlook/Microsoft 365 calendars, managing staff access and permissions.

2. Maintain and troubleshoot ISPS AV systems; coordinate with Yale IT teams for upgrades and serve as the department primary AV point of contact.

3. Field questions from faculty and students on survey research services and attend DISSC quarterly meetings.

The current hybrid work schedule for this position is 4 days on campus with 1 remote workday. You may be required occasionally to work on site more often in a given week due to operational needs. In the event, the university/department transitions to being on campus five days a week, either temporarily or permanently, the hybrid schedule will be suspended or subject to change at management discretion.

Preferred Skills and Abilities

• Experience with Yale Message.
• Experience working in a university, academic or research institution

Principal Responsibilities

1. Oversees and coordinates administrative, program, and office activities. Establishes, selects, implements, and coordinates office procedures and systems. Serves as principal source of information to students, staff, and faculty on policies, procedures, programs, and office activities. 2. Oversees, instructs, and coordinates activities of support staff. Oversees the preparation of materials for grants, contracts and budgets. Monitors expenditures and reconciles financial statements. 3. Provides editorial support for a journal/publication. Proofreads and edits material for grammatical and factual accuracy. Tracks copy through various editing and production stages. Communicates with authors, printers, and others concerned with published work. 4. Determines administrative, facility, and equipment needs for symposia, lectures, seminars, and conferences. Assembles and arranges for necessary items. Determines sources of data. Compiles, synthesizes and manipulates data. Summarizes findings and writes reports or portions of reports. 5. Greets visitors. Answers and screens telephone calls. Assesses nature of business. Responds to requests for information and provides assistance. Screens and responds to mail. 6. Formats, keyboard, proofread, and edits correspondence, reports, manuscripts, grants, and other material. Assembles attachments and corresponding material. Reviews outgoing material for completeness, dates, and signatures. Composes substantive correspondence and written material. 7. Coordinates travel arrangements. Schedules and coordinates meetings and appointments. Orders and maintains inventory of supplies. Takes minutes or dictation. Performs additional functions incidental to office activities.

Required Education and Experience

Six years of related work experience, four of them in the same job family at the next lower level, and high school level education; or four years of related work experience and an Associate's degree; or little or no work experience and a Bachelor's degree in a related field; or an equivalent combination of experience and education.

Job Posting Date

06/01/2026

Job Category

Administrative Support

Bargaining Unit

L34

Compensation Grade

Labor Grade D

Compensation Grade Profile

Hourly Range

$31.83

Time Type

Full time

Duration Type

Staff

Work Model

Hybrid

Background Check Requirements

All candidates for employment will be subject to pre-employment background screening for this position, which may include motor vehicle, DOT certification, drug testing and credit checks based on the position description and job requirements. All offers are contingent upon the successful completion of the background check. For additional information on the background check requirements and process visit "Learn about background checks" under the Applicant Support Resources section of Careers on the It's Your Yale website.

Health Requirements

Certain positions have associated health requirements based on specific job responsibilities. These may include vaccinations, tests, or examinations, as required by law, regulation, or university policy.

Posting Disclaimer

The hiring rate of a role is determined in accordance with the provisions outlined in the respective collective bargaining agreement.

The intent of this job description is to provide a representative summary of the essential functions that will be required of the position and should not be construed as a declaration of specific duties and responsibilities of the position. Employees will be assigned specific job-related duties through their hiring department.

The University is committed to basing judgments concerning the admission, education, and employment of individuals upon their qualifications and abilities and seeks to attract to its faculty, staff, and student body qualified persons from a broad range of backgrounds and perspectives. In accordance with this policy and as delineated by federal and Connecticut law, Yale does not discriminate in admissions, educational programs, or employment against any individual on account of that individual's sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, race, color, national or ethnic origin, religion, age, disability, status as a special disabled veteran, veteran of the Vietnam era or other covered veteran.

Inquiries concerning Yale's Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment may be referred to the Office of Institutional Equity and Accessibility (OIEA).

Note

Yale University is a tobacco-free campus.