Student Appeals and Complaints Coordinator

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Student Appeals and Complaints Coordinator ensures that students have access to fair, transparent and consistent processes for challenging University decisions. The role involves assessing complaints, academic appeals and other challenges in line with the University’s Handbook of Student Regulations, making impartial, evidence-based decisions and providing clear procedural guidance to students and staff.

Working in a busy and varied environment, the role holder will respond to enquiries from students and staff, provide clear procedural advice and manage sensitive and sometimes complex cases. The role requires sound judgement, resilience and the ability to maintain a fair and consistent approach when dealing with challenging situations and decisions that may have significant implications for students.

Further information is available in the job description.

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Student Appeals and Complaints Office (SACO) is a small but busy team which provides procedural advice to staff and students, adjudicates on formal appeals and requests for reviews of other University decisions, and responds to requests for information from the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA).

SACO is part of the Legal Services Team. You will work within a professional, collaborative and supportive team, with colleagues who provide advice on associated legal issues. You will also work with colleagues from across the University on casework, sharing good practice and contributing to learning and development opportunities.

ABOUT YOU

To be successful in this role, you will have a good honours degree or equivalent relevant experience, strong analytical skills and experience of applying policies, regulations or procedures to individual cases and making evidence-based decisions.

You will be able to assess complex information, exercise sound judgement and explain decisions clearly and confidently. You will demonstrate intellectual and emotional resilience, maintaining professionalism and impartiality when responding to challenging behaviour, managing sensitive situations and making decisions that may have significant implications for individuals’ futures.

You will have excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to provide clear, sensitive procedural advice and produce accurate, well-reasoned reports explaining the rationale for decisions. You will also be well organised, able to prioritise competing demands and manage your workload effectively to meet deadlines.

The ability to learn quickly, work independently and collaboratively, and respond constructively to challenge and feedback is essential.

Further information is available in the person specification.

If you would like an informal discussion about the role, please contact Moira Christian, Student Appeals and Complaints Manager at [email protected].

To apply for this vacancy please click 'Apply Now'.  Your application should include a covering letter and a CV.

ABOUT US

Join Northumbria University, a research-intensive institution unlocking potential and changing lives locally and globally. Named Times Higher Education's University of the Year in 2022 and Modern University of the Year in 2025, we rank top 25 in the UK for research power. Discover more about us.

With over 37,000 students from 140+ countries, we offer world-leading research, award-winning partnerships, and an outstanding student experience. We empower our exceptional staff, promoting a positive work-life balance and offering great benefits, including excellent pension schemes, flexible working, generous holiday entitlement and more.

Our Northumbria Values, co-created by our team, define who we are: Academic Excellence, Innovation, Inclusivity, Collaboration, and Ambition. Our Behaviours shape our work culture: We listen and learn, support one another, respect everyone, trust each other, and are bold.

Based in Newcastle upon Tyne and London, we are an on-campus organisation and offer flexible hours and location where the role allows. We pride ourselves on diversity and inclusivity, holding a Silver Athena Swan in recognition of our commitment to advancing gender equality, a bronze Race Equality Charter Award and we are a Disability Confident Leader. We also hold the HR Excellence in Research award for implementing the concordat supporting the career Development of Researchers and are members of the Euraxess initiative to deliver information and support to professional researchers.

The University has implemented a range of flexible working arrangements, and we are happy to explore candidate requirements as part of the recruitment process.

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