International Relations Manager

The University 
 
At Durham University we are proud of our people.  A globally outstanding centre of educational excellence, a collegiate community of extraordinary people, a unique and historic setting – Durham is a university like no other. We believe that inspiring our people to do outstanding things at Durham enables Durham people to do outstanding things professionally and personally.   

Across the University we have a huge variety of roles and career opportunities, which together make us a large and successful community, which is a key hub of activity within our region and nationally.  We would be thrilled if you would consider joining our thriving University. 

Further information about the University can be found here

The Role and Department 

The International Office is responsible for:
•    The recruitment of international students to all areas of the university to meet institutional targets
•    Supporting and managing the development of international partnerships to raise the University’s global profile and to support academic colleagues in developing international collaborations. 
•    Managing the university’s student mobility programmes to meet student mobility targets.

The International Relations Manager will lead on the identification and development of new relationships with international sponsors (incl. ministries) and scholarship bodies, to grow the number of international sponsored and scholarship students studying at Durham and to widen access to under-represented groups. The post holder will work closely with existing international scholarship agency partners to address barriers and to promote joint award opportunities. 
Working through existing committee structures, this role leads on the contractual agreement negotiations with external partners. They are responsible for the evaluation of performance against agreed deliverables and establishing processes for monitoring performance and reporting in line with partner organisations requirements. The post holder will work to meet targets set over an initial period of three- years.
This role leads a small International Relations sub-team (International Relations Manager and Coordinator) located within the International Partnerships and Relations Team in the International Office. The function of the wider team is to support and build relationships with key universities, research organisations, cultural institutions and international networks; and with key stakeholders in the UK and within region, in order to achieve targets set out in DUs Global Strategy. Key objectives are reputation and profile building, research income and to support the development of global programmes for both in and outbound students and staff. Cross team working is key to achieving targets in this area.
This role would suit someone with outstanding organisational and interpersonal skills with experience of external stakeholder engagement and negotiation. Applicants with experience of working in multi- cultural environments are particularly welcome.

Further information about the role and the responsibilities is at the bottom of this job description. 
 
Working at Durham  
 
A competitive salary is only one part of the many fantastic benefits you will receive if you join the University: you will also receive access to the following fantastic benefits:  
 
•    30 Days annual leave per year in addition to 8 public holidays and 4 customary days per year – a total of 42 days per year.   
•    The University closes between Christmas and New Year.   
•    We offer a generous pension scheme, As a new member of staff you will be automatically enrolled  into the University Superannuation Scheme (USS). 
•    No matter how you travel to work, we have you covered.  We have parking across campus, a cycle to work scheme which helps you to buy a bike and discount with local bus and train companies. 
•    There is a genuine commitment to developing our colleagues professionally and personally.  There is a comprehensive range of development courses, apprenticeships and access to qualifications and routes to develop your career in the University.  All staff have dedicated annual time to concentrate on their personal development opportunities.  
•    Lots of support for health and wellbeing including discounted membership for our state of the art sport and gym facilities and access to a 24-7 Employee Assistance Programme. 
•    On site nursery is available and children’s clubs in the summer holidays. 
•    Family friendly policies, including maternity and adoption leave, which are among the most generous in the higher education sector (and likely above and beyond many employers). 
•    The opportunity to take part in staff volunteering activities to make a difference in the local community 
•    Discounts are available via our benefits portal including; money off at supermarkets, high street retailers, IT products such as Apple, the cinema and days out at various attractions.  
•    A salary sacrifice scheme is also available to help you take advantage of tax savings on benefits.  
•    If you are moving to Durham, we can help with removal costs and we have a dedicated team who can help you with the practicalities such as house hunting and schools.  If you need a visa, we cover most visa costs and offer an interest free loan scheme to pay for dependant visas. 

Durham University is committed to equality diversity, inclusion and values 

Our collective aim is to create an open and inclusive environment where everyone can reach their full potential and we believe our staff should reflect the diversity of the global community in which we work.   

As a University equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are a key part of the University’s Strategy and a central part of everything we do.  We also live by our values and our Staff Code of Conduct.  At Durham we actively work towards providing an environment where our staff and students can study, work and live in a community which is supportive and inclusive. It’s important to us that all of our colleagues are aligned to both our values and commitment to EDI. 
 
We welcome and encourage applications from members of groups who are under-represented in our work force including people with disabilities, women and black, Asian and minority ethnic communities.  If you have taken time out of your career, and you feel it relevant, let us know about it in your application.  If you are a candidate with a disability, we are committed to ensuring fair treatment throughout the recruitment process. We will make adjustments to support the interview process wherever it is reasonable to do so and, where successful, reasonable adjustments will be made to support people within their role  

Person Specification – what you need to demonstrate when you apply

When you apply it is important that you let us know what skills/experience you have from a similar role and/or what skills/experience you have which would make you right for this role.  Further information about the role and responsibilities is at the end of this job description.   

Essential Criteria

1.     Excellent oral and written communication skills and the ability to develop excellent working relationships both internally and externally. 

2.     Excellent digital competence with demonstrable skills in using digital tools including Microsoft 365 applications, project planning, data base manipulation and development, financial systems. 

3.     Educated to degree level

4.     Experience of working in Global Higher education or related field.

5.     Professional practitioner with knowledge and expertise used to contribute to the delivery and development of services, events and activities within the organisation. 

6.     Experience of line management, managing and developing a team.

7.     Demonstrable experience of data analysis and report writing for professional and academic audiences/ committees.

8.     Experience of providing specialist advice and guidance to a range of customers and colleagues, including more senior colleagues. 

9.     Experience of being able to network effectively, to successfully negotiate agreements and to develop strong and productive working relationships.

10.  Experience of improving and developing procedures and continuous evaluation to improve the efficiency of service delivery.

11.  Knowledge and experience of ensuring compliance with contractual obligations, institutional and government policies, and procedures.

12.  Ability to plan for service delivery in order to achieve targets.

Desirable Criteria

1. Experience of Banner and ODBC reporting tools

2. Experience of developing marketing collateral and the ability to develop web content.

How to Apply

To progress to the assessment stage, candidates must evidence each of the essential criteria required for the role in the person specification above. It will be at the discretion of the recruiting panel as to whether they will also consider any desirable criteria, but we would urge candidates to provide evidence for all criteria. 

While some criteria will be considered at the shortlisting stage, other criteria may be considered later in the assessment process, such as questions at interview.    

Submitting your application  

We prefer to receive applications online.   We will update you about your application at various points throughout the selection process, via automated emails from our e-recruitment system. Please check your spam/junk folder periodically to make sure you have not missed any of our updates. 

What you need to submit

·       A CV

·       A covering letter which outlines how you meet all of the criteria within the Person Specification.     

Contact details    

For a chat about the role or any further information please contact Jemima Lloyd ([email protected]).  

Further information about the role:

Role Requirements

Service Delivery

·       Develop service processes for the monitoring and evaluation of scholarship/ sponsorship agreement and deliverables

·       Prepare and manage the International Relations budget and monitor expenditure to ensure cost-effective service delivery. 

·       Deliver support elements of the wider student experience applicable to service area.

·       A commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and the University’s values.

Planning and Organising

·       Manage operational service activities to ensure excellence in the stakeholder experience. 

·       Manage and monitor service performance and provide metrics and reports to Service Heads, making recommendations as appropriate. 

·       Develop, modify and optimise service protocols and methodologies. 

·       Provide analysis of statistical service metrics to identify successful delivery, progress against agreed targets and areas for future improvement. 

·       Horizon- scan external global HE environment to ensure agility to capitalise on appropriate opportunities.

Teamwork

·       Provide feedback on team and individual performance and identify development needs, conducting regular staff ADR and performance reviews. 

·       Handle the vast majority of welfare issues within a team, referring more complex welfare issues to appropriate support services/senior management. 

·       Delivery of ongoing coaching, mentoring and training to team members. 

·       Devolve responsibilities to team members to ensure continuity of service provision and encourage skills development. 

Communication/ Networking

·       Internal and external relationship development and partnership working, networking and participation to engage, negotiate and influence the development of partnerships with scholarship agencies and sponsors

·       Contribute to business meetings, working groups and committees as appropriate.

·       Participate in and monitor communities of practice and partnership working internally and externally. 

·       Network and engage with external and internal stakeholders to gather feedback and identify future service needs and business opportunities

Knowledge and Experience

·       Recognised professional practitioner and management and/or service specialist with responsibility for the management of team members. 

·       Maintain an awareness of current policy for University business goals such as global engagement, widening participation and access. 

·       Any other reasonable duties including occasional weekend or evening work. National and possible international travel, as required.

Please note that in submitting your application Durham University will be processing your data. We would ask you to consider the relevant University Privacy Statement https://www.dur.ac.uk/ig/dp/privacy/pnjobapplicants/ which provides information on the collation, storing and use of data.    

When appointing to this role the University must ensure that it meets any applicable immigration requirements, including salary thresholds which are applicable to some visas.