Undergraduate Programmes Administrator

Stephanie Dutton, Undergraduate Programmes Administrator, Dept of Greek & Latin

I am currently working as the Undergraduate Programmes Administrator in the department of Greek and Latin. I am responsible for the administration of all our undergraduate programmes from induction to final exams. I work in a team of three Administrators and together we ensure the successful running of the department.

I first joined UCL in September 2014 as Student Enquiries Officer in the School of Slavonic and East European Studies (SSEES). I worked on the reception desk in the Student Administration Office and dealt with enquiries, extenuating circumstances and affiliate student administration. Before this I had worked as a receptionist at Imperial College London which was my first experience of working in higher education.

After working at SSEES for 18 months, I left for Greek and Latin and started as the Teaching and Reception Administrative Assistant. In December 2017, I applied for a secondment in the UCL Medical School as a Teaching Administrator. I was in this role for four months and it was very different to what I had done at SSEES and Greek and Latin, however I was able to apply some of my past experience to my responsibilities there. When I returned to Greek and Latin, my role had been re-graded with the new title of Undergraduate Programmes Administrator.

Student support has greatly increased in importance in the role of Programme Administrators in recent years, so I want to make sure I am as informed as possible about UCL’s resources and training in supporting students.

From December 2016 to June 2017, I worked on my application to become an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy through UCL Arena. I was awarded Associate Fellowship in July 2017 and was among a very small group of professional services staff to do so. I have attended conferences organised by UCL and the Association of University Administrators (AUA), of which I am a member. I have kept in touch with my colleagues in the UCL Medical School by coaching my successor in UCL systems, which I hope will teach me key skills in line management.

I would strongly advise others in my area to apply for Arena Fellowship. It is a fantastic way to reflect on what you do and remember what additional skills you bring to your role. It can be difficult to fit in around your working day, but my department were very supportive of my application and granted me some study leave to work on it. Attend as many workshops, training sessions and conferences as you can. I would also recommend enrolling on the InEDITA Moodle page, which has been specifically designed for Administrators by Administrators, and there are great resources there in best practice and further training.

At the moment, I’m shadowing my manager in his role as Exams Liaison Officer so I can gain further experience that will allow me to apply for management roles. I am doing a lot of self-training in Microsoft Office 365 and adapting our current procedures to make them as efficient as possible for our students. I am on the lookout for secondments in management roles and continuing to coach my successor in my previous secondment role.