Skip to main content

This job has expired

Student Recruitment and Support Advisors

Employer
The Open University
Location
Cheadle, Greater Manchester
Salary
Up to £10.46 per hour
Closing date
23 Sep 2021

View more

Job Details

Are you looking for a job with a real purpose?

The Open University is looking to recruit full time Student Recruitment and Support Advisors, within their Student Recruitment contact centre located on Altrincham Road, Sharston, Manchester, M22 4UN and candidates must live within a reasonable commutable distance of their local office.

These roles will commence on Monday 25th October 2021 and run until to 28th January 2022. Full commitment to the length of the contract is required.

This role is full time working 37 hours a week, paying £10.71ph.

This role will be office based however it may involve some homeworking, dependant on changes to COVID-19 government guidance. You will be sent additional equipment to allow you to work from home in case of such event. Our current opening hours are 08:00 - 18:00 Monday to Friday. There are currently no late or Saturday shifts at present, however this could change. If the requirement is to introduce a shift pattern, considering 8pm finishes and Saturday working, you will be expected to work shifts similar to the example below:

(Note: Highlighted yellow rows show historic Saturday working weeks without late shifts.)

The role involves providing proactive support and information to enquirers and students on all aspects of registration and to subsequently reserve and register students, whilst adhering to service policy and practice. We also support students studying with us, by providing information and triaging queries to other departments within the university, where appropriate.

The role involves significant telephone work (both inbound and outbound) as well as email, letter, webchat and other mediums as necessary. You will need to be confident working with complex systems and information as we make use of multiple databases to maintain student, company and enquirer details.

During the training period, which is for 3 weeks, you will be fully supported by a Trainer, along with up to 14 other people, who will form your training group. The training will be in the office however at times there will be a need to communicate with the team and other colleagues via a webcam, so you'll need to be either already comfortable with, or at least open to this.

Throughout the 3 weeks training normal office hours will apply and no annual leave is allowed during this period. Equipment (laptop, mouse, keyboard, USB hub, headset & screen) will be provided and sent to your home address. You will need to bring your laptop into the office when training and working onsite.

If working from home is required (in line with OU policy or Government guidance at the time), you will need broadband internet speeds of at least 10Mbit/s download and 2Mbit/s upload. You can test your speeds at the below site:

www.speedtest.net

Annual leave

There is minimal annual leave available during the first 3 weeks after training, due to the high levels of support provided to enable new starters to embed their knowledge.

The Open University is closed during the Christmas period from Thursday 24th December, returning on Tuesday 4th January 2021 but there may be requests for staff to work overtime, which is voluntary.

Finally, in relation to annual leave, there is no leave permitted during our busiest weeks of the year for final enrolment and registration day which is from Tuesday 4th January to Friday 14th January 2022.

How to apply

We are working to a specific recruitment process for this role and this is as follows: -

  • Data entry assessment
  • Telephone interview by Manpower Consultant
  • Interview with two Open University Team Managers via Microsoft TEAMS or Skype .

If you are interested in the role or require any more information, please email we look forward to hearing from you.





Company

Manpower are working with The Open University as their strategic partner for all temporary, contingent and permanent requirements across their various locations.

How would you like to help someone change their life?

The Open University is the UK's largest university, a world leader in flexible part-time education combining a mission to widen access to higher education with research excellence, transforming lives through education. Our research underpins the teaching we deliver to some 200,000 students as the UK's largest university. Nearly three quarters (72%) of Open University research was assessed as world-leading or internationally excellent.

Uniquely we operate within the four nations of the UK, with nation offices in Belfast, Cardiff and Edinburgh as well as regional offices in England and our head office in Milton Keynes.

All of our roles play a key part in our students' journey. The Open University helps anyone in the UK better themselves, whatever their age, background or circumstances. Dip into our series of Open Diaries and discover what it's like for our students to take that life-changing step that you could be a part of.

 

Testimonials

Jo Priddey
I started working with the OU as temporary staff through Manpower during the pandemic. I thought the initial training was fantastic and felt well prepared to start working. When I was offered a permanent position it was great that the OU took my personal needs into consideration so that I am able to complete my degree and work 4 days a week.

Charles White
The recruitment process was smooth from start to finish. As an applicant, it was useful to have the selection process made clear to you from the outset. Communication from Manpower was, and remains, good. Excellent candidate care continues to be provided, they are both responsive and proactive.

Anonymous
So far the Open University has been the best job I have ever had, a very relaxed environment, everyone open to helping one another, no pressure and all trainers prioritise the quality of calls rather than the quantity.

Sarah George
Whilst working at the Open University, the support I have received has been outstanding; from colleagues at advisor level, to the senior management team, there is not a question or query that has not been resolved without a swift and appropriate response.

Thecla Chakunte
Working with the Open University has opened me to a lot. There are a lot of trainings to improve your skills and open you to other possibilities. There is room for growth. A lot of it. And did you know you can study for FREE as permanent staff? Wow! There are other juicy perks too.

Get job alerts

Create a job alert and receive personalised job recommendations straight to your inbox.

Create alert