Intermediate Advisor, Financial Aid

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Job Type:

Employee

Duration in Months (for fixed-term jobs):

N/A

Job Family:

Financial Aid

# of Open Positions:

1

Faculty/Service – Department:

Financial Aid

Campus:

Main Campus

Union Affiliation:

SSUO

Date Posted:

mars 21, 2024

Closing Date:

avril 01, 2024

Note: Applications will be accepted until 11:59 PM on the day prior to the Posting End Date above

Hours per week:

35

Salary Grade:

SSUO Grade 10

Salary Range:

$75 743,00 – $95 678,00

About Student Affairs :

Student Affairs is at the very heart of the student experience at the University of Ottawa. We recruit the very best future students, support them throughout their university years and leave them well-prepared for fulfilling careers and future studies. Our team of more than 600 dedicated staff provides the services that keep students happy, well and thriving as they pursue their ambitions. We help them apply and enrol for courses, we oversee 11 residences and an award-winning Dining Hall, we organize fun events and varsity sports activities, we run an innovative career development and experiential learning program and much more!

There’s nothing more rewarding than helping future generations reach their full potential at a world-class university. With our wide variety of career opportunities and professional development pathways, we’re sure that you’ll enjoy the experience as much as our students do.

Position purpose:

Playing a vital role in the determination of funding available for each student, the Financial Aid Counsellor conducts student need analysis, performs federal and provincial verifications, certifies grant and loan eligibility, provides financial aid counselling, makes professional judgment decisions regarding student aid eligibility, appeals and facilitate problem solving with clients.

In this role, your responsibilities will include:

• Counsels students and parents regarding all aspects of financial aid process. Interviews, evaluates, and advises students regarding eligibility for financial programs based on need, goals and personal information.
• Determines the urgency of financial need and severity to grant emergency loans, food vouchers and emergency funding bursary.
• Monitors and evaluates satisfactory academic progress of students. Reviews and resolves student appeals relating to academic progress. Restricts student from receiving additional funding when academic performance has not been met.
• Establishes and documents all professional judgment decisions and corrections, justifying actions taken that will withstand review by ministry auditors.
• Conducts needs analysis criteria to determine the eligibility of each financial aid applicant in compliance with federal and provincial.
• Awards and revises financial aid in accordance with federal, provincial, United States and institutional regulations and guidelines
• Provides support to students experiencing family, personal or economic crises or breakdown which may impact school performance and financial aid eligibility. Specific focus on working with special needs populations to identify unique needs and coordinate appropriate services.
• Participates in the development of institutional financial aid policies and procedures that will positively impact efficiency and quality of service provided.
• Performs community outreach at workshops in a variety of settings, including on and off campus, day, evening, and weekend venues. Coordinate presentations with sponsoring groups and other presenters.
• Provides assistance and support to the Financial Aid Manager and Administrator with the elaboration of training material, staff training, work scheduling and special project tasks.

What you will bring:

• Postsecondary education in a related field or work experience that is deemed equivalent
• At least 3 to 5 years of experience in a similar position;
• 2 year of experience working with procedures, regulations and methods that govern government financial aid;
• Experience in customer service dealing with diversified and vulnerable client, and acting as an advising resource person;
• Experience in counselling, conflict resolution and crises management;
• Awareness of confidentiality as well as informed consent and accessibility at all times
• Ability to deliver presentations in front of various client bases;
• Knowledge of postsecondary education programs and academic rules and regulations;
• Experience in analyzing files and creative problem solving
• Experience in elaborating, interpreting, explaining and applying regulations and methods;
• Experience with computer systems, multiple database and Microsoft software including intermediate/advanced knowledge of Excel;
• Experience in personal budget analysis and ability to perform mathematical calculation and validation
• Organisational skills, ability to work under pressure and with strict deadlines;
• Good interpersonal and communication skills (sound judgement, tact and diplomacy);
• Experience in administrative writing;
• Bilingualism (written and oral communication);
• This position may require the incumbent to work outside of regular office hours and on weekends.

Key Competencies at uOttawa:

Here are the required competencies for all or our employees at uOttawa: 

Planning: Organize in time a series of actions or events in order to realize an objective or a project. Plan and organize own work and priorities in regular daily activities.

Initiative: Demonstrate creativity and initiative to suggest improvements and encourage positive results. Is proactive and self-starting. Show availability and willingness to go above and beyond whenever it is possible.

Client Service Orientation: Help or serve others to meet their needs. This implies anticipating and identifying the needs of internal and external clients and finding solutions on how to meet them.

Teamwork and Cooperation: Cooperate and work well with other members of the team to reach common goal(s). Accept and give constructive feedback. Able to adjust own behaviour to reach the goals of the team.

The University of Ottawa embraces diversity and inclusion in the workplace. We are passionate about our people and committed to employment equity. We foster a culture of respect, teamwork and inclusion, where collaboration, innovation, and creativity fuel our quest for research and teaching excellence. While all qualified persons are invited to apply, we welcome applications from qualified Indigenous persons, racialized persons, persons with disabilities, women and LGBTQIA2S+ persons. The University is committed to creating and maintaining an accessible, barrier-free work environment. The University is also committed to working with applicants with disabilities requesting accommodation during the recruitment, assessment and selection processes. Applicants with disabilities may contact hrtalentmanagement@uottawa.ca to communicate the accommodation need. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

Note: if this is a union position: The hiring process will be governed by the current collective agreement related to the union affiliation noted above; you can click here to find out more.

If this is a front-line position with responsibilities to interact with students, selected candidates must be rated at the Low Advanced proficiency level or higher for both oral comprehension and reading comprehension in their second official language. The rating is determined by a proficiency test designed by the Official Languages and Bilingualism Institute.

Prior to May 1, 2022, the University required all students, faculty, staff, and visitors (including contractors) to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 as defined in Policy 129 – Covid-19 Vaccination. This policy was suspended effective May 1, 2022 but may be reinstated at any point in the future depending on public health guidelines and the recommendations of experts.

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