Program Description:
Academic Essentials is a set of online courses that are offered to all incoming first-year students, regardless of discipline, as part of the Orientations programs offered at UBC. These courses are optional, not-for-credit, and self-paced, and aim to allow students to brush up on fundamental knowledge and develop skills that will build their academic confidence and give them tools and strategies for success as they begin their studies at UBC. In this fourth year of the program, three courses will be offered: Readiness for University Mathematics, Reading and Writing at University, and Live Well to Learn Well. Each course will span 6 weeks, and course activities will be supported by student Facilitators.
Job Summary:
The main duty of this position is to provide online course support and facilitate student activities in a timely fashion for the Academic Essentials Live Well to Learn Well course under the supervision of the Course Coordinator. This course covers topics in student success, mental health and well-being, financial literacy, and effective study strategies. The Facilitator is responsible for guiding their assigned sections as they progress through the course, checking and responding to student discussion posts and/or short written assignments, answering questions related to the course, holding office hours and live engagement activities, etc. Facilitators are providing a personal touch to the course, which is important for this type of orientation and training program.
The secondary duty of this position is to provide support to the Course Coordinators for course support tasks as needed.
Work Performed:
Duties include: checking and responding to discussion posts and emails by participants, holding online “office hours” for students (which may take various forms designed to engage participants), troubleshooting technical issues as they arise, escalating issues to the Course Coordinators when necessary, keeping records of email communications and troubleshooting course progression, attending team meetings, and providing brief feedback on student work. Time will also be allocated to a debrief session at the conclusion of the program. Professionalism, and communication and organizational skills are very important requirements for this position. Training and orientation will be provided. All work will be conducted online.
Supervision received:
Supervised by Academic Essentials Course Coordinators
Rate and hours:
$19.25/hourly, contract for 10-12 hours/week starting July 4th and ending August 14th. There will also be training and orientation sessions prior to the start of the program.
Education/Work Experience:
- Experience with using an LMS, Canvas preferred
- Experience supporting instructors or students in any capacity preferred
- Experience as Teaching Assistant or similar position preferred
Skills:
- An ability to interact with incoming students with empathy, support and honesty, and to engage in constructive discussions on sometimes challenging topics.
- Excellent testing and troubleshooting skills
- An ability to display initiative and creativity with high productivity while meeting deadlines and fast changing priorities
- An ability to work comfortably in an online environment
- An ability to work efficiently independently and in a team environment
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- A professional, responsible and reliable attitude
Application:
To apply, please send a short personal statement (maximum of half a page) outlining why you would be well suited for this position, your CV (optional), and the name and contact number of two references at academic.essentials@ubc.ca by Wednesday, May 31st, 11:59 PDT. Please make sure to include your contact information including program and year of study, and student number. Please use AE Facilitator Application – Live Well to Learn Well as the subject line of the email. If you want to be considered for the role of Facilitator for more than one Academic Essentials course, please submit separate applications for each one.
Please note that to be eligible for this position you must physically be in Canada for the duration of the contract, you must be a current UBC student returning full time in September, and that if you are an international student, you will need a valid work permit.
Thank you for your interest in the position!