Advancement Operations & Scholarships Specialist

Details

Open Date 07/28/2026

Requisition Number PRN45766B

Job Title Development

Working Title Advancement Operations & Scholarships Specialist

Career Progression Track P00

Track Level P2 - Developing

FLSA Code Administrative

Patient Sensitive Job Code? No

Standard Hours per Week 40

Full Time or Part Time? Full Time

Shift Day

Work Schedule Summary

Mon–Fri, 8:00 am–5:00 pm; occasional nights and weekends

VP Area President

Department 00289 - Development

Location Campus

City Salt Lake City, UT

Type of Recruitment External Posting

Pay Rate Range $55,000 – $58,000

Close Date 09/15/2026

Priority Review Date (Note - Posting may close at any time) 08/10/2026

Job Summary

The Advancement Operations & Scholarships Specialist provides essential operational, financial, and scholarship management support for the Colleges of Liberal Arts and Sciences ( LAS ). This role ensures accuracy, compliance, and timely execution across scholarship/award tracking, financial reporting preparation, donor data maintenance, and stewardship operations.

The Specialist may report to the Senior Advancement Director (or designee) and collaborates closely with LAS Advancement Services, finance teams, scholarship coordinators, Central Advancement, LAS frontline fundraisers, and the LAS Advancement Senior Director to maintain seamless operations supporting donor stewardship and student impact. This role is critical to ensuring that donor-funded scholarships are awarded, tracked, documented, and reported with accuracy and institutional integrity.

Responsibilities

Development Specialist

Advancement Operations & Administrative Support (45%)

• Draft, route, and finalize gift acknowledgment letters; coordinate review and signatures; ensure accuracy, tone, and timeliness aligned with LAS and University standards.

• Prepare weekly gift reports for the Senior Advancement Director, Vice Provost/Senior Dean, and college deans.

• Prepare monthly gift reports for department chairs and center directors.

• Develop targeted outreach lists; maintain accurate donor records in the CRM ; prepare giving and activity reports to support data‑driven fundraising.

• Maintain team operating budgets; track expenditures; support P‑card and invoice reconciliation; prepare budget status reports; manage ordering of supplies and materials.

• Provide administrative support to the LAS Advancement team, including calendar coordination, meeting preparation, note‑taking, agenda development, action tracking, and document management.

• Support LAS and college Advisory Board operations, including scheduling, agenda development, meeting materials, documentation, and coordination to align board activity with college priorities.

• Identify workflow gaps and recommend or implement process improvements to enhance efficiency, accuracy, and constituent experience.

• Collect, analyze, and summarize operational and stewardship data to assess effectiveness, identify trends, and support informed decision‑making.

Scholarship & Award Administration (30%)

• Maintain comprehensive, audit‑ready stewardship records for LAS scholarships and awards, including fund criteria, recipients, award cycles, stewardee assignments, and financial activity.

• Coordinate with LAS finance managers and scholarship administrators to confirm eligibility, award amounts, and disbursement timelines; proactively resolve discrepancies.

• Collect, review, and quality‑check student materials (thank‑you letters, bios, photos, releases) to ensure timely, brand‑aligned donor communications.

• Liaise with department chairs and faculty to gather impact stories, data, and quotes for donor stewardship and reporting.

• Compile scholarship narratives, student content, and summarized financial data for stewardship plans and donor reports; archive final materials for continuity and compliance.

• Track and report scholarship stewardship metrics to support assessment and continuous improvement.

Additional Responsibilities (20%)

• Support donor‑related events, including scholarship receptions, student‑donor gatherings, and recognition ceremonies.

• Provide flexible operational support during peak cycles such as scholarship season, campaigns, and year‑end stewardship.

Other duties as assigned (5%)

• Complete additional responsibilities at the direction of the Senior Director of Donor Relations or LAS Senior Advancement Director.

Minimum Qualifications

EQUIVALENCY STATEMENT : 1 year of higher education can be substituted for 1 year of directly related work experience (Example: bachelor’s degree = 4 years of directly related work experience).

Development Specialist: Requires a bachelor’s (or equivalency) 4 years or a master’s (or equivalency) 2 years of directly related work experience.

Preferences

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communication, finance, accounting, business, humanities or social sciences, or a related area.

• 6 years of directly related work experience or a master’s (or equivalency) 2 years of directly related work experience.

• Ability to manage multiple deadlines and high‑volume workflows with accuracy.

• Strong editing, organizational, and project management skills.

• Ability to collaborate across teams and manage multiple deadlines.

• Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail; maintains confidentiality.

• Strong collaboration and customer‑service orientation

• Experience with CRM -style database.

• Experience in a higher education advancement unit

• Experience in external communications going to donors, foundations and corporate partners

Key Skills and Competencies:

• Experience with scholarship administration, financial tracking, or advancement operations.

• Proficiency with CRM /donor databases and strong Excel/data management skills.

• Strong writing, proofreading, and document‑coordination abilities.

• Experience supporting events or stewardship activities (e.g., student–donor gatherings, scholarship receptions).

Type Benefited Staff

Special Instructions Summary

Additional Information

The University is a participating employer with Utah Retirement Systems (“URS”). Eligible new hires with prior URS service, may elect to enroll in URS if they make the election before they become eligible for retirement (usually the first day of work). Contact Human Resources at (801) 581-7447 for information. Individuals who previously retired and are receiving monthly retirement benefits from URS are subject to URS’ post-retirement rules and restrictions. Please contact Utah Retirement Systems at (801) 366-7770 or (800) 695-4877 or University Human Resource Management at (801) 581-7447 if you have questions regarding the post-retirement rules.

This position may require the successful completion of a criminal background check and/or drug screen.

The University of Utah values candidates who have experience working in settings with students and possess a strong commitment to improving access to higher education.

Veterans’ preference is extended to qualified applicants, upon request and consistent with University policy and Utah state law. Upon request, reasonable accommodations in the application process will be provided to individuals with disabilities.

Consistent with state and federal law, the University of Utah does not discriminate based upon race, ethnicity, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, or protected veteran’s status. The University does not discriminate on the basis of sex in the education program or activity that it operates, as required by Title IX and 34 CFR part 106. The requirement not to discriminate in education programs or activities extends to admission and employment. Inquiries about the application of Title IX and its regulations may be referred to the Title IX Coordinator, to the Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, or both.

To request a reasonable accommodation for a disability or if you or someone you know has experienced discrimination or sexual misconduct including sexual harassment, you may contact the Director/Title IX Coordinator in the Office of Equal Opportunity and Title IX ( OEO ). More information, including the Director/Title IX Coordinator’s office address, electronic mail address, and telephone number can be located at the: University of Utah Non‑Discrimination page .

Online reports may be submitted at https://oeo.utah.edu

**https://publicsafety.utah.edu/safetyreport/**This report includes statistics about criminal offenses, hate crimes, arrests and referrals for disciplinary action, and Violence Against Women Act offenses. They also provide information about safety and security-related services offered by the University of Utah. A paper copy can be obtained by request at the Department of Public Safety located at 1658 East 500 South.

As per University of Utah policy 5-108: Transfer of Benefits Eligible Staff Members , a new hire to the University of Utah who is still serving a 12 month probationary period will not be hired into another University of Utah job (a transfer) until the successful completion of the probationary period.