Who we are
Part business, part charity, part membership body – students’ unions are all seriously fun places to work. They are organisations in their own right. Professionally run, but different. Professional teams support elected student leaders to make a change, improve lives and fulfil potential; we help make it happen.
Founded in 1897, LSE Students' Union is one of the oldest Students' Unions in the UK and is the representative and campaigning body for students at The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). Like other Students' Unions, it also funds and facilitates student activities of campus, including societies, sports clubs through the Athletics Union (AU), the Media Group and Raising and Giving (RAG) charitable fundraising initiatives.
About the job
The LSESU Advice Service is a sector-leading service with high student satisfaction rates and a talented and high-performing team composed of 1 full-time Caseworker and 1 part-time Advice Assistant.
The Service provides advice to students on a range of academic and housing issues, whilst also administering a series of increasingly sought-after hardship funds. The Advice Caseworker will be expected to become an expert in the various areas of advice and support provided and deliver the bulk of the casework.
In addition to reacting to student demand, we are also a proactive service that produces regular blogs and manages two social media accounts. The successful candidate will therefore be responsible for delivering much of the Service’s communication and engagement strategy with a view to increasing stakeholder awareness, improving service accessibility, and providing regular, proactive and useful information to students.
Another key aspect of the role is departmental support for elected student officers. What this looks like will vary, but likely responsibilities include writing and delivering committee briefings, supporting policy and campaigns work and being involved in officer project teams.
The Advice Service also sits within the wider Student Voice Department, which includes the Representation Team. The job, therefore, entails working closely with and supporting colleagues across the department, as well as across the organisation.
Who are we looking for?
In many ways, this isn’t a typical Advice Service, and we’re not looking for a typical Advice Caseworker. We pride ourselves on our innovative approach to student support and are looking for someone who shares that creative ambition and attitude.
Being a skilled caseworker is considered essential. We are looking for someone who is both empathetic and pragmatic, and capable of handling an-at-times large and complex caseload whilst maintaining low response times and handling challenges with a positive and solution-focused attitude. The successful individual will be passionate about supporting individuals and understand the complexities of working with an external organisation.
Given the key role in providing 1:1 advice; supervising student staff; writing and copy-editing blogs and social media posts, and potentially writing and delivering committee briefings; strong interpersonal, written and oral communication skills are considered to be essential. Strong attention to detail and the ability to digest and disseminate information about complex regulations is crucial in delivering the high level of support we provide to LSE students.
We are seeking someone who is self-motivated, driven, resilient and a role model to others. Someone who is a team player, able to support others and to build and maintain strong stakeholder relationships.
If this sounds like you, we’d love you to apply!
Why apply?
Because you’re excited by the challenge! The exact opposite of corporate, we’re progressive, daring and creative individuals working to make a difference in unconventional workplaces.
Benefits and Perks
In return for your passion and experience, we offer:
- 25 days holidays per year
- Additional closure periods at Christmas and Easter
- Free LSE Students’ Union gym membership, advice from dedicated professionals, with a wide range of activities including yoga classes, dance classes, pilates classes
- Cycle to Work scheme enabling significant savings on bicycle purchase
- Access to LSE & UAL staff training courses
- Ability to purchase TOTUM (NUS) card giving a wide range of discounts
- Flexibility for work-life balance
- Interest-free travel loan
How we recruit
We want to ensure all systems, policies and processes are free from bias or discrimination and are fair and accessible, therefore we ask that all candidates complete our Application Process in two stages:
Part 1 (Application Form) is all about you telling us about your suitability for the role and will be used to determine if you are shortlisted for an interview.
Part 2 (Equal Opportunities Monitoring and Contact Form) is personal information – so we can contact you if you are shortlisted for the interview. It also helps us gather and analyse demographic information about our applicants. This part will only be seen by HR and will not have any impact on shortlisting.
Application forms are formatted to ensure the equality monitoring data is removed before applications are seen by the shortlisting panel. This process allows us to ensure that the shortlisting is done in a fair and consistent manner and all applicants are given the same opportunity to demonstrate their abilities.
Want to apply?
To apply, please complete our online application which can be found on our website: https://www.lsesu.com/union/jobs/.
For further information regarding the role, please read the full job description.
If you would like to have an informal chat about this role, please contact Declan Katwala, Advice Service Manager, via email at D.katwala@lse.ac.uk