Administrative Assistant II

This position provides operational and administrative support for the Kacar laboratory, with immediate responsibility for maintaining continuity on NASA ICAR MUSE and related laboratory operations. The Kacar laboratory's area of research includes origins of life, astrobiology, early life and evolution, systems and synthetic biology, and molecular paleobiology.

Core responsibilities include:
- Coordinating administrative, budgetary, and communication needs across a high-volume research laboratory.
- Supporting pre-award grant preparation, proposal timelines, document routing, and submission coordination.
- Supporting post-award grant management, including budget tracking, award documentation, purchasing, expense reconciliation, and reporting.
- Serving as the administrative point of contact for NASA ICAR MUSE and other multi-institutional research teams, including scheduling, meeting logistics, communications, and follow-up on action items.
- Coordinating scheduling, recruitment, hiring, payroll, onboarding, offboarding, travel, purchasing, and reimbursements for lab members and project participants.
- Providing direct PI support to project milestones, deadlines, budget oversight, and compliance-related administrative processes.

• Sends, receives, copies, and distributes communications to the appropriate entities according to established policies and procedures under general supervision

• Schedules logistics and secures resources for meetings, conferences, travel, and work unit operations

• Maintains established methods and organizational systems directed at the maintenance of electronic/physical records related to work operations according to established policies and procedures

• Serves as a first point of contact for individuals and groups, provides basic organizational information via phone, in person and through other communication mediums, and routes more complex inquiries to the appropriate entities

• Collects, analyzes, and prepares various communication materials from established sources utilizing technology mediums

College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS), Department of Bacteriology, Kacar Laboratory.

The minimum pay for this position is $22/hour. However, final salary will depend on experience and qualifications. Employees in this position can expect to receive benefits such as generous vacation, holidays, and paid time off; competitive insurances and savings accounts; retirement benefits. Additional benefits information can be found at: https://www.wisconsin.edu/ohrwd/benefits/download/univstaff.pdf

• Organizational and time-management skills that include problem-solving, multi-tasking, prioritizing, and meeting deadlines

• Knowledge of pre- and post-award grant scientific management, preferably with experience in large federal grants

• Experience communicating and coordinating operational team logistics across teams or institutions

• Prior experience with personnel administration support such as recruitment, hiring, onboarding, offboarding, travel, purchasing and reimbursements, and records management.

• Knowledge of grant submission platforms, such as federal proposal submission systems.

• Prior experience working in a laboratory or research environment.

• Prior experience with administrative systems commonly used in higher education (e.g., Workday, Concur, purchasing card reconciliation, financial/travel platforms, etc.).

H.S. Diploma preferred minimum

Time Type

This position is full or part-time, 50%-100%

Work Schedule:

Normal hours are 7:45am - 4:30pm, Monday through Friday.

Headquarters Location (official location of work):

Microbial Sciences Building, 1550 Linden Drive, Madison, WI

Click on the "Apply Online" button to start the application process. You will be prompted to upload the following documents/application materials:

Be prepared to upload one SINGLE PDF file that contains:

Resume (required) - Detail your educational and professional background
Cover letter (required) - Refer to your related work experience
Finalists will be asked to provide contact information for three (3) references, including your current/most recent supervisor. References will not be contacted without prior notice.

It is important that your cover letter and resume reflect your experience for this position related to the Qualifications section. Your application materials will be used during our evaluation to determine your qualifications as they relate to the job. The most qualified applicants will be invited to participate in the next step of the selection process.

*Criminal Background Check may be required

*Probationary period may be required

Work Authorization:

Please note that successful applicant is responsible for ensuring eligibility for employment in the United States by the start of the appointment. University sponsorship is not available for this position.

College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS), HR Manager, Erin Cook at erin.cook@wisc.edu

College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS), HR Generalist, Veronica Pierce at veronica.pierce@wisc.edu

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