lecturer

research fellow

research associate

academic services officer

project officer

University of South Australia

I was engaged as relieving administrative assistant and given work as relieving receptionist when the administrative assistant returned to work.  My preferred role is in the administrative assistance and team support areas rather than receptionist.  I have the ability to type as someone speaks but did not use this skill in this job.
I learned a lot about how the university is run supporting nursing students. I was able to work with a team of people who were exceptional in sorting out day to day inquiries for national and international students making each student feel that their inquiry was important. 
A great place to work as they embrace all ages and all cultures, both male and female.
The work I did ranged from normal receptionist duties to helping type up the 1st draft of an administrative assistant procedures manual. Although working in a more repetitive area of work there were challenges due to my short time there and limited experience with the background of university student courses.

At UniSA I manage a team of 8 Travel Administrators delivering over 6,700 bookings annually between them that accounts for millions of dollars in travel expenditure from the University annually. Working in Procurement is relatively new to me, but I have taken a liking to the thought process behind our procedures for purchasing travel and how we can increase savings in the University and streamline the booking process for professional and academic staff members. I enjoy the management part of my role the most, as I have a great team that makes for a great and cohesive working environment. 

A great place to work.  Interaction with the nursing students and being able to influence them early in their training was a probably the most rewarding part of being a tutor.

My co-workers were friendly, but we rarely socialised outside of work.  I saw the Head of School in the corridors on most days, but we did not converse.  My direct supervisor was very encouraging and friendly.

Depending on what course I was teaching, depended on how many times per week I was required to attend the University.  I was there only for the tutorial (3 hours) and any preparation work that I needed to do for the class or the following class.

Very process-driven rather than outcome-driven, and focussed on saving money to the point of penny-pinching. Culture is exploitative - use and discard - and 'bums-on-seats'/time-served - work your hours and leave. Not a lot of interest in continuous improvement. Personally I didn't learn anything professionally during my time there, however did learn about dodgy/unethical/immoral workplace attitudes, practices and behaviours. Management is often quite siloed (them-and-us), and there is quite a bit of nepotism. The best part of the job was definitely supporting/serving the students, especially the international ones - who really appreciate the opportunities tertiary education in Australia brings them.

A typical day involved collaborating with other students and professors in laboratory settings, focusing mainly on different fields of study under the University of SA's School of Pharmacy and Medical Sciences. I learnt how to manage my time efficiently by attending to the work place from 8am to 3pm, considering that I was at least an hour away from the work location. Everyone was very friendly and professional at the University, treating the students with care and providing us the information we need in order to perform tasks effectively. The most enjoyable part of the job is working at the laboratories.

A typical day involves managing finance-related tasks, responding to stakeholder enquiries, processing reports and reconciliations, and supporting different departments with budgeting and compliance matters. The workload is generally manageable and the environment is quite structured.

I developed stronger stakeholder management and communication skills, improved my attention to detail, and gained broader experience in university finance processes, reporting, and administrative systems.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Promotes collaboration and is inclusive. Provides a work atmosphere that brings the best in employees.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
None that I encountered. I just have to leave because of the pandemic.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
very encouraging and supportive with clear career pathways.

I possess a Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering (Honours), as well as a strong knowledge of the mechanical industry. For the past one year I worked as a Project Assistant for University of South Australia, running experiments to produce and analyse samples. In this role I have refined my time management and operation skills for experimental facilities.

Good employment conditions continually being eroded by increasing use of short term contracts and other methods to allow local management to replace rather than develop workforce.
Education increasingly a financial activity, unfortunately UniSA probably not unique in this.

It was a 9am to 5pm weekday works. However, we had flexible lunch time which was good. I gained experiences on the laboratory work skill and friendship while working with my partner. The laboratory assistants are all very nice. They provide us whatever facilities we need for the research and willing to help us with what we aren't sure on the equipment in the laboratory.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Lecturer 6 salaries reported	$121,947 per year
Research fellow 2 salaries reported	$110,344 per year
Research associate 3 salaries reported	$103,888 per year
Academic services officer 17 salaries reported	$78,995 per year
Project officer 1 salary reported	$109,826 per year

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