Graduate Funding Coordinator

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Posting Information:

This posting is for an existing vacancy.

The internal posting deadline for this position is February 5, 2026, at 11:59PM.

Job Description:

Primary Purpose

The Graduate Funding Coordinator supports all aspects of graduate program funding to meet the heavy demands related to the department’s academic and research programs. The Graduate Funding Coordinator manages the administration of all Electrical and Computer Engineering graduate student funding including Graduate Research Studentships (GRS), Graduate Research Assistantships (GRA), Teaching Assistant program, endowments and trusts, and internal and external scholarships. The Graduate Funding Coordinator is a fundamental component of the student experience in ECE.

Key Accountabilities

Graduate Research Studentship (GRS) Administration

· Process GRS payments of $12.5M+ annually (involving multiple departments and budgets).

· Prepare GRS letters to confirm funding sources and authorization.

· Identify account problems and resolve issues.

· Ensure compliance with university policies and procedures.

· Liaise with Financial Coordinators for auditing purposes.

· Submit payment information to Graduate Studies and Post-Doctoral Affairs (GSPA).

· Advise faculty on alternative funding options.

· Manage all GRS adjustments, corrections and account changes as requested by faculty members.

· Ensure all GRS payments are in line with minimum graduate student funding requirements.

· Maintain department E-GRS system in conjunction with the personnel from the Dean of Engineering Office.

Graduate Research Assistantship (GRA) Administration

· Liaise with Financial Coordinators and other departments to ensure funding availability and research finance compliance review for GRAs.

· Confirm eligibility to work on campus as per immigration regulations.

· Process GRA payments each term (involving multiple departments and budgets).

Scholarship Administration

· Manage the annual departmental scholarship budget, including forecasting future budgetary needs based on current student data.

· Notify students and faculty of funding opportunities and scholarship competitions.

· Advise students and faculty regarding the application process, eligibility requirements, agency competition rules, regulations, and deadlines.

· Review applications for graduate level scholarship competitions.

· Assist with processing scholarship applications and evaluate student eligibility.

· Assist with preparing summaries to support the ranking process.

· Assist with coordination of ECE Ranking Committee meetings.

· Assist with documenting ranking decisions and official comments associated with each candidate’s ranking.

· Assist with distributing results and scholarship packages to GSPA.

· Provide statistical data for the department.

· Keep current on scholarship guidelines and criteria and update internal due dates and procedures.

· Ensure external scholarship guidelines are adhered to.

· Assist with maintaining graduate scholarship budgets.

· Process all endowments and trusts.

Student Funding Administration

· Maintain payment records to facilitate reconciliations, and internal and external audits

· Prepares student funding reports.

· Collaborates with the ECE Financial Officer or Financial Coordinators on payroll issues.

· Manage the financial records of each student in the student information system (Quest) and department database (FileMaker).

· Ensure that all payments have been paid out correctly and resolve payroll issues.

· Monitor payments for adherence to University and government regulations.

· Assists students in understanding department, Faculty and University policies and procedures, and applying rules to their specific cases.

Teaching Assistant (TA) Administration

· Act as main point of contact for inquiries related to ECE TA process.

· Determines TA application cycle for upcoming term and initiates TA application process.

· Manages TA recruitment processes for ECE Undergraduate/Graduate level courses and responds to relevant inquiries from faculty, staff and other Engineering departments.

· Maintains the TA database to ensure all relevant records are accurate and up to date.

· Schedules termly TA assignment meetings; facilitates review of preliminary TA assignments during meetings.

· Issues TA contracts each term and initiates second round hiring process.

· Submits term TA hires to Human Resources for processing in Workday.

Other

· Recommend solutions to problems or development of efficiencies to improve existing methods/procedures and user-friendly services.

· Recommend enhancements of department data management software (FileMaker).

· Maintain procedures and documentation pertaining to the responsibilities of the position.

· Provides financial support to the ECE Finance team during peak periods, as required.

· Provides back-up coverage for the other graduate administrative staff during absences.

· Other duties or projects assigned by the Manager, Graduate Studies, Administrative Officer or Financial Officer.

Required Qualifications

Education

· Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent education and experience in a related field.

Experience

· Three plus years administrative and financial experience in an academic environment. Experience working with graduate students and/or graduate funding is an asset.

Knowledge/Skills/Abilities

· Comprehensive understanding of university policies and procedures as they relate to graduate studies and/or graduate finance strongly preferred.

· Intermediate to advanced skills with Microsoft Office, databases and other web-based applications required - Excel, Word, Outlook, SharePoint, FileMaker, Quest, OnBase.

· Ability to learn and adapt to specialized software and systems at the University.

· Strong commitment to client-centered service and a positive, dynamic, approach interactions with students, clients, and colleagues.

· Knowledge and experience with financial aid is an asset.

· Ability to maintain confidentiality and appropriately handle confidential data and information.

· Ability to think and act quickly and effectively under pressure, exercising tact, diplomacy and discretion.

· Proven ability to exercise mature judgment and use common sense to resolve issues.

· Proven ability to manage multiple priorities with a high level of initiative, flexibility, thoroughness, accuracy, and attention to detail, with minimum supervision is essential.

· Ability to set priorities and remain organized in a deadline driven environment required.

· Excellent written and verbal communication skills including the ability to articulate and interpret issues, guidelines or policies to others clearly and without error.

· Demonstrated ability to work effectively with a wide range of stakeholders.

· Experience with Workday, account reconciliation, and Concur strongly preferred.

Equity Statement

The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg, and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is coordinated within the Office of Indigenous Relations.

The University values the diverse and intersectional identities of its students, faculty, and staff. The University regards equity and diversity as an integral part of academic excellence and is committed to accessibility for all employees. The University of Waterloo seeks applicants who embrace our values of equity, anti-racism and inclusion. As such, we encourage applications from candidates who have been historically disadvantaged and marginalized, including applicants who identify as First Nations, Métis and/or Inuk (Inuit), Black, racialized, a person with a disability, women and/or 2SLGBTQ+.

Positions are open to qualified candidates who are legally entitled to work in Canada.

The University of Waterloo is committed to accessibility for persons with disabilities. If you have any application, interview, or workplace accommodation requests, please contact Human Resources at hrhelp@uwaterloo.ca or 519-888-4567, ext. 45935.