Development Associate (Planned Giving)

About the opportunity

Are you looking to join Australia’s most innovative and high achieving university planned giving team?

We now have a fantastic opportunity for a self-motivated and passionate Fundraising Officer to join our Planned Giving team on a contract for 2 years.   

We are looking for a new team member to help us achieve even more in the coming years through developing relationships with the University of Sydney’s alumni and donors to raise philanthropic support for research, education and outreach endeavours. In this role you will be primarily focused on identifying and deepening engagement with potential and confirmed ‘gifts in Wills’ (bequest) donors and building and nurturing relationships to foster long term growth in ‘gifts in Wills’ fundraising income.

With support from across the team and the leadership, you will build relationships through face-to-face meetings with donors, alumni and friends of the University. The most unexpected conversations will lead to great things. Your work could give a student the opportunity to study at the oldest university in Australia thanks to a donation towards scholarship support, or could enable researchers to find breakthroughs in the latest cancer treatment. Your work will not only have a huge impact but will also be considered one of the best things the donor and you, as a fundraiser, have ever achieved during your lifetime.

About you

The University values courage and creativity; openness and engagement; inclusion and diversity; and respect and integrity. As such, we see the importance of recruiting talent aligned to these values and are looking for a Fundraising Officer who is:

• A natural relationship builder – you enjoy interacting with people one-on-one and fostering relationships with people at different levels and from different cultures

• An excellent communicator, both listening and written in order to develop compelling proposals that align to a prospective donor’s interests

• Strategic in their vision and can plan months, sometimes even years in advance

• Self-aware with highly developed emotional intelligence and exceptional interpersonal skills

• A high-achiever and naturally driven by success both professionally and personally

About us

The Advancement Portfolio team at the University of Sydney is the most successful fundraising program in Australian higher education. Having completed the nation’s first $1BN fundraising campaign and embarking on the next, the team is not only the finest performing, its success facilitates the largest real-world impact that philanthropic giving makes possible.

Since its inception 160 years ago, the University of Sydney has led to improve the world around us. We believe in education for all, and that effective leadership makes lives better. These same values are reflected in our approach to philanthropy and underpin our long-term strategy for excellence and growth. We’re Australia's first university and have an outstanding global reputation for academic and research excellence. Across our campuses, we employ over 7600 academic and non-academic staff who support over 60,000 students.

Sponsorship / work rights for Australia

Please note: Visa sponsorship is not available for this position. For a continuing position, you must be an Australian or New Zealand citizen or an Australian Permanent Resident.

Australian Temporary Residents currently employed at the University of Sydney may be considered for a fixed term contract for the length of their visa, depending on the requirements of the hiring area and the position.

EEO statement 

At the University of Sydney, our shared values include diversity and inclusion and we strive to be a place where everyone can thrive. We are committed to creating a University community which reflects the wider community that we serve. We deliver on this commitment through our people and culture programs, as well as key strategies to increase participation and support the careers of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People, women, people living with a disability, people from culturally and linguisti