Course Associate, Decision Models and Management (Summer 2023)

Company Description

Columbia University has been a leader in higher education in the nation and around the world for more than 250 years. At the core of our wide range of academic inquiry is the commitment to attract and engage the best minds to pursue greater human understanding, pioneering discoveries, and service to society.

The School of Professional Studies at Columbia University offers innovative and rigorous programs that integrate knowledge across disciplinary boundaries, combine theory with practice, leverage our students and faculty’s expertise, and connect global constituencies. Through seventeen professional master's degrees, courses for advancement and graduate school preparation, certificate programs, summer courses, high school programs, and a program for learning English as a second language, the School of Professional Studies transforms knowledge and understanding in service of the greater good.

Job Description

Columbia University, School of Professional Studies (SPS) seeks candidates to serve as a Course Associate to support the successful delivery of an on-campus graduate-level course. A Course Associate is a faculty line junior to a Lecturer, who provides subject matter expertise and supports the instructional process for a course section. Serving as a Course Associate is an excellent way to gain exposure to graduate-level teaching at Columbia University.

The course is Decision Models and Management. Candidates must be available for in-person support on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6:10 PM to 8 PM during Summer Session B 7/3/2023 - 8/11/2023.

This course provides an introduction to computer-based models for decision-making.  The emphasis is on models that are widely used in diverse industries and functional areas, including finance, accounting, operations, and marketing.  Applications will include advertising planning, revenue management, asset-liability management, environmental policy modeling, portfolio optimization, and corporate risk management, among others. The applicability and usage of computer-based models have increased dramatically in recent years, due to the extraordinary improvements in computer, information and communication technologies, including not just hardware but also model-solution techniques and user interfaces.  Twenty years ago working with a model meant using an expensive mainframe computer, learning a complex programming language, and struggling to compile data by hand; the entire process was clearly marked “experts only.”  The rise of personal computers, friendly interfaces (such as spreadsheets), and large databases has made modeling far more accessible to managers.  Information has come to be recognized as a critical resource, and models play a key role in deploying this resource, in organizing and structuring information so that it can be used productively.

The M.S. in Sustainability Management program is designed for those who wish to pursue a career in management that takes integrates sustainability considerations into economic activity. Graduates work to transform public and private organizations and governments by formulating and implementing tailored sustainability strategies. The coursework combines the study of management with classes in sustainability practice and science, with full-time and part-time options for those with current professional obligations. Students in the program learn the use of policy and management tools to address environmental impacts and risks, pollution control, and remediation to achieve sustainability. A Course Associate is a faculty line junior to a Lecturer who provides subject matter expertise and supports the instructional process for a course section. Serving as a Course Associate is an excellent way to gain exposure to graduate-level teaching at Columbia University.

Responsibilities

• Attend weekly class sessions, assist with instruction, lead breakout sessions, and facilitate discussions.
• Hold weekly office hours.
• Evaluate performance, grade student work, and provide effective feedback as requested by the course Lecturer.
• Monitor and address student concerns and inquiries.
• Build working relationships with the students, provide guidance and mentoring, and respond to their inquiries in a timely manner.

Qualifications

Columbia University SPS operates under a scholar-practitioner faculty model, which enables students to learn from faculty possessing outstanding academic training as well as a record of accomplishment as practitioners in an applied industry setting.

• Graduate degree in an environmental or sustainabi