Administrative Assistant - Materials Research Institute
Penn State UniversityAbout the role
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Approval of remote and hybrid work is not guaranteed regardless of work location. For additional information on remote work at Penn State, see Notice to Out of State Applicants.
POSITION SPECIFICS
The Materials Research Institute seeks qualified candidates for the position of Administrative Assistant (Intermediate Support level).
This position provides shared administrative and financial operations support within MRI. The role is intentionally split 50% financial request initiation and coordination and 50% center administrative support for the Center for Living Multifunctional Materials Systems (LiMC2).
The position supports efficient research operations by serving as a front-line initiator for financial requests submitted through ServiceNow into SIMBA, while also providing essential administrative, communications, and project coordination support to a highly interdisciplinary research center.
Key Responsibilities:
50% – Financial Request Initiator (ServiceNow / SIMBA Support)
- Serve as an initiator and intake point for MRI-related financial and administrative requests submitted via ServiceNow for processing in SIMBA
- Prepare, review, and submit:
- Purchase and payment requests
- Service agreements and related financial documentation
- Supporting materials required for compliance and routing
- Coordinate with MRI leadership, faculty, and staff to:
- Ensure requests are complete, accurate, and properly documented
- Resolve missing information prior to submission
- Track request status and follow up with central offices, Research Accounting, and unit partners as needed
- Maintain documentation and process notes to support consistent and compliant financial workflows
- Contribute to the development and documentation of standard operating procedures related to financial request initiation
50% – LiMC2 Center Administrative Support
- Provide general administrative support, including:
- Calendaring, scheduling, and meeting coordination
- Clerical tasks and maintenance of center records
- Monitor and maintain calendars and task lists for:
- Project deadlines
- Programming milestones
- Center events and deliverables
- Support center communications, including:
- Website and content updates
- Maintenance of contact and member lists
- Correspondence with internal and
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