Project Coordinator

The University of Southern California (USC) is a private research university in Los Angeles, California. It is the oldest private research university in California and is consistently ranked among the nation’s most prestigious universities. The USC Daniel J. Epstein department of Industrial & Systems Engineering (ISE) and the Thomas Lord Department of Computer Science (CS) rank among the top in the world in their respective fields.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) National Research Traineeship (NRT) Program on Integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Operations Research (OR) Technologies will establish a new interdisciplinary program that will be used to educate graduate (Masters and PhD) students at the interface of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Operations Research (OR) and to create a graduate specialization (in the form of a certificate program) for PhD students enrolled in CS and ISE at USC. It will provide graduate students with interdisciplinary training to prepare them for their research at the interface of AI and OR. The program consists of a variety of activities including course development, workshops, a seminar series, and research.

The NSF NRT Program on Integrating AI and OR is seeking a skilled, dependable, and detail-oriented Project Coordinatorto support the co-directors (one from ISE and one from CS) in managing the creation and implementation of the program. The Project Coordinator will manage the program jointly with the Co-directors and provide most of the administrative effort. More generally, they will support the leadership team (9 faculty members) with any program administrative matters.

Responsibilities include:

• Coordinate and implement the activities of the program. Examples include: workshops, seminar series, meetings, research conferences
• Work closely with the leadership team, faculty, and graduate students to ensure proper implementation of the program and the progression of the students through the curriculum
• Supervise students in designing and maintaining the website and other marketing materials for the program
• Communicate with program participants (current and prospective students, faculty, advisory board members) regularly and through diverse media (zoom, phone, email, as needed)
• Track and manage data on activities, publications, student participation, budgetary expenses
• Keep detailed meeting notes
• Help draft project reports and draft presentations

Job duties may be added or modified as needed.  

Diversity, equity, and inclusion are central to the mission of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering. Viterbi staff are expected to facilitate a culture of support and service, to model civility and respectful engagement at all times, and to maintain the highest ethical standards and to maintain strict confidentiality across all facets of their work.  

Required Qualifications:

• Strong organizational capabilities, excellent written and oral communications skills, and demonstrated ability to work independently with minimal oversight to support educational and research activities

• A Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and/or experience with relevance to project management in business or STEM fields

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supporting and coordinating the creation and administration of new programs
• Experience in event organization and management
• Evidence of the ability to work collaboratively in an interdisciplinary environment
• Academic marketing experience

This is a hybrid, part-time position. The Project Coordinator will be expected to work onsite for 1-2 days per week. This position is not eligible for fully remote work.

The hourly rate range for this part-time position is $30.62 - $32.29. When extending an offer of employment, the University of Southern California considers factors such as (but not limited to) the scope of responsibilities of the position, the candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, federal, state, and local laws, contractual stipulations, grant funding, as well as external market and organizational considerations.  

Fixed-Term Employment: Employees hired under a fixed-term agreement acknowledge that the university may change the expected end date at any time by providing a one (1) month written notification. Your employment may also end for other reasons consistent with university policy. According to university policy, no severance benefits are paid to employees hired under a fixed term agreement. When you leave, your final paycheck will include pay for days worked, and for accrued and unused vacation. The university does not pay for accrued and unused sick days upon termination.

Length of fixed-term assignment: 5 years from date of hire

Start Date: ASAP

NSF Award Details:

https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2346058&HistoricalAwards=false

USC and the Viterbi School

The University of Southern California (USC), founded in 1880, is in the heart of downtown L.A. and is the largest private employer in the City of Los Angeles. As an employee of USC, you will be a part of a world-class research university and a member of the “Trojan Family,” which is comprised of the faculty, students, and staff that make the university what it is. 

Founded in 1905, the USC Viterbi School of Engineering is named for Andrew Viterbi who developed an algorithm to connect the world’s citizens. Similarly, the school, located in Los Angeles, a global center for arts, technology and international business in the heart of the Pacific Rim, is a hub for entrepreneurship that connects students from 64 countries. 

USC Viterbi is a pioneer in restoring sight to the blind; restoring memory to sufferers of Alzheimer’s; and socially assistive robots to aid seniors with stroke or children with autism. It is the home of the first operational quantum computing center in academia. Our alumni include Neil Armstrong, first human on the moon; A.C. Mike Markkula, co-founder of Apple; and Wanda Austin, former CEO of the Aerospace Corporation. 

The USC Viterbi School is consistently ranked among the top graduate programs (U.S. News and World Report). Under the leadership of Dean Yannis C. Yortsos, the school helped re-imagine the 21st century engineer, pioneering the Grand Challenge Scholars Program in schools across the globe. Our mission is to serve California, the nation and the world. At USC Viterbi, we call this the enabling power of Engineering+. 

Minimum Education: Bachelor's degree, Combined experience/education as substitute for minimum education Minimum Experience: 1 year Minimum Field of Expertise: Administrative or research experience. Working knowledge of MS Office applications. Demonstrated effective communication and writing skills. Ability to multi-task and prioritize. Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team as well as independently.