Job Description

Department
Student Opportunities
Location
Birmingham, West Midlands
Salary
35,331 to 39,002 Per Annum
Permanent
Post Type
Full Time
Release Date
14 November 2025
Closing Date
23.59 hours GMT on Sunday 30 November 2025
Reference
C125002
We have an exciting opportunity for a Student Opportunities Officer within the Careers and Student Opportunities Directorate. The key aims of the role are to support engagement with employers to drive the depth and breadth of relationships to drive graduate level employment outcomes. This will include supporting the embedding of employer engagement through the curriculum and driving employer led event activity which actively connects students and graduates with employment outcomes.


Whilst the role doesn't require direct contact with students and graduates the position directly supports Birmingham City University's commitment to developing the talent for tomorrow and being an anchor institution and provider of high quality graduates into the regional economy.


Our Student Opportunities Officers work within sector-aligned Careers Teams sourcing and promoting placement and graduate opportunities, supporting school and university based employer events from guest speakers to large scale careers fairs for over 1000 students.


We are looking for someone with previous experience of working with employers through careers services, business development or recruitment. You should have experience of working to targets and working on multiple projects simultaneously. You will be comfortable working independently while playing a pivotal part in a small, fast-paced and ambitious team seeking to make a real impact on student's and graduate's prospects.


This is an exciting opportunity for someone with a keen interest in developing long-term relationships with key employers, seeking a role where they have a significant impact, the space to be creative and to work with a diverse range of people. Come and be part of a university that is truly transforming - there has never been a better time to join us.


In this important role linked to "Talent for Tomorrow", a designated pillar within the 2030 strategy, you will work closely with Careers and Student Opportunities colleagues, local and national employers and other stakeholders to co-create flexible and impactful opportunities that support our student's progression into successful careers.


You will be joining a supportive and encouraging Careers and Student Opportunities directorate, who have a real passion and desire to improve student outcomes and progression.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

Manage employer relationships:

Act as the first point of contact and account manage local and national employers to support placements, graduate recruitment, and ongoing engagement.

Embed employer involvement within the curriculum:

Support careers teams to ensure every subject area benefits from employer input, opportunities, and relevant labour-market connections and opportunities.

Match students to opportunities:

Shortlist and connect students to placement and graduate roles through managed recruitment processes, ensuring a high-quality service to students and employers.

Deliver employer engagement activities:

Support planning and coordination of events such as careers fairs, employer pop ups speed networking, and to increase on-campus and online employer visibility and job opportunities.

Maintain systems and support engagement plans:

Update CRM systems, follow effective processes, attend events, and support actions linked to the annual employer engagement plan to increase placement, work experience, and part-time job opportunities.

Essential Skills and Experience:

Recruitment, business development, or relationship management experience:

Demonstrated experience working with employers or stakeholders, both face-to-face and digitally.

Event organisation and networking skills:

Experience organising events, networking, and using social media or marketing channels in a business development context.

Target-driven and proactive approach:

Ability to work to KPIs, manage competing demands, work independently, and maintain momentum without close supervision.

Strong communication and interpersonal skills:

Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills, with the ability to build effective working relationships across all levels.

Good IT and data-handling capability:

Confident using Microsoft Office, web-based platforms, CRM systems, and demonstrating understanding of confidentiality and data protection.

If you have any questions, or would like to discuss the role further, please contact David Bond, Head of Student Opportunities at

David.Bond@bcu.ac.uk

Birmingham City University is deeply committed to equality, diversity, and inclusivity at all levels in the organisation, and to addressing underrepresentation in our workforce to ensure we are truly representative of the community we serve. We welcome applications from applicants from all backgrounds and communities for this role, and particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic applicants.

The appointed candidate will normally be employed through our subsidiary company BCU Support Services Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Birmingham City University. Appointees with prior LGPS membership who wish to enter the LGPS scheme will be able to do so and will be employed by Birmingham City University directly.

OUR VISION

Birmingham City University is growing in quality and standing, with an academic STEAM agenda at the heart of our ambitions. We are transforming the lives of students and their communities, and want outstanding people to join us in taking us on the next stage of our exciting journey.


Our students learn through doing. They are empowered throughout their educational journey, achieving significant educational gain and personal transformation.


There has never been a better time to join us. Come and be part of the next exciting stage of our journey.

ABOUT BIRMINGHAM CITY UNIVERSITY

At the heart of our 2025 Strategy is our mission is to enable our students to transform their lives and to achieve their potential. Through our education and research, and the roles our graduates go on to play in the world, we not only support individuals to transform their lives, but we also play a part in transforming society.


Located in the centre of the UK's second city, we are a university with a long heritage of innovation and of making, dating back to our origins in 1843 when we were founded as the Birmingham Government School of Design.


Our heritage of making through innovation and its application through knowledge exchange, and of creative research and practice, today finds it expression in our STEAM agenda, in our research and enterprise, and in our commitment to challenge-based learning. Working across disciplines, and delivering impactful research and enterprise, interdisciplinarity is at the heart of the continuing transformation of our academic portfolio.

OUR STAFF COMMUNITY

Birmingham is home to a rich and diverse range of communities. Our students reflect this rich cultural mix, and we are continuing to work to make sure that this is also reflected in our broader university community.


Birmingham City University values the quality and diversity of our staff. Our staff and student community is defined by our core values, which outline who we are as a University and how we work with each other. Our core values are we create opportunity, we think differently, and we build community.


We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, continuously reviewing and improving our policies, practices, and procedures to ensure that we are promoting these in all aspects of our operations. We believe that by working together, combining our many different backgrounds and life experiences, we will empower each other to reach our full potential.


We hold an Athena SWAN Bronze award in recognition of our commitment to improving employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.


Our University is located in one of the most culturally rich and diverse Cities in the UK, and it is our ambition to be the University for Birmingham and the surrounding region. The events of 2020 have highlighted the stark inequalities that Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic Communities face and we are committed to removing the institutional barriers that our staff and students face and improve the representation, progression and success of staff and students from all backgrounds within higher education. To demonstrate this, we have signed up to the Race Equality Charter to show our commitment.


Birmingham City University has been recognised for its progress on LGBT+ equality with a Gold award in the Stonewall Index and have entered the Top 100 Employers 2023 for LGBT+ inclusion. Meanwhile, we are Disability Confident (Committed) and are on an exciting journey to advance our University to progress through the Disability Confident scheme.


We are also a Mindful Employer, which means we are committed to supporting the mental health and well-being of our staff, and we have also signed up to the Mental Health Charter led by student mental health charity Student Minds. Furthermore, we are signed up to The Technician Commitment - a university and research institution initiative supported by the Science Council and Gatsby Foundation - aiming to ensure visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technicians working in higher education and research.

WORKING AND LIVING IN BIRMINGHAM

The youngest city in Europe with under-25s accounting for nearly 40% of the population, Birmingham is a city full of energy and enthusiasm and is a great place to live and work.


Based in the heart of England, the city is easily accessible by road, rail and air. Birmingham New Street station has recently undergone major redevelopment, while the city is at the heart of the high-speed rail network, HS2. HS2 will provide new rapid rail travel connecting Birmingham City Centre to London and the rest of the network from the new Curzon Street Station - adjacent to Birmingham City University's City Centre Campus - and will be one of the most environmentally friendly stations in the world.


The city's appetite for progression is boundless, and it has been championing innovation since the earliest days of the Industrial Revolution, reflected in Birmingham City University's new STEAMhouse building which opened in October 2022 and is home to an inter-disciplinary community of entrepreneurs, businesses, academic researchers, and students offering a wealth of support to companies of all sizes to boost growth through innovation to address commercial and societal challenges.


Birmingham is brimming with great theatres, museums, the world-famous Birmingham City University Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, as well as beautiful historical buildings and the iconic Library of Birmingham. It also has amazing concert and sporting venues including Edgbaston Cricket ground, which Birmingham City University has a long-standing partnership with. It is also home to the Alexander Stadium, which is the stunning new home for Birmingham City University's sport courses. The Stadium was one of the main event spaces for the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in 2022, which saw the eyes of the world on the city, and Birmingham City University staff and students played pivotal roles - including designing the official medals for winning athletes.


Birmingham's vibrant dining scene offers something for all tastes, including Michelin star restaurants, Spiceal Street at the Bullring, the Chinese Quarter, and the famous Balti Triangle.


The city also provides a great place to shop, being home the Bullring and Grand Central, the luxurious Mailbox Birmingham and the world-famous home of British bling - the Jewellery Quarter, which is home to Birmingham City University's School of Jewellery.


From Harvey Nichols, Selfridges and the beautiful arcades and independents, to the city's historic markets in Digbeth, the shops in Birmingham offer a plethora of choice.


BCU Values underpin how we work in achieving the ambitions set out in our Strategy and Priorities, and are the principles that unite the way we work together and for our students.