What’s the job?
We are looking for a welcoming and compassionate individual to join our team as a First Contact Team Member. You’ll be the friendly face of our Advice Hub, the first point of contact for students seeking guidance. Your role is to make every student feel heard, supported, and connected to the right resources. The main parts of the role are:
- Frontline Student Support: Be the first person students meet when they come to the Advice Hub. Your warm welcome, active listening, and helpful attitude will make all the difference in their experience.
- Information and Guidance: Quickly assess what students need, whether it's academic advice, mental health resources, or support with financial challenges. Direct them to the most suitable support services.
- Creating a Positive Atmosphere: Contribute to an inclusive, welcoming environment where students feel comfortable discussing their concerns. Help build a community vibe that encourages students to seek help when they need it.
Ideally, we are looking for someone who is approachable, resourceful, and skilled at making people feel at ease. You should be a great communicator, adaptable, and capable of handling a variety of queries with a positive attitude.
This is a part-time role – working 21 hours per week. There is some flexibility in the hours, although availability on a Monday and Tuesday will be required. There may be occasional weekend work or evening work (for example in Freshers’ Week) but you would be given plenty of notice.
Who are we?
We are Heriot-Watt University Student Union - an independent charity that is run by and for students. While we are a charity we also run trading services (food & drink venues and shop) that aim to make a surplus. We use this surplus to invest in other vital student support services such as advice & support and volunteering.
Ultimately our main goal is to make sure that Heriot-Watt students have THE BEST TIME whilst studying here. Our purpose is clear and simple – to put Students First, Always. We live by five values – we are fun, welcoming, brave, empowering and student focussed.
You’ll join a friendly, hardworking and professional team and have a real opportunity to make a difference to our members – while having some fun along the way. We have a display of staff baby photos in our office, and a gallery of our photocopied faces which we will probably ask you to add to
What do you get?
You will be paid £14,149 (£23,582 FTE). You’ll also get 28 days holiday plus 9 fixed days off (Christmas, New Year, and Easter). Pension available plus you’ll get the rewarding experience of helping students thrive.
WHAT WOULD A Typical Day look like?
You start your day by checking in with the team and setting up the Advice Hub for the day. Your priority is to make the space welcoming and ready to support students.
A student arrives looking stressed about exam pressures. You listen carefully, reassure them, and share a few wellbeing resources while also recommending they chat to a Student Advisor for more tailored support.
You draft your contributions for this month’s Hub Highlights. You’re anonymising a recent case that puts a spotlight on students who are facing financial challenges, and how the Advice Hub is supporting them.
You spend some time updating the Advice Hub's online webpages with mental health resources and making sure that all information is current and accessible.
You get a sudden influx of students, you quickly assess cases and keep a note of student details to add them to the database later. You know a couple of cases are going to take a while so you sign post students towards our online guides and ask them to come back in an hour, when they can have dedicated time with an advisor.
You check through the emails, answering simple questions and making sure the Student Advisor is aware of the more complex cases.
A student comes in to get some free condoms. You discretely organise a c:card for them, explaining how they can use the service, and pop their condoms into a bag for them. You check if there’s anything else they need support with before they head off. Once they’re gone you add the interaction to our case recording system, marking it as anonymous.
Tomorrow, you’re off to our Galashiels campus to run a wellbeing session. You make sure your pebbles and pens are packed – students will get the chance to personalise a pebble while sharing their thoughts and discussing any challenges they’re facing.
Before wrapping up, you touch base with the Advice Hub Team Lead to update them on the day's key interactions and make notes about any recurring issues that might need further attention.
Phew! Another day of connecting, supporting, and making sure students feel heard and valued.
Is this job for you?
Please download the Job Description below for a full list of the essential, desirable, and person criteria to make sure you're a good fit. If you love being around people, thrive in a vibrant environment, and are passionate about supporting students, this could be your ideal role. Are you:
- A people person who loves helping others?
- Great at staying calm and positive when things get busy?
- Comfortable giving guidance and signposting to different services?
- Comfortable navigating digital systems and databases?
- Good at building a welcoming and inclusive environment?
- Ready to be the go-to person for students at the Advice Hub?
If you’re nodding along and thinking, “Yep, that’s me!” then we’d love to hear from you.
If you’re not yet sure and want to have an informal chat about the job please contact Genna Nesbitt, Student Engagement Manager, on g.nesbitt@hw.ac.uk.
Click here for the full Job Description and Person Specification
Sounds great, what next?
If you think this sounds like the job for you then click Apply Now below and fill in our online application form. If you want to really stand out, please take the time to tell us why we should pick you to work for us.