Records Specialist

Records Specialist (HR Title: Advancement Records Specialist 1) - (DEA

Description

Hourly Range:

$22.48 per hour

About SMU:

SMU's more than 12,000 diverse, high-achieving students come from all 50 states and over 80 countries to take advantage of the University's small classes, meaningful research opportunities, leadership development, community service, international study and innovative programs.

SMU serves approximately 7,000 undergraduates and 5,000 graduate students through eight degree-granting schools: Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences, Cox School of Business, Lyle School of Engineering, Meadows School of the Arts, Simmons School of Education and Human Development, Dedman School of Law, Perkins School of Theology and Moody School of Graduate and Advanced Studies.

SMU is data driven, and its powerful supercomputing ecosystem – paired with entrepreneurial drive – creates an unrivaled environment for the University to deliver research excellence.

Now in its second century of achievement, SMU is recognized for the ways it supports students, faculty and alumni as they become ethical, enterprising leaders in their professions and communities. SMU's relationship with Dallas – the dynamic center of one of the nation's fastest-growing regions – offers unique learning, research, social and career opportunities that provide a launch pad for global impact.

SMU is nonsectarian in its teaching and committed to academic freedom and open inquiry.

About the Department:

Development and External Affairs (DEA) supports SMU by securing funding for University priorities; by promoting meaningful involvement in the life and work of the University; by heightening international, national, state and local awareness of SMU; and by supporting the enrollment of a diverse and able student body.

DEA comprises the offices of Office of the Senior Vice President, Annual Giving and Alumni Relations, Development Services, Program Services and Donor Relations, Marketing and Communications, Principal and Major Gifts, and School and Project Development.

SMU continues to leverage the benefits from the largest fund-raising campaign in its history to achieve dramatic increases in academic quality and impact.

About the Position:

This role is an on-campus, in-person position.

The Advancement Records Specialist is an entry-level position with a primary responsibility of providing responsive service to internal and external stakeholders by ensuring records are processed accurately and in a timely manner, communicating professionally, and helping resolve data-related issues.

The specialist is responsible for data maintenance, research, and continuous improvement to enhance data quality and operational efficiency, while ensuring compliance with data privacy laws such as FERPA.

Essential Functions:

• Customer Service:
• Serves as the point-of-contact for support between internal and external stakeholders and Constituent Records; troubleshoots and assesses records-related inquiries and requests to determine solutions for each request. Requires knowledge of internal processes and responsibilities across university and DEA divisions.
• Collaborates with other Development teams to ensure constituent information is accurate.
• Investigates and resolves issues related to communication preferences, mailings, solicitations, etc.
• Researches and verifies historical student information, relationships, and other personal information.
• Generates and prepares weekly reports to alert fundraisers to recent changes to donor records.
• Data Maintenance and Enrichments:
• Creates and maintains new records and relationships between records by cross-referencing data from multiple sources (responsible for updating faculty/staff records, assists with the new parent process, biological and demographic updates from gifts processing, alumni updates from web forms, etc.).
• Reviews a variety of sources (newsletters, media, reports) for opportunities to enrich data (employment, relationship, religious conference affiliation, deceasing updates, etc.).
• Scans and appends constituent news, documentation, letters, records.
• Compliance and Quality Control:
• Conducts daily audits and designs additional queries to identify and correct data irregularities.
• Uses automated workflows to make mass updates to records in batch and applies high level of attention to complex scenarios that require manual review.

Qualifications

Education and Experience:

A high school diploma or equivalent is required. A Bachelor's degree is preferred.

A minimum of one year of work experience in a data entry, customer service, or administrative support role is required.

Experience with auditing data, compliance with data privacy laws (FERPA), and/or handling of donor and academic records, including personal information changes, is preferred.

Experience with CRM record management desired. Experience in higher education is a plus.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

Candidate must demonstrate strong verbal and interpersonal communication skills, as well as the ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with a wide range of constituencies in a diverse community. Must also demonstrate the ability to communicate effectively in writing. A strong customer service orientation is essential.

Candidate must have the ability to assess available information and supporting documents, consider past examples, and determine appropriate action. Must also have the ability to process large quantities of data while maintaining data integrity, a high rate of accuracy, and a strong focus on attention to detail. The ability to work independently and within a team environment is essential.

Candidate must demonstrate a strong proficiency in MS Word and MS Excel. A working knowledge of CRM systems (such as Blackbaud, Salesforce, or PeopleSoft) for managing constituent and donor records is preferred.

Physical and Environmental Demands:

• Sit for long periods of time
• Ability to work at a desk and at a computer for extended periods of time.

Deadline to Apply:

November 24, 2025

Priority consideration may be given to submissions received by November 14, 2025

EEO Statement:

SMU is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, sexual orientation, or gender identity and expression.

Benefits:

SMU offers staff a broad, competitive array of health and related benefits. In addition to traditional benefits such as health, dental, and vision plans, SMU offers a wide range of wellness programs to help attract, support, and retain our employees whose work continues to make SMU an outstanding education and research institution.

SMU is committed to providing an array of retirement programs that benefit and protect you and your family throughout your working years at SMU and, if you meet SMU's retirement eligibility criteria, during your retirement years after you leave SMU.

The value of learning at SMU isn't just about preparing our students for the future. Employees have access to a wide variety of professional and personal development opportunities, including tuition benefits.

Primary Location: USA-TX-Dallas

Job: Development

Organization: DEA - Development/Alumni

Schedule: Regular

Shift: Staff

Employee Status: Individual Contributor

Job Type: Full-time

Job Level: Day Job

Travel: No

Job Posting: Nov 7, 2025, 10:16:40 AM