Administrative Support Assistant

Application Instructions

CURRENT PENN STATE EMPLOYEE (faculty, staff, technical service, or student), please log in to Workday to complete the internal application process. Please do not apply here; apply internally through Workday.

CURRENT PENN STATE STUDENT (not employed previously at the university) and seeking employment with Penn State, please log in to Workday to complete the student application process. Please do not apply here; apply internally through Workday.

If you are NOT a current employee or student, please click “Apply” and complete the application process for external applicants.

We are searching for a motivated and organized, multi‑tasker to join our Administrative Support Team for The Materials and Manufacturing Systems Office (MMSO) of the Applied Research Laboratory (ARL) at Penn State. You will be responsible for all administrative functions, which include a wide variety of business and financial operations and will directly support non‑faculty, research engineers, staff and undergrad and grad students.

ARL is an authorized DoD Skill Bridge partner and welcomes all transitioning military members to apply.

• Schedule and coordinate meetings; assign badges, process visitor requests, greet visitors, provide necessary information, schedule Teams meetings, and order lunches
• Monitor and maintain budgets, assist with budget reports, track expenditures, and process documents and purchasing card transactions
• Act as point of contact in the recruiting process and a liaison for candidates during the interview process; create job descriptions, coordinate interviews, and initiate new hire paperwork, security clearance requests, network requests, office space, and computer/equipment requests
• Assist MMSO leadership with space planning for new and existing employees; serve as office space administrator
• Track and assist submissions of all MMSO grad student appointments/re‑appointments
• Oversee coordination of projects, special events, and programs such as conferences and workshops
• Maintain inventory and order/purchase office supplies; arrange for equipment and maintenance; process work orders for facilities repairs/needs; process shipping, tracking and receiving of documents and packages
• Assist in the preparation of reports and memorandum; handle classified information
• Track, order, and distribute all MMSO awards
• Ensure compliance with ARL and University policies and procedures

• Microsoft Office tools
• Standard office procedures
• Ability to express ideas successfully to drive understanding
• Success in environments where various forms of communication and organizational skills were crucial

• SAP Concur, Workday or another similar enterprise resource planning tool
• SIMBA including LD Planner Group (specific to PSU) or another integrated management, budgeting, and accounting tool
• Pro Pricer (government proposal software)
• Archibus or other workplace management tool
• Current eligibility for access to classified information at the Secret level or higher and may be subject to a government background investigation to upgrade clearance eligibility, if required

If filled as Administrative Assistant – Senior Support:
Associate Degree 4+ years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience accepted. Required

Certifications:

None.

If filled as Administrative Assistant – Intermediate Support:
General Equivalency Diploma (GED) or High School (HS) 2+ years of relevant experience; or an equivalent combination of education and experience accepted. Required

Certifications:

None.

Your working location will be fully on‑site in State College, PA.

This position requires the following clearances in addition to applicable background checks: PA State Police Criminal Background Check, PA Child Abuse History Clearance Form, Federal (FBI) Fingerprint Criminal Background Check, and the National Sex Offender Registry Clearance (NSOR). Additional clearances may be necessary if you resided outside of Pennsylvania in the past five years. Due to the…