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Student Support Assistant
Job Location:
Job Location:
Lawrence, KS - USA
Monthly Salary:
Not provided by the employer
Monthly Salary:
Posted:
17 June 2026 (30+ days ago)
Posted:
Application Deadline:
14 September 2026
Application Deadline:
Vacancies:
1 Vacancy
Vacancies:
Job Summary
30% Quality Assurance Testing
- Execute test cases for new features bug fixes and software releases.
- Perform functional usability and exploratory testing across platforms and database configurations.
- Reproduce issues reported by users or developers and document clear reproduction steps.
- Validate that bug fixes and new features behave as expected before release.
30% User Support & Troubleshooting
- Respond to support requests from consortium member institutions via email ticketing system and community forums.
- Diagnose and resolve installation configuration and usage issues.
- Guide users through software customization including form layouts interface configuration and report templates.
- Escalate complex technical issues to senior staff with thorough documentation of steps already taken.
- Follow up with users to confirm resolutions and ensure satisfaction.
20% Documentation
- Write and maintain user-facing help articles step-by-step installation guides and how-to tutorials.
- Produce internal QA documentation including test plans test cases and issue summaries.
- Update existing documentation to reflect new features changed workflows or common support patterns.
15% Issue Tracking & Communication
- Create update and triage issue reports in GitHub and other project tracking tools.
- Communicate findings clearly to the development and support teams in written and verbal form.
- Participate in team meetings and contribute to support workflow improvement discussions.
5% Special Projects & Administrative Tasks
- Assist with special projects administrative reports and other tasks as assigned.
- Contribute to onboarding materials or training resources for new team members.
Disclaimer
The University of Kansas prohibits discrimination on the basis of race color ethnicity religion sex national origin age ancestry disability status as a veteran sexual orientation marital status parental status gender identity gender expression and genetic information in the universitys programs and activities. Retaliation is also prohibited by university policy. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policies and is the Title IX coordinator for all KU and KUMC campuses: Associate Vice Chancellor for Civil Rights and Title IX Room 1082 Dole Human Development Center 1000 Sunnyside Avenue Lawrence KSTTY.
Work Schedule
14-20 hours/week during 8am-5pm Mon-Fri
Contact Information to Applicants
Grant Fitzsimmons
- Undergraduate student in good standing at the University of Kansas.
- Eligible for Federal Work Study.
- Excellentcommunication skills as evidenced by application materials and an informal interview.
- Prior work experience ideally in a detail-oriented role (customer service research data entry help desk etc.) as evidenced by application materials.
- Demonstrated ability to explain technical concepts clearly in writing for a non-technical audience as evidenced by application materials.
- Solid working knowledge of Windows macOS or Linux operating systems as evidenced by application materials.
- Experience providing technical support help desk assistance or end-user training as evidenced by application materials.
- Knowledge of natural history collections or museum databasing practices as evidenced by application materials.
- Familiarity with spreadsheet or database software (Excel Access SQL etc.) as evidenced by application materials.
- Strong problem-solving skills and demonstrated ability to learn new software independently as evidenced by application materials.
- Demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks prioritize effectively and meet deadlines as evidenced by application materials.
Position Overview
Join the Biodiversity Institutes Specify Software team () as a Software Support Assistant! This is a hands-on varied role at the intersection of technical support quality assurance and scientific informatics. You will work alongside a collaborative team of professional software engineers support specialists and museum scientists to help natural history collections worldwide get the most out of Specify a leading open-source platform for managing biodiversity specimen data.
Day-to-day this position divides roughly evenly between two complementary areas:
- Quality assurance testing new features and bug fixes reproducing reported issues validating resolutions and documenting findings in GitHub.
- User support helping consortium members install configure and troubleshoot Specify; answering questions; writing documentation; and guiding institutions through software customization.
In addition to the online application the following documents are required to be considered for this position:
- Resume
- Cover letter addressing how the required and preferred qualifications are met
Position Requirements
During the semester term of the appointment the student hourly must be enrolled in no fewer than 6 credit hours. For summer periods the student hourly must: (1) have been enrolled in no less than 6 hours in the past spring semester or (2) be pre-enrolled in the upcoming fall semester in no less than 6 hours or (3) be enrolled in summer session or (4) be admitted to study in the upcoming fall semester. Student Hourlies may be undergraduate or graduate students. (Exceptions granted for GRA/GTA/GA appointments DO NOT apply to Student Hourly appointments).
Employment Conditions
(1) Student employees are not eligible for remote work arrangements unless an exception is approved by the unit leadership and HR.
(2) This is an hourly/non-exempt position. A student employee cannot hold an hourly/non-exempt position and a salaried/exempt graduate or undergraduate position (GRA/GTA/GA/RUA/RGA) concurrently.
(3)Must be available to work a minimum of 14 hours per week during the Fall and Spring semesters. A consistent weekly schedule (worked around coursework obligations) is required during the hours of 8 AM5 PM Monday through Friday; schedules can be adjusted as needed with advance notice. Must be available to begin Summer 2026. Planned vacations and breaks from campus are welcome.
(4)Graduate students are not eligible for this position.
Required Experience:
Junior IC
About Company
Thank you for your interest in employment with the University of Kansas. If you need assistance with the application process please contact Human Resources at [email protected] or 785-864-4946.
