HR Administrator and Payroll Specialist

Posted:
2/9/2026, 4:00:00 PM

Location(s):
Chicago, Illinois, United States ⋅ Illinois, United States

Experience Level(s):
Junior ⋅ Mid Level

Field(s):
People & HR

Workplace Type:
On-site

Department

AHD Staff: Div Admin HR Human Resources


About the Department

The Division of the Arts and Humanities comprises 19-degree programs across 16 departments and committees, with approximately 650 students from around the world enrolled in our PhD, MFA, and MA programs. The students and academics in our departments dedicate themselves to the thoughtful consideration of humanities' place in the world. This dedication is displayed through our interdisciplinary centers and programs. The Division of the Arts and Humanities thrives thanks to its engaging and dynamic staff members, who provide essential infrastructure to support faculty and students while driving institutional success. The Office of HR and People Operations for the Division manages employment related matters for staff, temporary employees, and students.


Job Summary

The HR Administrator and Payroll Specialist is responsible for managing student hiring and payroll activities for the Division of Arts and Humanities. This includes executing all hiring and off-boarding processes, ensuring accurate payroll and timekeeping, and providing specialized support for compensation and labor relations efforts. The HR Administrator coordinates with department administrators, faculty, and other internal teams to ensure student hiring needs are fulfilled and that compliance with divisional hiring practices, University policies, and federal/state laws are followed. The HR Administrator maintains data, prepares reports, and provides training on best practices related to student hiring and payroll/timekeeping processes. Additionally, they collaborate with the divisional HR team to triage questions and requests.

Hybrid schedule available. Interested applicants, please upload all required materials (resume and cover letter) to be considered.

Responsibilities

  • Manages complete student hiring processes from hire request through full employee lifecycle. Communicates directly with student employees and executes all related hiring, onboarding including in-person I9 verification, and job updates tasks in Workday.
  • Maintains student employment request form, associated tracking database, and all related internal tools.
  • Applies substantive understanding of all operational factors impacting student employment such as Workday processes, existing norms, and areas for improvement, to optimize compliance, efficiency, and service to departments.
  • Drafts templates and routine hiring documents. Maintains appropriate HR data and records.
  • Conducts quarterly student hiring audits. Analyzes data and runs adhoc reports with minimal guidance.
  • Gains a deep understanding of student employee/labor relations efforts.
  • Partners with Dean of Students, Academic Affairs, and UChicagoGrad on a wide array of student employment situations. Helps ensure compliance with the graduate student collective bargaining agreement.
  • Serves as student payroll specialist, identifying and resolving all student compensation and payroll discrepancies, costing allocation updates, one-time payments, period activity pay, etc.
  • Collaborates with Finance and Grant Services team and Budget/Data Analyst regarding student funding and accounts.
  • Serves as student Workday timekeeping specialist, assisting with coding hours, troubleshooting issues, processing backpay requests, and auditing student submissions and supervisor approvals as requested.
  • Develops tutorials and provides training to division community on payroll and timekeeping processes and best practices.
  • Develops relationships with colleagues, attends trainings, participates in central initiatives, etc. to stay informed of division, University, state, and federal payroll and timekeeping laws, policies, and procedures.
  • Prepares best practice documents and establishes standard operating procedures relating to student employment; assists in developing division-wide student employment resources and guides.
  • Manages Arts and Humanities HR support email inbox and handles all payroll and timekeeping requests. Appropriately triages emails to members of the HR team. Resolves routine and complex inquiries. Uses strong judgement to elevates issues as needed.
  • Pursues professional development opportunities. Implements what is learned to enhance role.
  • Solves a range of straightforward problems using standard procedures.
  • Provides professional support to a unit's employee/labor relations efforts, including handling grievances, disciplinary warnings, and employee complaints.
  • Assists in the development and administration of the HR budget for the department, monitors for variances, and manages employment expenses within established guidelines.
  • Performs other related work as needed.


Minimum Qualifications

Education:

Minimum requirements include a college or university degree in related field.


Work Experience:

Minimum requirements include knowledge and skills developed through 2-5 years of work experience in a related job discipline.


Certifications:

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Preferred Qualifications

Experience:

  • Familiarity with higher education environment.
  • 2+ years HR, payroll, and timekeeping administration.

Technical Skills or Knowledge:

  • Familiarity with Workday.
  • Strong proficiency with Microsoft Office. This is a Office 365 environment.

Preferred Competencies

  • Detail-oriented.
  • Spot numerical errors.
  • Interested in numbers, data, payroll, etc.
  • Problem-solver.
  • Motivated.
  • Self-starter.
  • Analytical.

Application Documents

  • Resume/CV (required)
  • Cover Letter, expressing interest in this position (required)


When applying, the document(s) MUST be uploaded via the My Experience page, in the section titled Application Documents of the application.


Job Family

Human Resources


Role Impact

Individual Contributor


Scheduled Weekly Hours

37.5


Drug Test Required

No


Health Screen Required

No


Motor Vehicle Record Inquiry Required

No


Pay Rate Type

Salary


FLSA Status

Exempt


Pay Range

$65,000.00 - $78,000.00

The included pay rate or range represents the University’s good faith estimate of the possible compensation offer for this role at the time of posting.


Benefits Eligible

Yes

The University of Chicago offers a wide range of benefits programs and resources for eligible employees, including health, retirement, and paid time off. Information about the benefit offerings can be found in the Benefits Guidebook.


Posting Statement

The University of Chicago is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or expression, national or ethnic origin, shared ancestry, age, status as an individual with a disability, military or veteran status, genetic information, or other protected classes under the law. For additional information please see the University's Notice of Nondiscrimination.

 

Job seekers in need of a reasonable accommodation to complete the application process should call 773-702-5800 or submit a request via Applicant Inquiry Form.

 

All offers of employment are contingent upon a background check that includes a review of conviction history.  A conviction does not automatically preclude University employment.  Rather, the University considers conviction information on a case-by-case basis and assesses the nature of the offense, the circumstances surrounding it, the proximity in time of the conviction, and its relevance to the position.

 

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