Job context

With over 35,000 students and around 9,000 employees, the University of Birmingham campus includes over 200 buildings split between its main campus at Edgbaston and smaller campus at Selly Oak and has circa 3,500 parking bays on the main site alone. In addition to our staff and student population we have numerous external visitors to campus and the University is host to a number of large, high profile events adding to the challenge for parking requirements. As a result, the potential implications for parking congestion are obvious and therefore the management of our car parking stock is key.

Job summary

The role of the Car Parking Assistant is crucial to the effective traffic and parking operations across the University. Parking is limited and can become a very emotive issue. The ability to be tactful, polite; professional and act in a firm and fair manner is essential to this role.

You will be stationed at a specific parking area (usually swapping areas on the second day) where you will act as ambassador for Car Parking, directing visitors to available parking areas and general directions to accommodation, main campus etc.

Main duties

• To provide directions to visitors during Welcome Weekend
• Advise visitors, when required, where the nearest parking is located
• Maintain good levels of communication with the Car Parking team and fellow ambassadors during the day i.e. advising when your allocated area is full

Required knowledge, skills, qualifications & experience

• Candidates must have excellent customer service skills with the ability to remain calm, polite and professional during busier periods
• You should have a good knowledge of the campus layout (knowledge of where specific car parks are located is not essential as full information will be provided)
• Effective communication skills
• Good timekeeping and reliable

Further details

• Successful candidates must be available for both Saturday 19th and Sunday 20th September, with shifts from 8am-4pm

For any informal queries, please contact Rebecca Harris (r.j.harris.1@bham.ac.uk)

The University of Birmingham restricts all students to working up to 20 hours per week during term time for a maximum of 13 consecutive weeks. If your application is successful and your course does not follow the usual academic term timetable (e.g. PGT, PGR or PhD student), you and your supervisor must formally agree vacation periods if this role exceeds 20 hours per week. In addition to this, please be aware if you are an international student you will be required to apply to the Registry for the appropriate authorised absence.

You are only eligible to apply to this role if you are a current University of Birmingham student. If you are not a University of Birmingham student your application will not be considered.

To work you will need to carry out a right to work check. These checks will need to be completed prior to work commencing.

Regarding the use of AI in applications, we review hundreds of applications and shortlist candidates based on their unique perspective, motivations and potential. Cover letters generated through, or edited by, AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT or CoPilot) are easy to identify. They produce generic answers and will not score highly enough to progress. You may use AI tools for research, but all written content in your application must be your own work. Authenticity and originality are key to standing out in this process.

Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we’re unable to contact all applicants individually. You can check the progress of your application by logging into the Worklink jobs portal using the same email address you used to apply. If you haven’t heard back within six weeks of the closing date, please assume your application has been unsuccessful.