Associate Help Desk Specialist Or Help Desk Specialist - Technology Services

Associate Help Desk Specialist Or Help Desk Specialist

Technology Services is seeking a knowledgeable and motivated IT professional to join our team, with the opportunity to hire at either the Associate Help Desk Specialist or Help Desk Specialist level depending on experience. The Associate Help Desk Specialist role is more entry-level and designed for someone eager to learn; we will provide the training and support needed to build a strong foundation in IT systems and grow your career. The Help Desk Specialist role is intended for candidates with prior IT experience who can apply their expertise more independently to provide advanced support and contribute to the improvement of IT tools and processes. In either role, the successful candidate will bring strong problem-solving skills, a collaborative mindset, and a passion for technology. This is a great opportunity to develop professionally, support end-users, and make a meaningful impact on our IT community.

Associate Help Desk Specialist Job Summary

This position provides technical expertise in a highly technical campus environment in the areas of telecommunications, data and networking, applications, security, and computing. This position must analyze, process, and coordinate responses to service requests and inquiries, resolve incidents/trouble tickets and/or escalate help request to the proper support tier or functional group. Position involves a high level of customer service.

Help Desk Specialist Job Summary

Provides technical expertise in a highly technical campus environment in the areas of data and networking, applications, security, and computing. Assists in daily operations associated with Technology Services service support including prevention, minimization, and elimination of problems and incidents.

Associate Help Desk Specialist Duties & Responsibilities

• The incumbent answers telephone, email, chat and in-person inquiries, incidents, and service requests from external and internal sources to provide general, technical and/or procedural support to faculty, staff, and student clients as well as the community for services provided by Technology Services and general computing needs: receive and track, analyze and interpret, research and troubleshoot, process/resolve and/or escalate requests, incidents and inquiries that fall outside of documented processes.
• Document actions using Technology Services ticketing system and/or Technology Services service management system as well as other internal tools and escalate unanswerable requests/inquiries/incidents along with appropriate documentation.
• Provide service information regarding feature/functionality, training opportunities and self-help information and documentation to campus users.
• Train and document performance of junior staff and student workers in order to maintain proper levels of customer service and support. Act as point of escalation for junior staff.
• Perform other duties as assigned including: create support document for use within Technology Services, follow and propose alternatives to existing incident management, direct customers to existing documentation and advise management of any noticed customer needs or problems affecting services provided by Technology Services as well as suggest alternatives, serve on cross department functional team, serve on special projects, provide technical leadership, obtain basic training and certifications, and participate in seminars, classes and staff meetings.

Help Desk Specialist Duties & Responsibilities

• Processes/resolves/documents requests, incidents, and inquiries in Tier 2 based on specialized knowledge of systems and software. Independently determines escalation of requests, incidents, and inquiries to service administrators/Tier 2 Support.
• In collaboration with the Manager, identify trends and translate non-technical service issues from customers and Help Desk Tier 1 into potential problem tickets.
• Recommend process and service improvements to improve efficiency and customer service, such as preventing issues or resolving them at a lower tier of support.
• Assists with the development of Technology Services service lifecycle processes; creates Knowledge Base materials for use within Tier 1 and 2; provision and de-provision accounts; assists in the development of new and existing incident management processes.
• Receives and tracks requests, incidents, and inquires; analyzes and interprets requests, incidents, and inquires.
• Research and troubleshoot requests, incidents and inquires for Tier 1 and Tier 2.
• Provides feedback to Tier 1 staff (IT Support Associates and/or students) on their work and incident management best practices.
• Participate in the evaluation of student workers.
• Develops and/or provide training on Technology Services process and tools, particularly to Help Desk Tier 1 staff.
• Provide guidance and cultivate technical and customer service skills in less experienced staff.
• Performs Audiovisual (AV) checks in general assignment classrooms on campus. Completes classroom trainings on AV equipment in general assignment classrooms on campus.
• Serves on cross-department functional teams to resolve problems and noticeable trends; serves on special projects providing technical leadership.

Associate Help Desk Specialist Minimum Qualifications

1. High school diploma or equivalent.
2. One (1) year of work experience in IT-related functions such as hardware/software support, programming, network design, network engineering, IT systems integration, or closely related field. College coursework which includes Information Technology (IT), IT Management, Programming, IT systems, or a closely related discipline may be substituted as follows:
1. 30 semester hours equals one (1) year
2. Associate's Degree (60 semester hours) equals eighteen (18) months
3. 90 semester hours equals two (2) years
4. Bachelor's Degree (120 semester hours) equals three (3) years

Help Desk Specialist Minimum Qualifications

1. High school diploma or equivalent.
2. Two (2) years of work experience in IT-related functions such as hardware/software support, programming, network design, network engineering, IT systems integration, or closely related field. College coursework which includes Information Technology (IT), IT Management, Programming, IT systems, or a closely related discipline may be substituted as follows:
1. 30 semester hours equals one (1) year
2. Associate's Degree (60 semester hours) equals eighteen (18) months
3. 90 semester hours equals two (2) years
4. Bachelor's Degree (120 semester hours) equals three (3) years
3. Demonstrated experience in IT User/Customer Support or in a Help Desk support role.

Preferred Qualifications

1. Experience working in an IT environment in Higher Education
2. Experience working in an IT Help Desk troubleshooting tickets
3. Help Desk Specialist Level: Three years overall IT experience with one year being in Higher Education.
4. Help Desk Specialist Level: A general understanding of the structure of the university including various colleges, offices and departments and their function. Experience working in an IT Help Desk troubleshooting tickets.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

General understanding and ability to use different computer software programs and on-line databases such as: Microsoft Office Suite, Microsoft Unified Communications (Outlook Exchange), Box, Knowledge Base, and ticketing system. Ability to provide a positive customer service experience to those with inquiries. Ability to handle emergency situations in a calm and efficient manner. Ability to work with others cooperatively. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Demonstrated organizational and time-management skills. Ability to adapt quickly to frequently changing policies. Ability to exercise initiative, use independent judgment, work and communicate well with a widely diverse population of customers and co-workers. Demonstrated problems solving skills.

Appointment Information

The Associate Help Desk Specialist is a 100% full-time Civil Service IT Support Associate position, appointed on a 12-month basis. The Help Desk Specialist is a 100% full-time Civil Service IT Technical Associate position, appointed on a 12-month basis. The expected start date is as soon as possible after the closing date. The budgeted salary range for the Associate Help Desk Specialist is $45,000.00 to $50,000.00, and the budgeted salary range for the Help Desk Specialist is $52,000.00 to $60,000.00. Salary is commensurate with experience. For more information on Civil Service classifications, please visit the SUCSS web site.

Sponsorship for work authorization is not available for this position.

Application Procedures & Deadline Information

Applications must be received by 6:00 pm (Central Time) on September 30, 2025. Apply for this position using the Apply Now button at the top or bottom of