Kasia Dybisz

• Managing a portfolio of Further Education (FE) Colleges to deliver inclusive, engaging, and impactful Duke of Edinburgh's Award (DofE) programme focusing on employability skills, personal development, and wellbeing. The programme includes skills, physical, volunteering, expedition and residential activities
• Working as a part of the Boost Participation Pilot Project launched in 2022 to increase access to the DofE for underrepresented FE students. The Project focuses on re-engaging licenced colleges with little or no DofE Award delivery, improving the quality of Award delivery, targeting marginalised student populations, and licencing perspective non-delivering colleges
• Provision of remote and in-person operational support, including the following:

1. First point of contact for all enquiries including day-to-day running of the award, administrative, technical, legal and financial concerns

2. Completing and regularly reviewing action plans in collaboration with the DofE Manager and Senior Leadership Team (SLT) to improve the quality of programme delivery. This is informed by performance data collected on the Power BI and further statistical reports

3. Ensuring appropriate staffing structure is in place, including sufficient training of all DofE volunteers

4. Researching and promoting local activities and funding opportunities

5. Completing funding applications in collaboration with DofE Manager and SLT and ensuring the funding is appropriately spent and reported on in a timely manner

6. Representation of DofE at promotional events and delivery of presentations to promote the recruitment of students and volunteers

7. Supporting participants with choosing activities, setting objectives, and consistently uploading evidence onto a virtual eDofE platform

9. Supporting DofE volunteers with maximising engagement and approval of evidence/DofE sections and Awards. If required, addressing any engagement or quality issues with the DofE Manager

10. Issuing and renewing DofE licences utilising CRM System (Dynamics) and DocuSign, including completing diligence checks

Additional developmental roles:

1. Researching and mapping out prospective non-delivering colleges

2. Design of promotional resources in collaboration with the DofE media team to aid recruitment and licencing of prospective colleges

3. Collaboration with the DofE media team to generate promotional social media content for the upcoming Colleges Week campaign

4. Interviewing DofE participants to collect success case studies to support programme engagement and aid fundraising efforts

5. Contribution to the design of the FE module undertaken by DofE participants as part of the Young Leaders volunteering programme

6. Liaising with several college departments to map out and promote on-site enrichment and volunteering opportunities

7. Delivery of manager's induction training via Adobe platform

8. Providing representation on the Resource Working Group to ensure that DofE resources are suitable for FE participants and volunteers

9. Providing representation on the Equity, Inclusion and Wellbeing Working Group to feed into internal developments and policy changes

• Remotely interviewing foreign applicants to ensure course suitability, including a genuine interest in UK-based study, sufficient English language skills, and ability to fund their studies
• Verification of visa and identity documentation
• Processing applications and course offers

• First point of contact for student concerns and novel ideas
• Ensuring all students receive outstanding personalised support, including academic, wellbeing, and financial support
• Increasing student engagement and participation
• Managing Student Representation Team, including elections of new Representatives and supervision of current Representatives
• Designing and distributing student experience surveys, conducting Focus Groups and 1:1 interviews with students and producing reports
• Coordinating and managing student events
• Liaising with other departments to bring about positive changes
• Promoting recruitment and strong alumni relationships
• Administrative responsibilities, including scheduling meetings, answering all enquiries, and managing student databases

• Providing information and advice on accessing higher education in a positive and impartial manner, particularly targeting students from marginalised backgrounds (primary age onwards)
• Developing audience-specific educational resources
• Proactively delivering, managing, and leading local, outreach, and virtual campus tours, presentations, workshops, and seminars
• Leading collaborative projects and campus visits
• Shortlisting and training new cohorts of ambassadors
• Supervising students throughout on-campus events and overnight during residential summer schools
• Student Experience and Academic Video Creation
• Writing Ambassador Newsletter and several blog posts/articles
• Answering student queries on the Unibuddy online platform
• Completing administrative tasks, including Excel data entry and editing documents

• Answering all phone, web-chat and email enquiries
• Signposting to relevant resources and departments
• Consulting Yellow Pages database
• Authorising and producing student letters

• Supporting delivery of teaching sessions in secondary schools, including working with special educational needs or disabilities students

• Life-sciences specific content development and delivery
• Helping students make informed decisions about their future study and career plans

• Answering all phone enquiries during Clearing Week and subsequent two weeks (every year, since starting the scheme)
• Completing Clearing and Adjustment Applications
• Providing useful contacts and diverting phone calls unerringly

• Running academic sessions on the Socio Platform
• Managing all technical difficulties by effectively communicating with speakers and the internal team

• Sharing lived experiences during foster career training sessions, award events and school visits, with aim of improving educational performance of looked-after children and care-leavers

• Answering queries on the Sussex Student Room virtual platform
• Staying up to date with all relevant university policies, services-on-offer, grading system, and higher education SFE funding information
• Referring students to appropriate university contacts and resources
• Assisting with training of new Student Room Representatives

• Reviewing and providing feedback on existing Library Policies
• Editing Documents
• Organising Team meetings
• Teamwork management

• Working and playing with groups of children and young people with additional needs, including mental, cognitive, and physical disabilities
• Helping to organise and facilitate fun and educational activities
• Preparing food and if appropriate, assisting with eating
• Maintaining strong rapport with parents/carers
• Troubleshooting any behavioural concerns

• Shadowing dermatology clinicians during patient consultations and completion of minor surgeries