Senior Provider Audit Officer

Senior Provider Audit Officer

Salary: £54,439 - £56,968

Location: Bristol

Generous Civil Service defined benefit pension

We are the independent regulator of higher education in England. We aim to ensure that every student, whatever their background, has a fulfilling experience of higher education that enriches their lives and careers. We also care about supporting and developing our staff, working together to achieve more than each of us can do alone.

We’re looking for skilled, committed people who care about students and their experience of higher education. Join us and you’ll be part of an energetic, forward-looking organisation with high ambitions and big opportunities for our people.

About the role

The Senior Provider Audit Officer role is based in the Provider Audit Team, which delivers an assurance programme aimed at ensuring risks are anticipated and addressed, including risks relating to provider data and other key operational processes. The OfS’s regulatory approach utilises data obtained from higher education providers, so it is important data is fit for this purpose.

You will work closely with staff at higher education providers to explore how they collect and manage data and to assess the accuracy of that data. Broader audits conducted by the team explore how key processes impacting on students are designed and implemented, contributing to the OfS’s approach to regulating providers’ compliance with our regulatory expectations.

You will lead audits and reviews assessing the accuracy of data and the effectiveness of underlying systems and processes at providers. This includes directing and overseeing the work of colleagues working on the audit.

You will work closely with provider staff and often act as the primary point of contact, including conducting face to face meetings. You will report findings both to providers and to colleagues at the OfS.

The role involves regular travel to providers across England, including overnight stays.

About you

You’ll have worked as an internal auditor, or in a similar role where you tested compliance and assessed the effectiveness of systems and processes.

Essential experience required for the role:

• Experience in leading audits, or similar exercises to test compliance and/or the effectiveness of systems and processes, such as internal audits, similar assurance work or investigations.

• Excellent numerical and data literacy skills. Experience of working with data and an ability to understand new data definitions.

• Experience in applying high levels of professional scepticism, including designing novel approaches to testing in response to emerging risks.

• Excellent communication skills. Experience in managing sensitive or difficult conversations.

• A proven ability to communicate complex technical issues both verbally and in writing.

• Experience in reporting findings from audits or similar exercises and effectively tailoring communications to different audiences.

• Ability to work with high levels of autonomy. Experience of managing own workload, including responding to emerging and changing priorities.

• Experience of working with a range of stakeholders and managing potential conflict while maintaining effective working relationships.

Desirable experience:

• An understanding of regulation and/or the higher education sector.

• Relevant qualification e.g. CMIIA, CIA, ACCA, ACA.

Application process

There are 3 online application questions to complete, alongside providing a summary of your career to date, which will allow you to demonstrate your relevant experience.

Reasonable adjustments

We are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is accessible to everyone. If you require any reasonable adjustments to support you through the application stage, please contact us at Sign in to view email and we will be happy to help.

Working for us

The OfS regulates the higher education sector on behalf of all students. We value diversity and the wealth of perspectives, experience and ideas that it brings to our work, and we strive to embed equality of opportunity in everything we do.

We recruit based on fair and open competition and welcome applications from candidates regardless of age, disability, race and ethnicity, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation and socio-economic background.

Flexibility is important to the OfS, as we recognise that it can enable people to work more effectively. A set of organisation-wide principles shape our approach to flexible and hybrid working, which our teams then use as guidance on how they deliver their business goals. This would usually mean working from the office for two days in a typical week.

To attract the widest possible field of qualified applicants, flexible working, for example job share and part time working (with a minimum 0.8 FTE), apply to this role.

Monday 27th July at noon

For information: the OfS does not hold a UK Visa & Immigration (UKVI) Skilled Worker Sponsor Licence.