Senior Financial Associate: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering - UTK
University Of Tennessee College
Reporting to the Senior Business Manager, the Senior Financial Associate provides assistance to faculty and staff for fiscal and HR policy compliance along with granting agency guidelines and is responsible for addressing questions and concerns in a timely manner. This position represents the unit in a professional manner, often dealing with individuals and organizations external to the university. Decisions made by this position can impact the department's ability to meet fiscal obligations, to comply with state, university and agency policies and to promote viable relationships with outside constituents.
Reporting to the Senior Business Manager, the Senior Financial Associate provides assistance to faculty and staff for fiscal and HR policy compliance along with granting agency guidelines and is responsible for addressing questions and concerns in a timely manner. This position represents the unit in a professional manner, often dealing with individuals and organizations external to the university.
Required Qualifications
-
Education:
High School diploma or GED
-
Experience:
4+ years of experience in accounting
-
Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:
Knowledge of State and Federal contract and Grant Financial requirements.
Working knowledge of UT fiscal policies and procedures
Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Outlook, Excel, Word, Teams, PowerPoint)
Ability to multi-task and prioritize tasks
Autonomous and team-based work ability
Organizational and time-management skills
Preferred Qualifications
-
Education:
Associate's or Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Human Resource Management or related degree
Other license/certificates that relate to accounting, HR or Business
-
Experience:
Associate's degree in a related field preferred with 2+ years of accounting and HR experience.
Bachelor's degree in a related field preferred with accounting and HR experience.
Experience in an academic environment.
Experience hiring foreign nationals and communicating with non-native English speakers.
Human resources specific experience related to recruiting, hiring or employee relations.
-
Knowledge, Skills, Abilities:
Knowledge of State and federal contract and grant financial requirements.
Working knowledge of UT fiscal and HR policies and procedures.
Knowledge of financial / personnel management applications.
Work Location
Location: Knoxville, TN
Onsite
Compensation and Benefits
UT market range: MR07
Anticipated hiring range: $53,000
Find more information on the UT Market Range structure here
Find more information on UT Benefits here
Application Instructions
To express interest, please submit an application with the noted below attachments. To be assured of full consideration, completed applications with all requested materials should be submitted on or before March 15, 2026
Resume
Cover Letter
About The Department
The Mechanical, Aerospace, and Biomedical Engineering Department is part of the Tickle College of Engineering at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. More information can be found at https://mabe.utk.edu/
Validates accuracy of deposits as prepared by an alternate associate through review of physical cash, receipts and deposit transaction documents.
Researches and provides guidance for internal transfer transactions to properly record allocations and posting corrections with applicable cost transfer form approvals from Sponsored Project Accounting; processes as needed for separation of duties
Contacts faculty for questions and recommends process changes to be reviewed and approved; oversees 9-month/12-month calculations, NIH salary caps, NSF payroll restrictions for sponsored projects; provides recommendations to faculty related to sponsor requirements and policy and procedure compliance
Provides recommendations related to compliance and guides faculty related to budgetary/ funding activities on externally funded projects to properly record costs and activities and makes recommendations to the Sr. Business/Asst. Business Manager
Monitoring of sponsored project spending and reconciliation of ledgers; ensures all supporting documentation is provided; offers initial review of budget projections, account close-out, need for contract modifications, etc. to ensure compliance and monitor accounts for overspending
Works directly with OSP/FMC personnel for pre-award/post-award management
Co-management of budget funding from other internal sources for reimbursement or direct charging SARIF, Summer internships, etc.
Provides data analysis and reporting for financial.