Management Assistant & Event Coordinator (0,8 – 1,0 FTE)

Introduction

Do you want to make a difference in inclusion, diversity, equity, and access (IDEA) at the EUR? The IDEA Center is at the heart of EUR’s diversity and inclusion agenda, working towards an inclusive community where everyone feels at home and has opportunities to grow and develop. Our team of 12 colleagues focuses on areas such as inclusive engagement, soft landing (the students’ first 100 days), education, HR, communication, and research. 

As our Management Assistant & Event Coordinator, you ensure smooth daily operations and help organise events that bring our mission to life. This is the perfect role if you are looking for purpose-driven work in a dynamic academic environment, alongside motivated, kind, and knowledgeable colleagues. 

Job description

We are looking for a versatile professional with excellent organisational skills, discretion, and a proactive attitude. This role is ideal for someone who thrives on variety — switching between management support, administration, and event coordination — and who gets energy from supporting a dynamic, social environment. Your responsibilities include:  

Agenda management & administrative support  

• Manage parts of the agendas for the Chief Diversity Officer and IDEA Center Manager 

• Schedule and take minutes during departmental meetings, including booking rooms and arranging facilities (e.g. catering) 

• Handle the IDEA Center’s general mailbox and ensure timely follow-up 

• Coordinate daily office tasks, such as ordering office supplies 

• Serve as the first point of contact for practical, organisational, and facility-related questions  

• Support administrative HR processes, including contract changes, hospitality agreements, and onboarding/offboarding 

Event & project coordination 

• Assist in organising IDEA Center events and activities, from brainstorming about suitable locations, to booking and managing logistics   

• Collaborate closely with the communications advisor on event preparation and execution  

• In the future, coordinate the IDEA Center’s student ambassador community 

You will report directly to the Manager of the IDEA Center. 

Job requirements

You have strong organisational skills, work with a proactive attitude and accuracy, and can prioritise well in a dynamic environment. You adapt easily and enjoy switching between tasks. In addition, you bring:  

- Mbo+/hbo level of working and thinking, preferably in an administrative or secretarial field 

-At least four years of proven experience in a similar support or management assistant role 

- Affinity with, or experience in, IDEA themes  

-Excellent communication skills in Dutch and English (minimum C1 in one language and B2 in the other). Working language within the team is English. With the colleagues outside of our team, Dutch is most commonly used language.

Employment conditions and benefits

We offer you an internationally oriented and varied job in an enthusiastic team, with excellent working conditions in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities (CAO-NU).

The start date of this position will be agreed upon and you will be based at Campus Woudestein - Rotterdam in the General Management Directorate (ABD). This position is for 0.8 fte - 1 fte. The salary is dependent on your experience and knowledge and ranges from a minimum of € 3.057 to a maximum of € 3.985 gross per month Scale 7 on a fulltime basis (38 hours), in accordance with the CAO-NU. The contract is offered for a period of 1 year and can be converted into an employment contract for an indefinite period if suitability is proven and if continued in the same position, if (financial and/or organizational) circumstances remain the same.

Everything else we offer you; you can find below!

- Everything you need for a good work-life balance: the option to work from home in consultation with your manager, 41 days of paid leave with a 40 hour contract, 8% holiday pay and an 8.3% end-of-year bonus, and a significant discount on a subscription for our on-campus sports centre!

- Sustainable, inclusive and diverse work environment with an open culture, where you can be yourself and we pay attention to each other and to the world around us. Make the most of our bicycle budget, or join networks such as Young@EUR, FAME or QuEUR.

- Time and space for your development in the broadest sense: development days and a personal career budget and free access to our university library.

- Good pension with ABP that EUR contributes 2/3rds towards, discounts on various collective insurances with Zilveren Kruis Achmea, Loyalis, and Allianz, and compensation for travel, working from home and home internet use.

- Are you currently combining your job with parenthood, or do you want to do so in the future? EUR offers partially paid parental leave and fully paid additional birth leave for partners, and our campus features a daycare (daycare not paid for by EUR).

- Moving to the Netherlands for your job with EUR? Then you may be eligible for the 30%-ruling if you meet the requirements of the Belastingdienst (Dutch tax agency), and with our Dual Career Programme we will also help your partner find the right job for them.

Employer

Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) is an internationally oriented university with a strong social orientation in its education and research, as expressed in our mission ‘Creating positive societal impact’. EUR is home to 4.100 academics and professionals and almost 33.000 students from more than 140 countries. Everything we do, we do under the credo The Erasmian Way – Making Minds Matter. We’re global citizens, connecting, entrepreneurial, open-minded, and socially involved. These Erasmian Values function as our internal compass and create EUR’s distinctive and recognizable profile. From these values, with a broad perspective and with an eye for diversity, different backgrounds and opinions, our employees work closely together to solve societal challenges from the dynamic and cosmopolitan city of Rotterdam. Thanks to the high quality and positive societal impact of our research and education, EUR can compete with the top European universities. www.eur.nl.

Faculty / Institute / Central service

The General Management Directorate (Algemene Bestuursdienst, ABD) is the central staff organisation responsible for the organisation and support of EUR’s policy and administration at the institutional level. ABD supports the Executive Board in fulfilling its responsibilities with regard to the quality, accessibility and financing of EUR’s education and research programmes. ABD handles the joint design of integrated policy, ensures the timely submission of policy within decision-making procedures and the implementation of the adopted policy measures and constantly monitors and evaluates developments in the interest of further improvement. ABD comprises the departments of Academic Affairs (AZ), Corporate Planning & Control (CPC), Administrative Affairs (BZ), Legal Affairs (JZ) and Strategy Office (SO). The independent university publication Erasmus Magazine also falls under ABD in organisational terms.

The management directorate is headed by the Director of the General Management Directorate, who also serves as Secretary of the Executive Board.

Department

IDEA Center (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Access Center) is at the heart of EUR’s diversity and inclusion agenda. We work towards an inclusive EUR community where everyone feels at home and has equal opportunities. Through advice and policy development, research, training, and partnerships, we actively contribute to a more equitable and engaged university. The team consists of 12 members with content expertise on inclusive engagement, soft landing, student engagement, inclusive education, inclusive organisation, inclusive communication, monitoring and research. Working language within the team is English. With the colleagues outside of our team, Dutch is most commonly used language. We work in a flexible manner, both at home and in the office. Preferably 50% of the working time would be in the office. Exact days to be made in agreement. 

Additional information

Are you enthusiastic, but would like to ask some questions about the position first? Then you can contact Katarina Putnik (Manager IDEA Center) via katarina.putnik@eur.nl.  

For questions about the procedure, you can contact our recruiter Iris Konijnendijk at iris.konijnendijk@eur.nl. 

Applying

We look forward to receiving your application for the role of Management assistant & Event coordinator, including your cv and your answer to the following questions (max.1 A4 in total):  

1. What makes you interested in this job vacancy; what do you wish to bring and what do you hope to learn in this position? 

2. Give an example of a situation where you had to organise an event, describing the steps you took and the skills you used. In answering this question, use the STARR technique (situation, task, action, result, reflection) as much as possible. 

3. Imagine you are asked to organise a shipment of a book to all EUR students. What aspects would be important to consider? 

The selection process consists of two interviews. The first interview will take place in the week of February 23 and the second interview in the week of March 2. As part of the selection process, we may request references. 

We look forward to receiving your application!

We support an inclusive hiring process. We use bias reduction strategies in the hiring process (structured interviews, diverse hiring panel) and are open to creating accommodations for candidates who may need them. 

Persons of all gender identities or expressions, sexual orientations, religions, ethnicities, ages, neurodiversities, functional impairments, citizenships, or any other aspect are welcome to apply and join the EUR community.