WHAT DOES AN EDUCATION PROGRAM COORDINATOR DO?
Updated: Mai 29, 2025 - The Education Program Coordinator collaborates with personnel from multiple institutions to manage paperwork for residents and trainees, ensuring contracts are current. The role oversees the processing of trainee visa paperwork, manages the credentialing process, and ensures timely onboarding and check-in procedures. Additionally, the coordinator serves as a liaison between trainees, Graduate Medical Education, Visa and Administrative Departments, and faculty, while handling educational agreements and correspondence.
A Review of Professional Skills and Functions for Education Program Coordinator
1. Education Program Coordinator Duties
- Program Coordination: Coordinates all aspects of research educational programs and activities for the department, including the department's clinical and research trainee programs (post-doctoral fellows, observers, short-term observers, research trainees, clinical fellows, research medical students, etc.).
- Applicant Management: Corresponds with potential applicants, determines applicant eligibility, and guides applicants through the appropriate application process.
- Fellowship Maintenance: Maintains positions associated with assigned fellowship annually through Graduate Medical Education.
- Funding Coordination: Works with the Program Directors to seek out additional funding for new fellowship positions.
- Interview Process Management: Coordinates the annual fellowship program interview process with faculty for Plastic Surgery (primary) and Ophthalmic Plastic Surgery (secondary).
- Document Collection and Distribution: Determines the interview dates, collects necessary applicant documentation, compiles interview packets on each candidate, and distributes them to faculty for review.
- Interview Scheduling: Schedules applicant interviews with all faculty in Plastic Surgery and in Ophthalmic Plastic Surgery, both in person or virtually as appropriate, provides interview itineraries for applicants, schedules applicants for institutional tours for candidates interviewing on-site.
- Event Coordination: Catering for on-site interviews, reserving appropriate space for up to 35 applicants for each fellowship, confirming that all faculty clinic/OR schedules are appropriately blocked for interviews, and coordinating assistance from departmental support staff for both on-site or virtual interviews.
- Application Processing: Maintains, reviews, and processes applications for assigned clinical fellowships.
- Candidate Selection: Determines eligibility for all candidates and participates in candidate interviews and the selection process.
- Onboarding Coordination: Coordinates and oversees all activities associated with onboarding activities for observers and visitors, including research compliance and weekly surgical schedules.
2. Education Program Coordinator Details
- Cross-Institution Collaboration: Works closely with personnel from approximately four other institutions (e.g., Baylor, UT Medical School, etc.) to process all paperwork dealing with residents and other trainees as they rotate through the department from these institutions and to keep contracts current.
- Selection Process Review: Reviews the effectiveness of the interview selection and appointment process of the Fellowship Program to ensure optimal efficiency.
- Program Maintenance: Responsible for maintaining program participation in the SF Match, including annual payments and program updates.
- Visa Processing: Coordinates and processes all original and renewal of trainee visa paperwork with Graduate and Medical Education and the Office of Visa and Immigration Services Administration.
- Visa Management: Manages required visa requests for trainees.
- Document Collection: Directs collection of all associated documents, including Chairman's letter, actual wage and prevailing wage forms, I-129 Export attestation form, check requests, etc.
- Documentation Coordination: Interacts with individuals through the process to obtain additional documentation.
- Credentialing Management: Independently manages the credentialing process for Clinical Specialist appointments.
- Permit Monitoring: Monitors the Physician in Training permit application process for incoming trainees to ensure that they can participate in clinical duties on the first day of arrival.
- Onboarding Coordination: Coordinates the onboarding of all assigned trainees.
- Communication Management: Independently communicates with applicants and prepares all correspondence on behalf of the program.
- Procedure Enforcement: Ensures trainees follow check-in and checkout procedures in a timely manner.
- Liaison Role: Serves as liaison between trainees and Graduate Medical Education, Visa and Administrative Department, and faculty.
- Agreement Coordination: Oversees and coordinates the initiation and renewals of educational agreements.
3. Education Program Coordinator Responsibilities
- Orientation Management: Manages new trainee department orientation by providing relevant information for newly hired fellows and transient trainees.
- Schedule Development: Develops a rotation schedule for each academic year to establish the administrative fellow rotations to ensure that adequate fellow and resident coverage to all faculty members in both the clinics and the OR.
- Resource Availability: Ensures that all resources needed during the fellowship are available on the first day of rotation.
- Resource Updates: Ensures departmental and institutional trainee resources are updated.
- Trainee Orientation: Orients each trainee to the requirements of the program, mandatory meetings and conferences, assists in completing computer set-up process so that trainees have appropriate computer access for completion of clinical and research activities, and confirms that each trainee has appropriate badge access to institutional areas (i.e., clinic, OR, laboratory areas, etc.).
- Compliance Oversight: Works closely with the management of the departmental Clinical Research Program to ensure that all trainees are appropriately identified and have completed the necessary training to remain in compliance with institutional policy.
- Travel Coordination: Plans and oversees the coordination of travel arrangements for fellows to premier annual meetings or to present scientific projects during the fellowship.
- Duty Hours and Funding: Ensures that duty hours are reported and obtains funding for travel.
- Meeting and Paperwork Coordination: Schedules orientation and end-of-rotation meetings and paperwork between trainees and the appropriate Director.
- Evaluation Management: Ensures that faculty and trainees both complete necessary end-of-program and rotation evaluations in a timely manner.
- Certificate and Letter Issuance: Directs completion of paperwork for trainees to receive a certificate of completion and is responsible for issuing letters of participation for trainees.
- Evaluation Coordination: Coordinates the Focused Professional Practice Evaluations and End of Provisional status for Clinical Specialists and ensures that these documents are completed in a timely manner.
- Visitor Coordination: Coordinates and oversees all activities associated with the appointment of observers and visitors in Plastic Surgery.
4. Education Program Coordinator Job Summary
- Salary Management: Ensure that the salaries of all educational appointees are within guidelines and are paid from the appropriate funding sources.
- Faculty Guidance: Provides guidance and oversight to faculty members on appropriate titles and eligibility for incoming elective rotations in the department such as Post-doctoral Fellows, Graduate Research Assistants, Research Residents, and Medical Students for Plastic Surgery.
- Program Materials Management: Maintains and updates the Fellowship Program brochure, program manual, program booklet, and program description.
- Research Application Support: Organizes research applications and assists in securing funds for postdoctoral fellows.
- Gift Reporting: Prepares major gift progress reports on behalf of the training program.
- Payroll Processing: Processes payroll and personnel actions via ePAF system for assigned trainee programs employees in the department fellowship as well as other training programs.
- Fellowship Verification: Completes all verifications for fellowship training.
- Appointment Monitoring: Monitors the incoming flow of trainee appointment requests and works with faculty to create timelines for incoming trainees.
- Policy Updates: Keeps abreast of policy and procedure changes and disseminates information appropriately.
- File Maintenance: Oversees maintenance of paper and electronic trainee files to allow for review of current and former trainees, documentation for training program accreditation, etc.
- Waitlist Management: Manages Clinical Fellow waiting list for future applicants.
- File Management: Ensures electronic files of all applications are to be kept and managed appropriately.
- Program Liaison: Serves as professional representative and in most cases first line of contact for the department's trainee programs.
- Annual Review Support: Assists the Program Directors in compiling information for annual program reviews.
5. Education Program Coordinator Accountabilities
- Management Support: Provides management support for the Office for Training and Mentoring of Scientists.
- Strategic Planning: Sets strategic priorities and tactics for the Office of Training and Mentoring of Scientists in consultation with the Director, to align with institutional and Chief Education and Training Officer strategic initiatives.
- Operations Oversight: Maintains responsibility for operations of the Office of Training and Mentoring of Scientists to include development and oversight of the business and project planning.
- Website Management: Manages the website content of the program and works with the website manager to add new information
- Outreach Coordination: Facilitates outreach efforts including marketing the program.
- Event Coordination: Coordinates Town Halls and speakers for the Office of Training and Mentoring of Scientists events.
- Faculty Support: Supports the director with faculty recruitment, promotion, credentialing, and administrative development.
- Strategic Planning (MRC): Sets strategic priorities and tactics for the Metastasis Research Center in consultation with the Director, to align with institutional and programmatic strategic initiatives.
- Educational Coordination (MRC): Coordinates educational opportunities on the biology of metastasis as established by the director of MRC.
- Grant Coordination: Assists in the coordination or collection of grant submissions as related to MRC.
- Report Preparation: Prepares annual progress reports for submission.
- Outreach Management: Manages outreach activities of Smith Education Program Fund, including maintaining contact databases and distribution lists, coordinating the production of the yearly newsletter, receiving and completing requests for educational materials and speakers, and assisting with updates to the Department and program website.
- Speaker Coordination: Coordinates speakers for the departmental Distinguished Lecture program and Chalk Talks.