FINANCIAL ANALYST

CATEGORY Non Faculty Vacancies
COLLEGE Departments
DEPARTMENT Finance Department
JOB PURPOSE

As a Financial Analyst you are ecpected to serve as a vital strategic partner within the Financial Planning and Analysis (FP&A) Section, dedicated to enhancing the University’s financial sustainability and operational efficiency. Reporting to the Head of FP&A, the role is responsible for the end-to-end execution of the annual budgeting process, developing sophisticated financial models, and creating business intelligence tools that drive data-informed decision-making. Providing high-level analytical support—ranging from academic program viability studies to KPI monitoring—ensuring that University resources are allocated strategically.

MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES & EXPECTATIONS

1. Develop and maintain internal financial reporting templates to produce monthly management reports and periodic updates for the Finance Department and Senior Management 2. Support continuous improvements in the budgeting and forecasting cycle to enhance accuracy and alignment with university objectives 3. Provide financial advice on existing and new academic programs, evaluating strategic fit, demand, pricing strategies, and long-term financial viability 4. Conduct detailed financial sustainability analyses at the organizational unit and program levels to optimize revenue and cost structures 5. Build robust financial models and business cases to support strategic decision-making and identify new business opportunities 6. Contribute to the development of Business Intelligence (BI) tools and interactive dashboards to drive performance improvements and data-driven insights 7. Evaluate systems and processes against industry benchmarks to drive operational efficiencies across the Finance Department 9. Assist in the accurate allocation of revenues and costs to correct cost centers, auditing transactions to ensure data reliability 9. Act as a financial business partner to deans and directors, challenging assumptions and providing value-added advice to support their goals 10. Research and interpret complex financial data to answer stakeholder inquiries and explain the financial implications of business activities.

REQUIRED SKILLS

• Excellent oral and written communication skills and the ability to prepare professional documents, in both Arabic and English.

• Excellent working knowledge of personal computer applications with an emphasis on MS Office applications such as Excel, Word, and Teams.

• Proficiency in building complex, dynamic Excel models to support business cases, program viability studies, and "what-if" scenario analyses.

• Skilled in using Power BI or similar tools to transform raw financial data into interactive dashboards and management reports.

• Expertise in the full budget cycle, including variance analysis, trend forecasting, and the ability to identify drivers of revenue and cost.

• Experience navigating and extracting data from enterprise systems, specifically Oracle Fusion, to ensure data integrity in reporting.

• A solid grasp of IFRS and the University’s internal policies to ensure transactions are correctly allocated to cost centers.

• Ability to conduct market research and competitive analysis to provide advice on pricing strategies and the maturity cycles of academic programs.

• High precision in auditing transactions and preparing reports to ensure the security, integrity, and confidentiality of university data.

DESIRABLE REQUIREMENTS

• Minimum of a bachelor’s degree in Finance, Accounting, Economics, or a relevant discipline.

• A professional qualification as a chartered accountant or qualified member of an accountancy body (e.g. CPA, CMA, ACCA, CIMA, ICAS, etc.).

• 4-6 years of UAE experience in a similar role, preferably in higher education institutions.

• Priority is to UAE Nationals.
  

JOB LOCATION University of Sharjah (Main)
JOB CRITERIA GENDER , Male, Female,
QUALIFICATIONS Bachelor's degree/higher diploma
RELEVANT EXPERIENCE 4
LIVING IN UAE Open for all
NATIONALITY , All,