Andrew Mark is a Manager of Research Administration in McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science, Evanston Campus. Andrew is one of the most supportive members of research administration community. Always willing to help, provide feedback, and advise in complex issues. As Excel expert, he is known for updating McCormick budget templates to fit the most sophisticated needs. In this issue, learn more about the person who stands behind the best memes on research administration.
Tell us a little about yourself.
I am currently a Manager of Research Administration in McCormick. And I was previously the Research Administrator for Chemical and Biological Engineering, and Engineering Sciences and Applied Math for about 5 years.
I am a geek, into sci-fi, fantasy, comic books, anime, and games. Spider-Man: No Way Home should have been nominated for Best Picture. Don’t @ me.
And as evidenced above, I will resort to cringey and awkward humor. Sometimes about research administration.
What is your educational and professional background?
I actually went to Northwestern as an undergrad. I double-majored in International Studies and Political Science, with a minor in Chinese.
I was originally planning to get into local government work, à la Parks and Recreation. But it was difficult to find positions during the Great Recession, so on a whim I ended up applying for and ultimately getting a Grants Assistant position with Northwestern’s Sponsored Research.
I ended up really liking the work and the people, so I’ve continued to stay involved with research administration and the community.
What are the most interesting aspects of working in research administration?
I like that you get to learn a lot about a bunch of different things. There are so many kinds of sponsors, terms and conditions, departments, and grant programs. And between pre- and post-award, there are a good three dozen other topics to learn. If you want to stay mentally engaged and be in a position where you’re always learning and get to do new things, research administration is a great field for that. No two days are the same.
What are the biggest challenges of working in research administration, and what are the ways you found most useful to overcome those challenges?
The common answers are the deadline-driven nature of the job, and often being responsible for deadline submissions where you don’t always have control over every element of.
I always try to be as organized as possible with checklists, timelines, and even just good internal organization methods. But having good relations with all parties involved is crucial too, as keeping them on-the-ball and up-to-date is important.
I also learned a lot of good techniques and practices from my mentors and fellow coworkers. A big shout out to them for helping to train me and make me better at my job. Mentorship is a huge part of research administration, so I try to be as helpful to others as my mentors were to me.
What new projects are you working on?
In McCormick Research Administration, part of my role is focusing on more “big picture” things. We’re currently hard at work on bringing back a training series at McCormick for research administration, and my team is also involved with updating guidelines, resources, and tools for better research administration. I am also involved in some campus-wide workgroups regarding research administration processes and tools.
Would you agree that being a research administrator is rewarding?
Very much so. Seeing my “everyday” work have positive impacts on others and society was one of the best parts. Getting a graduate student their first fellowship award, having research go well that an article is written up about it, having a complicated proposal get funded into a multi-institutional center grant. Getting to celebrate those wins with faculty and staff were always the high points of research administration for me.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I like to watch shows and read, but a series needs to win me over quickly or else I have trouble getting into it. So I end up testing the waters with a bunch of different series, and often not getting very far into it.
I am also into games, both board games and video games. I’ve really liked Sushi Go! and Kabuto Sumo (board games) and A Hat in Time and Monster Hunter (video games), so I recommend those to people interested.
To my fellow esports fans out there, I follow the Dota 2 pro scene, and watch tournaments when I can (and if they’re in my time zone). This does not extend to League of Legends though. Sorry.
Do you have any advice for research administrators wanting to advance in their careers?
Networking. It lets you know about other opportunities, but even who to talk to so you can learn about the field. Say you like research administration but want to move to a more post-award position; you should talk to folks who have positions like that so you can better understand their day to day and what skills they use to be successful. Even practically it lets you better problem solve and find solutions when you’re hit with something you don’t know how to do, as likely someone else has dealt with that situation and can help you.