New

Senior Program Cost Analyst

Western Governors University
life insurance, flexible benefit account, parental leave, paid time off, paid holidays, sick time
United States, Utah, Salt Lake City
3949 South 700 East (Show on map)
Jul 18, 2025
If you're passionate about building a better future for individuals, communities, and our country-and you're committed to working hard to play your part in building that future-consider WGU as the next step in your career. Driven by a mission to expand access to higher education through online, competency-based degree programs, WGU is also committed to being a great place to work for a diverse workforce of student-focused professionals. The university has pioneered a new way to learn in the 21st century, one that has received praise from academic, industry, government, and media leaders. Whatever your role, working for WGU gives you a part to play in helping students graduate, creating a better tomorrow for themselves and their families. The salary range for this position takes into account the wide range of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions including but not limited to skill sets; experience and training; licensure and certifications; and other business and organizational needs. At WGU, it is not typical for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their position, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case. A reasonable estimate of the current range is: Grade: Professional 308 Pay Range: $73,000.00 - $109,400.00 Job Description Job Profile Summary The senior program cost analyst provides analysis of learning resource spending to WGU's Program Development Department, WGU's Procurement Department, and WGU's Accounting and Finance Department. The learning resource analyst will use knowledge of industry best practices and internal WGU goals, procedures, and constraints, synthesized with data from various internal and external sources, to make recommendations that enable leadership to make informed decisions and influence spending strategies. Location: This position requires you to work at our headquarters, 4001 South 700 East, Salt Lake City, UT 84107. You would work a hybrid schedule in the office 4 days a week, with one day remote. Essential Functions and Responsibilities: Tracks and analyses student engagement in course and WGU library learning resources (LRs) to reconcile billing from partners, using various billing models and internal and/or vendor-provided data. Prepare LR billing and usage reports to be sent to vendors, and resolve billing discrepancies in a timely manner. Ensures incoming invoices are accurate and monitors LR usage payments to identify trends and make recommendations to college academic leaders to reduce costs. Assist finance in developing the accrual for learning resource spend monthly. Works with vendor portfolio manager (VPM) to resolve any concerns or disputes regarding billing discrepancies, contract service level agreements (SLA), and contract questions Supports procurement in contract negotiations to provide information on billing and usage Participates in developing budget forecasts and monitors expenditures to ensure LR does not exceed budgeted amounts Provides a monthly report for stakeholders and senior leadership showing LR costs, projects, trends, and recommendations Advises leaders with budgetary responsibilities on pricing options and assesses multiple scenarios to determine the best strategy and pricing for resources. Attends LR-related meetings and provides updates regarding pricing, billing, usage, and trends. Evaluates LR contracts and proactively looks for opportunities to lower costs. Provides ad-hoc analysis of learning resource usage and spend to college leaders, Vendor Portfolio Managers, Learning Resource Specialists, and other interested parties. Performs other related duties as assigned. Knowledge, Skill and Abilities: Ability to perform advanced data analysis and financial modeling to draw conclusions and make expert spending recommendations. Ability to produce and analyze high-quality, accurate reports. Expert understanding of relational databases. Excellent time management and reporting skills. Ability to work well in a combination of remote and in-office team environment. Ability to present information to executive stakeholders in a clear and concise manner. Strong oral and written communication skills. Expert technical and problem-solving skills. Competencies: Organizational Impact: Works to achieve operational targets within job areas that impact the overall achievement of results for the job area. Work is limited in scope and typically task-related or less complex. Work is closely supervised. Problem Solving & Decision Making: Responsible for employing minor changes in systems and processes to solve problems. Identifies, defines, and addresses problems that are not immediately evident but typically not complex. Issues generally are within the immediate job area and are solved through prior experiences or standard procedures. Communication & Influence: Collaborates with contacts typically within the job area to obtain information or provide explanations and interpretations. Job Qualifications: Minimum Qualifications: Bachelor's degree in a financial field, a master's degree with 3+ years of experience, or a doctorate/terminal degree without experience. 5 years' experience with data-informed financial analysis using relational databases. Preferred Qualifications: Master's degree in financial field Intermediate to expert level experience in SAS, SQL, or Python programming language is strongly preferred. Comfortable working and collaborating with senior-level leadership. Physical Requirements: Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer. Must be able to lift up to 15 pounds at times. #LI-TG1 Position & Application Details Full-Time Regular Positions (classified as regular and working 40 standard weekly hours): This is a full-time, regular position (classified for 40 standard weekly hours) that is eligible for bonuses; medical, dental, vision, telehealth and mental healthcare; health savings account and flexible spending account; basic and voluntary life insurance; disability coverage; accident, critical illness and hospital indemnity supplemental coverages; legal and identity theft coverage; retirement savings plan; wellbeing program; discounted WGU tuition; and flexible paid time off for rest and relaxation with no need for accrual, flexible paid sick time with no need for accrual, 11 paid holidays, and other paid leaves, including up to 12 weeks of parental leave. How to Apply: If interested, an application will need to be submitted online. Internal WGU employees will need to apply through the internal job board in Workday. Additional Information Disclaimer: The job posting highlights the most critical responsibilities and requirements of the job. It's not all-inclusive. Accommodations: Applicants with disabilities who require assistance or accommodation during the application or interview process should contact our Talent Acquisition team at recruiting@wgu.edu. Equal Employment Opportunity: All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to any protected characteristic as required by law.