The Research Finance Officer role at Northern Sydney Local Health District supports the Research Directorate at Royal North Shore Hospital.
It is a temporary part-time position working 24 hours each week until 13 August ****, with the possibility of ongoing employment.
The work covers accounts payable and receivable, reconciliations, research acquittals, reporting, researcher enquiries and general-ledger investigations.
This could be a credible NSW Government entry point for an accounts professional who has never worked in health or research.
The important transfer is not the industry label.
It is whether you have managed money attached to projects, grants, contracts or separate cost centres, kept reliable records and helped non-finance colleagues understand what could be spent.
Someone with that combination may be more competitive than they initially assume.
View the official job ad before you begin.
The role is classified as Administration Officer Level 5, pays $***** to $***** per hour and closes on 31 August ****.
The visible listing includes three substantial application questions, so allow enough time to choose different examples and answer the research-specific question with care.
Job location Royal North Shore Hospital, Sydney - North/North West
Job reference number ****** / REQ******
Work type Temporary part-time, 24 hours per week, until 13 August **** with the possibility of ongoing employment
Verdict:
This is a realistic government entry role for someone with solid accounts experience and enough judgement to investigate issues independently.
Direct research-finance experience will help because acquittals and project funding have their own compliance pressures, but it is not the only persuasive background.
Grant administration, university finance, not-for-profit project accounting, clinical-trial support and commercial project finance can all create relevant evidence.
You could be very competitive if...
You have personally completed reconciliations, managed accounts payable or receivable, investigated general-ledger discrepancies and answered financial questions from operational stakeholders.
Your strongest example may involve a restricted grant, project budget, contract, donor fund or cost centre where the spending rules mattered and the records had to stand up to review.
Where a transferable candidate can win
Applicants sometimes dismiss themselves because they have never supported researchers.
A panel can still see the connection if you explain the funding conditions you worked within, how you monitored expenditure, what you did when records did not agree and how you translated finance requirements for a time-poor project owner.




Replace private-sector shorthand with a clear account of the control, stakeholder and outcome.
What may look relevant but still fall short
High-volume invoice entry alone is unlikely to be enough.
The role also involves acquittals, reporting, investigations and enquiries, which means the panel needs evidence that you can follow a problem through rather than process the first step.
General research administration is also a thinner match if you have not handled budgets, transactions or financial compliance.
Your application test
Can you explain one occasion when a project or account did not reconcile, what you investigated, who needed an answer and how you restored confidence in the figures?
If you can also show an improvement you led and a sensible view of how finance helps researchers use funds properly, you have a credible application base.
NSW Government Application Requirements
The visible vacancy lists three questions but does not state a page-limited resume or cover-letter requirement.
Answer every question separately and check the application portal before submission for any additional upload fields.
Preparing a current, targeted resume is sensible, but treat that as practical preparation rather than a confirmed document instruction until you see the portal.
Application Requirements For Research Finance Officer
An example of leading a major change in a team or organisation from start to finish, including the challenges and how you addressed them
An explanation of how the Finance Officer could assist NSLHD researchers with their research projects
The most important tasks you would aim to achieve in your first 90 days and how you would approach them
Any additional resume or document requested in the application portal
The visible listing does not name a mandatory accounting qualification or professional registration.
That does not make the role experience-free.
The panel will still need convincing evidence that you can handle reconciliations, financial administration, reporting and enquiries safely, along with any NSW Health employment checks shown during the application process.
NSW Government Candidate Requirements
The role needs someone who can work independently without becoming isolated from the researchers and finance colleagues around them.




Strong answers will combine control and service: you followed the financial rule, found the issue and then helped another person understand the practical next step.
Candidate Requirements For Research Finance Officer
Evidence area
How to demonstrate it
Accounts payable and receivable Show how you processed, checked or resolved transactions while protecting coding, approvals and timing.
Reconciliations and investigations Use an example where you traced a discrepancy through the ledger or supporting records and corrected the underlying cause.
Acquittals and compliance Connect grant, project, contract or restricted-fund experience to evidence requirements, spending conditions and reliable reporting.
Researcher or stakeholder support Explain how you turned a financial rule or problem into useful advice for someone without a finance background.
Independent work and teamwork Show how you managed your own priorities, raised risks early and kept the wider team informed in a fast-moving workplace.
How To Structure Your Evidence
The first question asks for a major change, but "major" should be judged in the context of your responsibility.
You do not need to claim an organisation-wide transformation if you led a meaningful change to a reconciliation, reporting cycle, accounts workflow or project-finance process.
Define what changed, why it mattered, the resistance or practical difficulty you faced and the result that remained after implementation.
For the research-project question, go beyond saying you would process invoices.
A useful answer could cover budget set-up, coding and transaction checks, regular reporting, acquittal deadlines, investigation of variances and clear advice when proposed spending may not fit the funding conditions.
This is where a transferable candidate can show they understand the purpose of the role even without direct research experience.
Your first-90-days answer should sound practical.
Start with learning the portfolio, systems, funding conditions and reporting calendar; then build relationships with researchers and finance colleagues; then identify the highest-risk reconciliations, deadlines or unresolved items.
Avoid promising immediate wholesale reform before you understand the environment.
Help With Your Research Finance Officer Application
Before submitting, return to the official Research Finance Officer vacancy and confirm every portal field.
Read the position description if it is available through the listing, then check that your three answers cover change leadership, research-finance support and a realistic first-90-days plan without recycling the same example.
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📌 Research Finance Officer (New South Wales)
🏢 Team 3Thirty
📍 New South Wales