Money, in the form of free housing and/or a monthly stipend, is an obvious reason to seek a Resident Assistant (RA) job in college. If family finances are tight, this can be an attractive option to taking on student loans, living at home — or even dropping out of college.

There are other advantages to becoming an RA, but you would be wise to compare them to the limitations you will have. Keep in mind that every university is different in the way they hire, manage, and compensate RAs.

Qualifications

Resident Assistants must be mature students who have completed at least their freshman year. Most colleges expect them to excel academically, be involved on campus (student government, Greek life, and honor societies) and have clean/non-existent disciplinary or criminal records.

Live interviews are conducted and references are required. Strong communication skills and a friendly personality are minimum requirements for these jobs. Experience in leadership and with diverse populations is attractive to interviewers.

Responsibilities

There are administrative responsibilities related to move-in day, orientation, and such. There are also duties such as decorating hallways, recognizing birthdays, and conducting dorm meetings.

Serious responsibilities are related to the health (physical and mental) and safety of your residents. This includes the security of their possessions. Of course you would have keys to all rooms (and expect to be asked to open doors at inconvenient times).

In addition to basic first aid and CPR training, you will take training on topics such as:

• Time management and study skills
• Drug and alcohol awareness, laws, and enforcement
• Date rape and sexual abuse
• Suicide and warning signs
• Gender, racial, and religious awareness
• Cyber-bullying
• Crisis management
• Emergency preparedness

Lost Opportunities

Your social life, especially if your friends live off-campus, will be affected by your on-duty schedule. Parties will happen even if you are in your dorm room consoling a homesick resident.

If football is the focus of campus life, you may be on-duty on a Saturday afternoon (even if the dorm is empty)!

RAs generally report to campus anywhere from three days to one month before move-in day so they can take all of the training listed above. This could cramp your summer vacation schedule, or ability to hold a summer job. (That’s why many RAs stay on-campus and work or take summer classes.)

Rewards

Having your own room, often a double or a triple, is pure luxury compared to what your residents usually have. Some schools have special suites for the RAs.

You will develop bonds with other RAs who are probably campus leaders like yourself. These bonds can carry over to networking opportunities for life beyond college.

You will learn what direction you want to head in your future career. Management, social work, psychology? Or you may recognize that none of those appeal to you. Better to find out now than wasting precious years of study in the wrong field. It is prestigious to tell future employers or graduate schools that you were an RA. That speaks volumes as to your leadership potential, life experiences, and communication skills.

Bottom Line

The intensity of today’s society — and laws — requires a lot more awareness and expectations than that of your parents’ college days. Keep that in mind when weighing the opportunity, including the financial aspects of the job. Compare the time requirements and what you could earn elsewhere with the intangible benefits of being an RA.

Warm Regards

Gijo Vijayan
Blogger, author and entrepreneur
Patna, Bihar, India
Email: gijo@gijokv.com
www.GijoKv.com
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