There are always mixed judgments about those who work in residence life. Whether it's "my RA is out to only get me in trouble" or my "RA is only doing it only for the free housing," there is always someone, somewhere passing judgment on us Resident Advisors. Believe me, there have been many times family and friends question me as to why I would put myself through the trials and tribulations of working in residence life and how I deal with it. So now I am going to finally put all your anxieties to rest and tell you why Residence Life is my life and why I wouldn't change it for the world.
1. You make life long friends.
Residence Life has given me many opportunities and life-long friends is definitely one of them. Whether we became best of friends staying up till 5 am doing door tags and bulletin boards or we rebuilt a whole entire room just the two of us, we have bonded and started a friendship from there. My RA friends are no different than my normal friends; however, I know that even if we don't speak for 5 years after graduation we will still be able to get together and pick up where we left off like nothing happened. We have gone through countless hours of training, door tag sessions, staff meetings, and duty nights to develop a friendship like no other. All my fellow RA's know the RA Office's are black holes that suck you in there for longer than five minutes, sometimes even 4 hours... well there goes studying for the night!
2. You learn to grow a backbone.
I always haven't been the type of person who used to let people walk all over me. However, due to becoming an RA I have had to give that up and learn to stand firm on my beliefs and opinions. I have learned to stand up for myself and make myself heard in a room, even if it's by my cackle- which many of my staff members can make me do on cue. I have learned to say the word no and not just please people. I have learned to put myself first and not let people use me as a doormat.
3. You learn all your creative abilities.
I remember my first round of door tags. I am so glad my door tags have developed into works of art. Otherwise, I would have 48 hours to redo them all, or worse- I wouldn't have a job. I learned how to make Pinterest my best friend for bulletin boards, door tags, programs, and everything in between! As a human being, I never knew how much pieces of construction paper with glitter can consume your life until I became an RA.
4. You learn how to time management.
On average, a normal day consists of me of the following: class, work at job 1, work at job 2, duty, hanging out with residents, programming, studying, showering, remembering to eat, professor's office hours, community service hours, and managing the various organizations I am apart of. Well without residence life, I probably wouldn't have such a long list of things to remember to do; however, I definitely wouldn't be as good as utilizing all my different calendars available and post it notes. Since I seem to over-extend myself every year, I have learned through the help of some wonderful Residence Life family members how to manage my time more effectively without having to give anything up.
5. Everyone knows you.
And you know everyone. Yes, this may seem like a terrible thing because everyone stops you wherever you go; however, this has more ups than downs. For instance, those days when you don't have friends to go to the cafeteria for lunch with, walk in and there is a table of either residents or fellow staff members grabbing food that will invite you to sit down and eat with them. Another perk is that whenever you want to procrastinate on that paper due by 5 pm, you can just find a friend and help distract them too!
6. You get free housing.
A common misconception among our peers is that we do this job for the free housing. Well, maybe that played a part for some of us or is the reason for others, but that shouldn't be why you assume that we don't care! For me, I joined Residence Life to find my place at Manhattanville. Yes, the free housing and single room were perks, but at the end of the day, I would still do this job without all of these perks.
7. You never get judged for how messy your room is.
Let's face it, anyone who is in their room only to change and sleep for 2 hours doesn't even have time to make their bed or clean their room. But all my friends have heard the warning and have braced themselves for the aftermath of Hurricane Jackie.
8. You learn to give the best advice.
If you are anything like me, you love helping people. Residence Life is not the only way you can help people on campus. You can be genuinely kind and help a fellow peer in need, but for us RA's it is in our job description to help peers. There have been countless hours where I have sat with residents and listened to what was going on in their lives and in turn I have given some of the best advice of my life. I have learned to give advice on areas I never knew I could, but I did and it worked! But there are times where you cannot give the best advice or what to say and in those times, you get to go to your fellow staff and ask for their advice to give. But through Residence Life, I have learned how to give meaningful advice, become more empathetic, and how to become a more understanding person.
9. You get cool "swag".
As an RA you get new apparel every training. Whether the apparel is a sweatshirt, t-shirt, or a polo - you will get it. Currently, my stock of apparel is 8 short sleeve shirts, 1 polo, and 3 sweatshirts. What do I do with it all? Well, I wear it every time I am on duty! I mean who gets to say they have a sweatshirt that on the back has a Residence Life spin of Hotline Bling? I DO!!!
10. You become a better leader.
Before I joined Residence Life, I would like to think that I was a good campus leader. But through working within Residence Life, I was afforded the opportunity to really develop these skills. I have learned how to be more professional in difficult situations, make judgment calls, and even lead meetings. Being an on-campus leader isn't just about the credit you receive, it's about the mark you leave on your campus and how other students view you. So, being an RA has taught me how to be a better leader and how leaders are always "living their lives in a fishbowl."
Even after I graduate in May, Residence Life will always be apart of my life forever. From the friends that I have made to the countless life lessons I have learned, Residence Life will always be a major contribution to my success in life. I now know how to handle difficult situations and things all the way up to the different ways you can use glitter! If someone told me five years ago that when I went to college I would join Residence Life and become an RA, I would have told them they were lying. But now, I can't see my life without it and wouldn't change my life for the world!
