At first it's the best idea you've ever had, I mean free food and free housing! Who could beat that? But then as move in day happens, and school starts you start figuring out what RA life is really like...
1. Parents yell at you.
Ah move in day, the best and worst day of a Freshman's life. And a nightmare for RA's. As an RA I have no control over what room your child ends up in, I'm merely there to insure that they follow the rules and have a fun semester! So I've already rehearsed a line for what happens when you (the parent) hates where their child is placed. I also have no control over whether or not your child actually gets moved, so yelling at me does nothing (except get it off your chest).
2. People hate you and they don't even know you.
For some reason everyone thinks that RA's are out to get them, when we're not! Believe it or not we actually enjoy having friends, which is really hard to do considering most people who see and RA flee.
3. It looks like a craft store threw up in your room.
Door decorations, bulletin boards, in and out boards, and programs are just some of the things RA's are responsible for which means that we're always working on something. After a while your room turns into half of a room, half of a crafting closet, and just one big mess.
4. You feel awkward 24/7.
It is literally our job to come knock on the door and see how you're doing, and for the first couple of weeks before you really know your RA this can be hella awkward. You don't know what to say, and we're attempting to make small talk in the hopes of finding something that we both enjoy so we can find some common ground and our interactions can be a little less awkward.
5. Students don't realize that you're a student too.
As an RA I'm here for students to lean on, and to be a sounding board when they need me. However, some students don't realize that you're a student too and constantly busy, they just think of you as the person down the hall to go to when you have trouble. As much as you may think we're only here for you, we're really here for you and to get a college education. So don't find it rude if your RA has to run off to somewhere else, we care about you and your troubles but our classes will always come first.
6. We are terrified 99% of the time.
I am always terrified that someone is going to come banging on my door at 2 o'clock in the morning for something serious. And it's because while I may have been trained for situations you never know how something is really going to be until it happens in real life.
