Resident assistants (RAs) are college students, usually upperclassmen, who live in dorms or residence halls with students and act as student supervisors. Each resident assistant is responsible for a specific floor or section of a floor in a residence hall, as well as a specific number of student residents. Resident assistants typically work part-time or to supplement their income to cover tuition costs, but the position is not for everyone. Resident assistants are responsible for supervising residents in the dorm, overseeing activities, counseling and encouraging residents, enforcing rules and curfews, encouraging housekeeping and peacemaking, crisis management, and maintaining order among the residents, among other things. Resident assistants have been dubbed “dorm cops” or “tattle tales” in the past, so the job requires maturity and a thick skin.
Student assistants, residence hall assistants, resident advisors, community advisors, and even house fellows are all terms used to describe resident assistants. Resident assistants frequently serve as liaisons between students and college or university administration. While resident assistants are frequently required to enforce policies that are unpopular with residents, they can also explain rules and regulations to students that the administration may not have time to do.
Resident assistants are frequently asked to organize activities that will enrich the college experience for the residents under their supervision. They might organize community service or volunteer projects around campus or in the surrounding community, or they might simply organize regular pizza and movie nights. These events, according to many resident assistants, foster community and friendship among the residents, which benefits everyone.
Resident assistants may also teach or organize seminars or courses on topics such as how to get along with others, how to find a part-time job, or how to do laundry and budget. Even the most basic tasks can be difficult for students who are living in a dorm for the first time and away from home. The leadership experience that resident assistants gain in the residence halls often helps them in the job market after they graduate from college. Resident assistants are future leaders who can go out into the world and use their skills in much larger circles, with experience in everything from counseling a depressed student to dealing with a crime.