In your experience, what are the biggest pros and cons of being an RA?
(publishing for posterity because i usually get a couple questions about being an RA around this time of year lol)
i was an RA for 2 years, one year for freshmen and one year for upperclassmen
getting your own room (the 1st year i did it i had a whole double room to myself complete with 2 beds 2 dressers 2 desks lol double everything and the 2nd year i ended up with my own bathroom/shower/sink and it was dope)
the financial perks (some colleges do free room and board but i got paid outright)
you gain a TON of super applicable life and career skills that would take a long time for me to list
the biggest thing for me is that you become VERY comfortable with confrontation and i know i’ve generally become way more willing to communicate my feelings and thoughts with others if i feel like there’s something that needs to be said
it looks good on a resume
it opens up opportunities for other ways to be involved with your campus community
cons (most of these are also kind of pros because they are learning lessons in many ways but they also suck ass):
it can be very hard to draw boundaries with your residents
nearly constant decision-making which is exhausting
you have to get used to being disliked/hated
dealing with random and ridiculous situations like searching a room for a pet rat or having to mediate a roommate conflict because one girl has been having super loud skype sex with her boyfriend
drowning in a sea of super varied responsibilities
you miss out on a part the “normal” college experience
sometimes you HAVE to read people down even when you don’t want to and other times you have to be very careful to NOT do that when you really want to which was a challenge for me because i’m always wanting to tell people about themselves
it’s a thankless job nobody gives a fuck about you people forget you’re human and you’re one of the easiest people to complain about just because you’re there
