At dormitories across the country,
anxious first-year students and residents
find a friendly face in their residential advisor,
as well as problem solving, advice,
and, if necessary, disciplinary measures.
Residential advisors, or RAs,
help run dormitories in private schools,
colleges, group homes,
and other live-in establishments.
They are responsible for many aspects
of the home-away-from-home
living conditions of their wards,
many of whom have never lived away
from family before.
While rowdy college students
may think of their RA
as someone who enforces rules,
resident advisors provide
a wide variety of services
from coordinating activities,
to mediating conflicts between residents,
to helping residents solve
unfamiliar life problems.
They also request repairs and order supplies.
RAs in colleges may be students,
but many are adult employees of a college’s
housing and residence life department.
Residential advisors often live
in the dormitories they oversee
and tend to work more than 40 hours a week.
The job can be stressful
as RAs may have 24/7 responsibility
for facilities and residents,
and seek to ensure that all residents
have a positive experience.
Many residential advisors
have a bachelor’s degree,
but completing college
is not necessarily required.