<p>Third child in college decided she wants to be an RA. Her Sis and Bro said do not do. Her parents (my h and I) did not weigh in. </p>
<p>If she is accepted, she will get room and board. She also gets headaches. </p>
<p>It will definitely help us (parents) although there may be less financial aid offered because of this "perk."</p>
<p>Any insights??</p>
<p>It can be a great experience (or a royal PITA). A lot depends on the dorm she gets and her personality. If she wants to do it, though, I wouldn't discourage it.</p>
<p>She should talk to the school about the financial aid consequences. Being an RA decreases her expenses because she gets a free room, but it also involves a lot of time -- enough so that it might not be possible for her to hold down a job during the school year without having her academic work suffer. What will the school do to her financial aid package if she accepts an RA position? And what will happen if she finds that she cannot work in addition to being an RA? </p>
<p>In some instances, the only students who really benefit financially from being RAs are those who are not eligible for financial aid anyway and therefore can't have their financial aid packages adjusted in detrimental ways.</p>
<p>My son is doing it too. At his school they pay room, we pay board but he gets a pay check for being RA! Best of both worlds for him (aside from the headaches!).</p>
<p>For some people to not be in a leadership position is like walking around with one high heel. Ask her why she wants to be an RA. Maybe it is just a part of who she is.</p>
<p>My daughter was an UGA undergraduate advisor (same as an RA). She had approximately 16 residents, were all sophmores (as was she at the time). She said the upside to this is that she knew a lot of her residents before they became her residents, and really enjoyed it. </p>
<p>School recieves a lot of applications and it is a very competitive process where Res life turns down hundreds of applicants for UGA even though there is no free room and board (just a stipend). </p>
<p>Your child will develop some great transferrable skills that will help her in the world of work and in life (interpersonal and leadership skills). But just as in most things concerning groups of people a lot depends on the group dynamics.</p>
<p>Their process:</p>
<p>All prospective UGAs (RAs) had to attend a campus-wide information session</p>
<p>Complete application</p>
<p>obtain 2 recommendations</p>
<p>Complete a group activity</p>
<p>Interview</p>
<p>when applying the student states their preference (first year, upper class, mixed housing, sub free, affinity program, special interest housing)</p>
<p>they had a pretty detailed job description which she read up on and spoke to other UGAs before applying.</p>
<p>As others have stated, as you should find out what the job responsibilites are because they vary from school to school.</p>
<p>I'd say all the above posts are true. Neighbor's S decided to be an RA, and it turned out to be one of the best decisions he made at college. Born to be an RA I guess. You might try helping D by looking at the role from the point of view of her dorm mates. If they'd view your D as being a good RA then I say have her go for it.</p>
<p>She has had to fill out an application, get 2 or 3 references and attend an activity and be interviewed. Still not sure if it will be more of a headache then it is worth. Although I am sure it will be a good "life" experience and I suppose good for the resume.</p>
<p>It's perhaps the most significant student leadership position on a college campus - far more significant than being the Student Government president. The reservations expressed above would be the same reservations anyone might have about taking on a major leadership responsibility.</p>
<p>Any time I see RA on a resume, that kid go the top of the pile to be hired. That kid has to deal with whining kids, whining parents, adiministration rules (reasonable or not) you name it. That kid is not going to expect me to babysit him or her.</p>
<p>D1 was an RA as an undergrad. It was a very worthwhile experience for her in many ways. It definitely sharpened her interpersonal, mediating and problem-solving skills. Economically, we were able to use the money saved on her room fees to send her to England for a summer program through her school. Not sure we would have been able to afford that if not for the discount she received being an RA. When it came time to apply for grad school, she recieved a fabulous recommendation from the Director of Residence Life. She chose to attend grad school in Boston, and because of her undergrad experience as an RA, was able to get a position as an RA at the university there. Anyone who has ever lived in Boston knows the housing market is crazy .... expensive and difficult to find good apartments, especially if you are moving 4 hours from home. She was lucky enough to be chosen as an RA for an apartment style building. She got a 2 bedroom with living/dining area, bath and kitchen. She also received a small stipend. This definitely cut down on the grad school expenses.</p>