Advice & articles

- ASK THE EXPERTS - If you are a residence life professional and would like to help RAs and answer questions, please email me! Get an expert opinion!…

Inspiration Book Series Inspiration for RAs Encouragement, Humor and Motivation for University Housing Staff This book is co- authored (compiled) by…

Inspiration Book Series We are currently upgrading the shopping cart on ResidentAssistant.com to provide you with more opportunities to acquire…

View Cart | Checkout | Bulk Pricing 2004 Cover Version Inspiration for Resident Assistants by Anthony J. D’Angelo, Dan Oltersdorf, Amy Connolly…

- Educational Program Participation - Q - I want to build my community. How do I get residents involved and get them to show up to programs and bond?…

Building Community This article addresses the personal concerns of being a Resident Assistant and some concrete ways of developing a more…

My first year as an RA was spent trying to get my residents to take individual responsibility for things getting broken on the floor. This year I…

Q . As RAs, what are some of the things that you beleive are successful in promoting unity on your floor? A . monthly birthday parties...…

Greetings from the University of Louisville! I am a senior and third-year Resident Assistant. I have worked in many different residence hall…

Making LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgendered) Students Feel Welcome Making LGBT Students Feel Welcome by: M. M. Malamud While serving on the…

PDF, 362 KB. Download the original PDF file . The text below was extracted from it, so tables, images and layout may differ. inspiration for LGBT…

Word document, 21 KB. Download the original DOC file . The text below was extracted from it, so tables, images and layout may differ. How to Survive…

- ASK THE EXPERTS - Here is a partial listing of the residence life professionals who are answering your questions on ResidentAssistant.com. If you…

Hello everyone! I hope everyone has had a productive and fun first part of the semester. If you're like me, when you started in August, you were…

Q - I'm having a problem keeping my RA's to do quality programs. They're just doing the easiest ones they can think of to fulfill the requirements.…

Hopes of an RA - Excerpt from "InspiRAtion for RAs" If you enter my room feeling lost My hope is to show you direction. If you enter my room full of…

Preparing for a Hall Director Position Q - What are some things I can do to prepare for a hall director interview/job? Residence Life Professional…

M. Lee Upcraft of Penn State University has authored several books in the area of student affairs and is a nationally recognized authority in higher…

Q - Hi, I am hoping to secure an RA position for my Sophomore year of college. I was told that I need to have two interviews and I have to fill out…

Being an RA is a great opportunity to develop your leadership skills. Check out the following list and evaluate where you are and what you want to…

RA Resumes Click here for a great list of resume builders that you can adapt to fit the style of your resume, or see below for other entries that…

RA Resume Builders Page The RA job has an amazing number of "transferrable skills" that you will be able to apply in any career or job in your…

RA Résumé Resources The RA job has an amazing number of "transferrable skills" that you will be able to apply in any career or job in your future!…

Resident or Friend? By Cindy Kemp The role of a resident assistant often requires a lot of discretion and "dirty work." It is not a glamorous job…

In looking through the stories and articles that have been submitted by so M. clearly dedicated Resident Assistants to this web site, I am struck by…

Home Profile for Larry17 (I think the profile results should be similar to something like Match.com or the like) Here's the information about me!…

Home Roommate Matching Service (*Here are some features I thought of that we may want to ask for... some of them are more important than others, so…

Quiet Hours Q - How do I get my floor to obey the quiet hours rule? On weeknights, our quiet hours are from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m., and weekends (Friday…

Living With, Getting Along With, and Adjusting to... Roomates I would like to submit the text of a brochure that I wrote on Getting Along with…

Home You're almost there! Needs & Interests Assessment This tool is intended to help us and potential roommates learn even more about you. The…

Home The following survey is intended to help our system determine the best possible roommate match for…

What is one key to success? Q . If you could identify one key to being a successful RA, what would it be? A . I think it is best to try to encourage…

Living With, Getting Along With, and Adjusting To... ROOMMATES! I would like to submit the text of a brochure that I wrote on Getting Along with…

Roommate conflicts can be like hell on earth for a resident who is already trying to work out the transition into a new phase of their lives. Read…

Word document, 23 KB. Download the original DOC file . The text below was extracted from it, so tables, images and layout may differ. Some things to…

Effective Roommate Relationships These exercises are adapted from the brochure “Tips for Getting Along with Roommates” produced by the Counseling…

Take Care of YOU! In the madness of college life, especially life as an RA, it is all too easy to forget to pay attention to one thing; YOURSELF! We…

Effective Roommate Relationships Q . If you could identify one key to promoting successful roommate relationships, what would it be? A . I think it…

Roommate Conflicts Strategies for Avoiding and Resolving Roommate Conflicts: Developing A Mutual Understanding Negotiating A Compromise Managing…

Roommate Conflict O Other Resources ther Read a great article on exercises that roommates can do to help with their…

OTHER ADVICE FOR HELPING STUDENTS Understanding reactions to tragedy and knowing how to help " There are many issues to keep in mind as we work…

It is something that Residence Life staff everywhere hope never to have to deal with, yet the threat is real. RA training touches upon it barely, if…

Understanding Responses In light of the acts of terrorism that occurred in New York and Washington D.C. on September 11, 2001, I asked staff from the…

Responses of Various Campuses IDEAS FOR RESPONDING TO THIS TRAGEDY IN YOUR HALL Many of you have been responding to this tragedy in creative and…

Handling a Sexual Assault Situation Q - During my first four weeks as an RA, I found myself dealing with a sexaul assault situation. While everything…

I feel the best thing I have done in life is to become an RA. Not only because of the fact that you are a positive role model and that you make…

- Educational Program Participation - Q - I am seeing that very few residents are willing to come to activities that include serious topics. They…

Q - I want to do some refresher training for my staff, but want to do something new and exciting. Any ideas? Residence Life Professional Answers: One…

Q. Balance is tough when you are an RA. Balancing RA responsibilities and school can be tough enough, but when you throw other things into the mix…

I had a resident on my floor attempt suicide about half way through the fall semester of this year. One thing that is very important to do is to talk…

Links: Academic Problems Study skills Time management Out of control? Gambling Smoking Money Problems Anxiety attacks? Are you too shy to try? Test…

Alcohol and Drug Abuse Q Alcohol and drug abuse. This is a difficult topic, but one that needs to be looked at by all RA's. How can an RA effectively…

As with any major student issue or concern, it is IMPERATIVE that you communicate with yoru supervisor if you think you have a resident who is…

NOTE: Remember that with eating disorders or any other resident concern, you need to communicate with your supervisor about the situation. YOu are…

Dealing with the aftermate of a Suicide Last semester was my first semester as an RA. I had a floor of 67 coed first-year students. Late in the year…

Advice from personal experience Hi. My name is Cassie Pate. I'm a freshman and not an RA, but I do deal with depression and suicide has been an issue…

Leading By Listening "You’re not listening to me." "Did you even hear a word that I said?" "You’re missing the point." "Why do I even bother trying…

Q - As Head Resident of my residence hall, one of my duties is to cover staff recognition/development for the 6 Administrative Advisors and 6…

- RA Compensation - Because of repeated questions about RA pay, I have compiled some responses from the list-serve and put them on this page.…

The ABCs for RAs - Excerpt from "InspiRAtion for RAs" A- Ask for help! You aren’t alone, and you probably aren’t the expert. Utilize the resources on…

NEW: the ResidentAssistant.com FAQ Page!! There will be more topics, categories, and answered questions added to this page regularly! In addition to…

Being on duty.. . perhaps there are some exceptions out there, but I doubt most RAs consider this their favorite part of the job. Then again, there…

Robin Warren Gagnow, the Director of Residence Life at Ashland University in Ohio was willing to do an "email interview" in which he answered…

Starting the 2nd Semester Right What do you think are some ways to get started on the right foot in the second semester?…

! Inconsistency Starting strong, finishing weak and also vice versa, starting weak thereby making future enforcement difficult Lack of social life...…

One thing that’s important to remember in any job that you do is to treat your customer with respect. As members of Hall Staff, our customers are the…

Q. Unfortunately, part of the RA job is confronting negative behavior. This can be a tough role to take on, especially since the relationships we…

In the early part of this school year, I was called into my Hall Director's office to recieve some bad news. One of my residents, Curt, had died in a…

- Dealing with Vandalism - Q - My residents are constantly vandalizing my bulletin boards. It's to the point that I just don't want to do them…

Famous RAs Donna Shalala, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Syracuse University Back to famous RAs Copyrite 1998 Dan Oltersdorf | Contact…

Inspi RA tion for RAs Click here for back of brochure (The layout is not exact because I converted a Word Doc to html... so you'll see some…

Excerpt from "InspiRAtion for RAs" If you enter my room feeling lost My hope is to show you direction. If you enter my room full of tears My hope is…

"InspiRAtion for RAs" "This book will touch and nurture the soul of any RA who reads it." Mark Victor Hansen - Co-Author- New York Times #1…

Excerpt from "InspiRAtion for RAs" Each morning as I roll from bed I wonder what will lie ahead What will I face out there today? Welcome to the life…

Q - How can you get RA's to be excited for spring semester? Residence Life Professional Answers: Hello from Bowling Green State University! How to…

PDF, 29 KB. Download the original PDF file . The text below was extracted from it, so tables, images and layout may differ. Motivation Takers?…

Being On Duty Q . If you could identify one key to being a successful RA, what would it be? A . Care about your job, and enjoy it. UC Davis A . Give…

If you ever played a sport like football or basketball, you have heard halftime talks (or tirades) from a coach during that brief break in the…

Famous RAs Based on information submitted to the site, the following individuals once served as student staff in their residence halls... Some are…

Here at ETSU as a 2nd year RA I get 1299.00 dollars which then you minus my room which we do get a provate room at semi-private rate at around 800 to…

- RA Unions - By Gary Kimble and Dan Oltersdorf Reports of intense RA dissatisfaction have recently surfaced, and one avenue of response that has…

Hopes Of An RA By Josh Feinblum, From Inspiration for Resident Assistants If you enter my room feeling lost My hope is to show you direction If you…

The ABCs for RAs - Excerpt from "InspiRAtion for RAs" A- Ask for help!You aren’t alone, and you probably aren’t the expert.Utilize the resources on…

Sample Stories Here are a few of the stories that have been submitted for inclusion in the book. All story submissions will be rated by outside…

Hopes of an RA - Excerpt from "InspiRAtion for RAs" If you enter my room feeling lost My hope is to show you direction. If you enter my room full of…

JUST ANOTHER DAY - Excerpt from "InspiRAtion for RAs" Each morning as I roll from bed I wonder what will lie ahead What will I face out there today?…

Q - Do you have any suggestions for staff development activities? Something that can be done in less than 20 minutes. Residence Life Professional…

Thoughts on 9/11 and Coping With Loss by Dr. Will Keim As I have traveled this Fall to my appointed duties, students across America have been…

Top Ten Things Every RA Should Know Q - What are the top 10 things every RA should know? Residence Life Professional Answers: Gregg's TOP TEN Things…

Q . What is the toughest situation you have had to deal with as an RA, and how did you do it? A . I had a resident come to me with a family situation…