The Resident Assistant (RA) position is a student employee position within the Office of
Residence Life and Housing which works as a member of a residence hall staff. An
RA’s primary responsibility is to act as a facilitator of community development in the
residence halls by working with students to provide an orderly and safe environment to
live in and to provide opportunities for the social, educational, intellectual, and cultural
development of the residents.
RAs are selected on the basis of their intellect, leadership qualities, willingness to
assume responsibilities, and ability to relate to residents. To meet the needs of the
department, RAs must remain flexible and creative enough to fill a combination of roles,
including friend, advisor, programmer, resource person, educator, counselor, role
model, an authority figure, among others. In addition, RAs should be committed to their
own personal growth and education.
RAs are supervised by and are directly responsible to the Area Directors or Graduate
Assistants of their assigned residence hall. A RA’s job performance may be evaluated
by the residents of their wing or floor, the Area Director or Graduate Assistants(s),
and/or the Assistant Director for the Office of Residence Life and Housing. It is expected
that the RA will satisfactorily meet all duties and responsibilities as identified.
Unsatisfactory job performance will be addressed by the appropriate supervisor through
verbal warning, written warning, probation, or termination. The RA position is appointed
by Housing for the period of one semester contingent upon satisfactory job performance
and is considered an “at-will” position.
Summer Housing RA will receive a bi-weekly pay check for 40 hours a week at $16.50
hour and housing. Most of the RA workload is spent working the front desk, facilitating
frequent one-and-one meetings with their residents as outlined in the residential
curriculum, performing on-call duties, holiday on-calls, reporting maintenance problems,
enforcing policy and regulations, putting on programs, taking an active part in hall
functions, assisting individual students, attending staff development and training, Res
Life week, and executing other tasks assigned by the Area Director/Graduate Assistant
or Central Housing.
The proceeding information outlines some of the RA’s job responsibilities. Central
Housing and the RA’s Area Director/Graduate Assistant reserve the right to assign other
duties as needed to meet departmental and building needs.
RA JOB RESPONSIBILITIES
● Understanding, explaining, following, and enforcing all University and Housing
policies and philosophies.
● Being familiar with all printed material directly affecting the operation of the
Housing Department, including forms, student handbooks, current procedural
memoranda, and the staff manual.
● A Resident Assistant is first and foremost a student who is obliged to maintain
specific academic standards during every semester of employment:
o You must have a 2.5 cumulative GPA at the time you submit your RA
application. Please keep in mind that any job offer made is contingent on
you earning a semester GPA of at least 2.5 during the semester that you
are going through the RA selection process. Any leadership and related
job experiences will also be considered and enhance your application.
o Continuing RAs whose Semester GPA falls below 2.5 are offered to
continue employment on probation. If that RAs Semester GPA falls below
2.5 within the immediately following long semester, there is a possibility to
continue employment.
▪ If the RA improved their Semester GPA from one probationary
semester to the next, they are offered continued support and
employment through our department.
▪ If the RA did not improve their Semester GPA from one
probationary semester to the next, they will be terminated from their
position.
● If an RA’s Semester GPA falls below 2.0, they will NOT be offered probation, and
they will be terminated from their position.
● An appeals process will be instituted that allows for the RA to explain their
situation through guided prompts that will be reviewed by the Assistant Director
for Residence Life and Housing.
● Remaining on campus after Spring semester to prepare for summer session
checkins and attending all assigned staff development and training sessions
during the course of the semester.
● Supporting the endeavors of Central Administration, department staff members,
HFPP and RHA.
● Endeavoring to involve residents in programs developed by the Office of
Residence Life and Housing for residents.
● Offering aid in any conflict or emergency situation as needed within any of the
residence halls
● Responsibly caring for University property and buildings
● Completing opening and closedown procedures for summer session housing and
University holiday breaks.
● Remaining in the hall after its closing and returning one or two weeks before its
opening to complete necessary room checks and other assigned tasks.
● Serving in an on‐call and desk coverage rotation during the week and weekends
as required by their Hall Director.
● Completing programs and high-impact student engagement activities as part of
the residential curriculum model.
● Being able to perform and direct all emergency procedures.
● Keeping accurate records of resident discipline incidents and maintaining
confidentiality with regard to discipline violations
● Attending and participating in all staff meetings.
● Disseminating administrative notices and announcements in a timely manner.
● Supporting the work of their individual Hall Association, Residence Hall
Association, and Residence Life Advisory Council.
● Actively participating in one of the hall’s assigned committees.
● Checking residents’ rooms for correct check‐out procedures and damages, and
assessing appropriate fees.
● Reporting facilities issues as instructed by Area Director/Graduate Assistant.
● Assisting with furniture placement or other light to medium lifting as needed
● Informing the Area Director/Graduate Assistant before leaving town on weekends
(Friday and Saturday), or other extended absence from the assigned housing
community.
● Maintaining regular contact with Area Director/Graduate Assistant and other staff
members in order to ensure adequate communication.
● Participate in a semester in performance review with Area Director/Graduate
Assistant.
● Knowing as many residents as possible.
● Working with residents to prevent and mediate conflicts that arise.
● Being supportive of and cooperative with all residence hall staff.
● Respecting the confidentiality of communications from residents and staff by
withholding sensitive information from all those who do not have a professional
need to know.
● Demonstrating a caring and supportive attitude toward others and endeavoring to
be understanding of others whose lifestyles and behaviors vary from their own.
● Function as support staff during inclement weather closures and campus
emergency situations
● Continue providing desk coverage during holiday breaks (spring
break/thanksgiving), as needed
● Complete 25 hours of community service per semester
● Other duties as assigned.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS
● The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be
met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job.
Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities
to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the
employee is frequently required to stand, walk, and sit.
● The employee is occasionally required to use hands to finger, handle, or feel;
reach with hands and arms; climb or balance; stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl; and
talk or hear. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 25 pounds.
Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision,
color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and ability to adjust focus.
Reassignment
Student Assistants are expected to understand they may be assigned or reassigned to residence
hall duties at the discretion of the Office of Residence Life.
How to Apply:
- You must complete and submit a Student Employment Application to the Office of Human
Resources by following the steps below: - Select Talent Acquisition
- Select students
- Select Student Employment Website
- Select Student Job Board or Student Application
- Email the application to mvames@umes.edu
- Submit your supplemental application: https://forms.gle/xq5KUsdLQm7fNXsJ6
Applications will be accepted until filled.
