What do you think are the most unrealistic expectations placed on Ras by students/residents? Administrators? Why do you think they expect those things, and how will you manage those expectations if chosen to be an RA?
As far as expectations from students go, there are the thoughts that the students could either be best friends with the RA's or the worst enemy. I remember coming into Chatham with the fear that my RA would not like me and in turn, make life difficult for me. Instead, I was friends with her. I fear, however, that if I become an RA that friends would try to take advantage of me through me being an RA and try to get me to bend the rules to make life easier for them. As far as administrators, I don't have much of an idea on how things would go for myself. I think they would like me to balance all of my plates at all time, academics, programming and keeping the residents happy. I hope to be up to this challenge, but it's a big fear of mine.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Liz,
ReplyDeleteI don't think keeping the residents happy is necessarily an expectation that residence life supervisors would have of you. While we expect you to work to build strong relationships with your residents, we don't expect you to keep everyone happy. Reality is that this can sometimes be antithetical to personal growth and it's not always possible nor desirable. It's most important to create a safe environment that also promotes learning.
Sarah