Universities typically provide different kinds of housing, catered towards different communities and resident populations. Typically, RA’s and student staff members will have areas that they prefer to live in, which makes these spaces more competitive for assignments. Here are some tips and tricks to help you get assigned to the area that you want.
1. Start thinking about the difference between your current area and your goal area
How does the resident population* differ? Are there any differences in programming? Is there a difference in responsibilities or how the area is run?
2. Talk to the RAs in that area!
Your peers are some of your greatest resources, ask them about their interview and why they think they were assigned to that area. Discuss what programming and other responsibilities look like in that area.
3. Begin planning events and initiatives that would be effective in the goal area
Plan for how environmental differences would impact attendance. Start thinking about what kind of events the residential population would be interested in.
4. Fill in the blanks!
Acknowledge where you lack experience and address it! If you cannot gain the experience that you lack before your interview, acknowledge it in the interview. Acknowledging the experience that you lack demonstrates self-awareness, and having a plan to address it shows your commitment to improving yourself.
5. Visualize and Communicate
Talk to the interviewers about where you want to be placed and get them to visualize you in that space. Do this by talking about the community in that area and how you can program to that community. Additionally, if you can mention utilizing unique features of the area (such as event spaces or resources).
*Residential population: This refers to the number and demographics of the people living in a particular space. In university housing and residence life, a residential population can be defined by the class (undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate), whether the students are traditional or non-traditional, identity groups, area of study, personal interests or a combination of any of these factors. All of these factors can impact the kind of programming that residents are interested in.
