How to Deal With Your Resident Assistant

Resident Assistants (RAs) are tasked with the duty of keeping law and order on the floor. Most of time they're pretty chill and won't keep the floor on a leash. However, if you become a problem, they're required to take action. Follow these tips in order to stay out of trouble with your RA.

• Feel them out. In the beginning of the year most RAs will tell you what they tolerate and what they don't. Most RAs don't cause trouble for you if you don't cause trouble for them. My RA was somewhere along the lines of "I won't look for trouble but if I see it I have to write you up."
• Always listen to what they say. Most RAs will let you off with warnings as long as you obey them. RAs are college students like you and they want to avoid doing as much work as possible. Making giving out a warning more appealing than filling out paperwork. Most RAs won't be strict until the Residence Hall Director (RHD) tells them that they need to crack down and 99% of the time they'll send out an email saying that they have to stop being lenient. 
• Don't be the problem room. If you keep breaking the rules, the RA will have to cite you or they'll get in trouble.

These easy tips will keep you out of trouble with your RA. My RA was also my suite mate. I wasn't really friends with my RA, but we got along and he let my roommate and I off with a ton of warnings (mostly because we kept the bathroom stocked and cleaned!). Needless to say we never had any problems.

Thanks for reading!

~Anthony