Hey guys!!! My name is Lisa Millstein and I am 21 years old. I am a senior at Farmingdale State College, and this is my third year being a Resident Assistant at Farmingdale. I am majoring in Professional Communications, and am minoring in Business management. I hope to get a job as a Public Relations specialist when I graduate, but for now I am enjoying my life at Farmingdale being an amazing RA! So I am going to give you guys the inside scoop on how to be an RA, what it is like to be an RA, and all the benefits you get from the position. I can honestly say that applying for the RA position has been the best thing I have ever done, and I cannot picture my life without having had this amazing opportunity.

I also want to inform you guys that you do not need to have had experience living on campus to apply for the RA position. I was a commuter when I applied for the RA position, and was so fortunate to get the job. As long as you have the skills, and what we are looking for in a candidate, than it does not matter if you resided on campus prior. I commuted to Farmingdale for three semesters, and found myself missing out on what I wanted to be the college experience. I felt like residing on campus would fulfill that for me, but unfortunately living on campus can be quite expensive. I found out I was able to apply for the RA position as a commuter, and upon receiving the position, will be able to live on campus for free! I was ecstatic because I was able to live on campus for free, and gain great leadership skills, as well as meet a ton of new people on campus! It was a dream come true for me. So I am going to go over a few steps of how the application process goes, because who knows, you might feel the want to join our amazing RA family someday J

Step 1- Application Process

The application process might seem very long and annoying to complete, but it is really not as bad as it seems. It is like any ordinary application. You need your references, your resume, usually they make you right a short essay of why you want to be a RA, and something else depending on what the director want to see from the applicants. Students can pick up their applications at residential life in the Sinclair building.

Step 2- Group Interview

Once the directors have reviewed your application, you are called into a group process interview with the other applicants. This process of the interview might seem intimidating because you are surrounded with your peers, but it is really just a fun good time. This process is for us to see how well you work together in a team setting, because as we all know, you are very much in a team setting when being an RA.

Step 3- Individual Interview

This is where the process of elimination starts. If we feel you should move to the individual interview you will be called in to sit in with one director and one or two RAs. We ask you questions, and you just act yourself and respond to the questions accordingly. This is when we find out if you have all the qualities we are looking for in a new RA.

Step 4- Final Decision

So this process is when you find out if you have gotten the position as a RA, you have become an alternate, which is someone who is going to get the RA position once someone graduates, leaves, or gets fired. They are next in line. Than if you did not get both, that means y ou did not get the position and can apply next time.

Once you find out if you have become an RA or an Alternate, before classes start out have training, and training changes every year. RA Training is so much fun, and you really get close to the rest of the staff. It becomes a second family which is awesome!

Applications are given out usually in the spring semester. If you have any questions in regards to becoming an RA, please feel free to contact me!