Yes, you are able to apply for as many positions as you are interested in, even if they are positions that fall within the same time frame. For example, you can apply for both the Resident Assistant (RA) and Peer Academic Assistant (PAA) positions.

Yes, you are able to take time off if you are hired for a position. There may be some times we will need everyone to work (e.g. Move-In Weekend, Closing Weekend, Carousel Weekend, etc.). A couple of our positions have a maximum number of nights they can have off. For example, RAs have a maximum of 12 nights off per semester, PAAs have a maximum of 16 nights off per semester, and SHs have around 12 nights off per summer.

Yes, after your interview each candidate will receive a preference form where you can rank your various community preferences (e.g. First Year Residential Experience (FYRE) or Upperclass/Upper Division Community, Academics, and Networking (CAN) communities). Please understand that we try our best to grant candidates their top community preference, but sometimes we may not have enough openings in that area at the moment.

Peer Academic Assistants (PAAs) only work in the FYRE community since their main focus is to help first-year students adjust from high school to college courses. In rare occasions, we may have a PAA work in the CAN community if one is needed.

The number of positions we hire each year varies. It depends on how many current staff members want to return for the following year and the number of projected students that will be living in our residence halls. We usually do not know this number until we are conducting interviews.

Absolutely! Please apply if you are interested in any of these positions even though you may have never lived on campus before. We also encourage those that have lived on campus before to apply. The only position that we prefer to have candidates with on campus living experience is our Assistant Residence Hall Directors (ARHDs).

Our student staff members receive a bedroom to themselves in a particular building and/or floor that they will help oversee.

Yes! It is easier for our office to switch your housing assignment if you get a position when you have already applied to live on campus. If you do not get a position or are an alternate, you will still have housing all arranged and do not have to worry about not getting the on-campus room you wanted because they are all picked over. Also, it is easier for you to get out of our housing contract than breaking an off-campus lease.

We hire staff for all of our residence hall buildings: Birch, Cedar, Linden, Oak, Pine and Tamarack.

Community Breakdown by Buildings:

• Our first year (FYRE) communities are located in Oak and Tamarack Halls
• The upperclass/upper division (CAN) communities are located in Birch, Cedar, Linden, Pine and Oak Halls

Position Breakdown by Buildings:

• RAs work in Birch, Cedar, Linden, Oak, Pine, and Tamarack Halls
• PAAs work in Oak and Tamarack Halls
• ARHDs work in Birch, Cedar, Linden, Oak, Pine and Tamarack
• SHs & SARHDs work in Birch, Cedar, Linden, Oak, Pine and Tamarack

We have 3 different interview results:

1. Hired – we are offering you a position you applied to
2. Alternate – we want to hire you but we do not have an opening at this time. If one becomes available we will consider you when filling it
3. Not At This Time – we do not have a position for you

We are looking to hire a diverse group of individuals and personalities since our communities within the residence halls are diverse in many ways. Because of this, we ask that you be yourself in the interview. There is not a certain “type” of person we are looking for in a candidate.

To be in good standings with the BSU Conduct System means that you are not on Conduct Probation or Conduct Suspension status. If you were ever written up and placed on Conduct Warning status, you can still apply.

Being on duty means that you carry a duty cell phone and go on rounds throughout the building(s) at certain times for a duration of time (i.e. overnight, 24 hours, or more depending on your position). If a resident needs to contact someone, they can contact the duty phone to help get their questions answered or the assistance they need (i.e. if they are locked out of their room). For rounds, this means that you walk the building(s) and floors to make sure no policies are being broken and no major facilities issues are occurring.

We will make the adjustments on our end such as getting you placed in the room where your position is for and removing you from the room you signed up for earlier. If you already made the $150 prepayment, we will work on reimbursing you since our student staff members do not have to pay the $150 prepayment for their staff room.

A stipend is similar to a paycheck. The total stipend amount is spread throughout the term into smaller biweekly paycheck amounts.

FYRE stands for First Year Residential Experience. Staff members that work in the FYRE communities work with first-year or freshmen level students.

CAN stands for Community, Academics and Networking. The CAN community staff members work with upperclass or sophomore-graduate level students.

Since each student is in a different level of their collegiate journey, the staff members in these communities focus on different areas to help their residents be successful both in the classroom and within the community. For example, FYRE communities focus on the transition of living on your own and adjusting to college level courses. Whereas, CAN communities focus on skills to help you work towards your career and being a positive community member.

RAs focus more on the social aspect of the floor whereas PAAs focus more on the academic side. They both go through the same training, so if a resident has a question either the RA or PAA can help. However, the conversations and other initiatives that occur on the floor will be geared towards the RAs helping with social interactions and the PAAs with academics.

The meal plans and the academic stipends also vary between the RA and PAA positions.

RAs work a weekly Front Desk shift and the PAAs work a weekly Academic Resource Center (ARC) shift.

RAs work on a duty rotation with other RAs in the building(s). PAAs do not.

RAs receive 12 nights off per semester. PAAs receive 16 nights off per semester.

Before you begin your role, we will provide mandatory training opportunities. For the academic year staff, training occurs at the beginning of August along with another training at the beginning of January. Those that work with us for the summer have training at the end of April/early May. During these trainings, we cover policies, procedures and how to handle different situations. Sometimes we ask outside guests to help us with various training topics. Even though these training sessions can be long, afterwards we hope you feel more prepared in your skills and abilities to help others effectively.

We will communicate the results of your interview via your student BSU/NTC email account. Please refer to the above Selection Timeline chart of the position(s) you applied for regarding the date range of the latest you should hear back. If you do not receive an email with your interview results after the latest date, first check your ‘Junk’ folder. If there is no email in your ‘Junk’ folder then email us at ResLife@bemidjistate.edu.

During the academic year, you are able to either go home or take a break from your job duties during Fall, Winter and Spring breaks. However, we still have the residence halls open during those breaks so if you are interested in making additional money, we do have break staff shifts you can work.

You are able to work an outside job but only up to 10 hours a week. The Housing & Residential Life job comes first. If you do plan on getting another job, make sure you communicate with your Area Director first.