Welcome to the first instalment of the RAD Hot Seat series, a debut that we can barely contain our excitement about! Most of us are aware of Residential Assistants (RAs) and have actually interacted with them on many occasions. The Resident Advisor (RAD) however, remains very much a mysterious figure that the residents have little knowledge about, save for their wide smiles spotted on posters around the residences. For starters, think of them as your everyday superheroes, in which they assume a myriad of responsibilities on top of their full-time job. Amongst many other unforeseen tasks, they provide pastoral care, manage crises, organise events, mentor the RAs and even counsel at times. Yet a lot of their efforts go by unnoticed and many residents still know next to nothing about them. So here’s changing all of that with this series, where we put the RAD on the hot seat and get them to share with us more about what they do, how they do it and why they stay.
This week, we get to know more about Kain Lu, the resident advisor of the Graduate Student Apartments (GSA) at Prince George’s Park Residences. When not doing his RAD duties or bonding with the RA team and the residents, he works full-time as a research engineer at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Can you give us a short overview of your journey with NUS Residential Life?
I have been with NUS for the past five years! For the first 4 years, I was a full-time PhD student and served as a Resident Assistant (RA) at UTown Residence (UTR) and Residential College 4 (RC4) before applying for the RAD position.
What were your motivations to become an RA last time?
I started my journey as an RA during the third semester of my PhD study. It all began with that fateful RA recruitment email. After reading through the descriptions of the job scope, I decided that it was a position that suits my interests and passion in interacting with other fellow residents. In addition, the RA position would certainly provide me with a precious opportunity to hone my personal skills and development, such as time and stress management.
What motivated you to stay and take it to the next level by applying to become an RAD?
My RA journey has been truly satisfying and fruitful. From resolving not-so-pleasant situations (e.g. conflicts between housemates, noise complaints, etc) to organizing events to engage residents, I’ve had experiences which enriched my personal development and leadership skills like no other. Because of that, I thought that it would be great if I could extend what I have learnt from the RA role to the RAD position and bring something unique to the table. So I took the leap of faith and the rest is history! I am fortunate enough to continue my involvements in the Residential Life Team as an RAD. Being an RAD allows me to contribute to the team in different ways: overseeing the whole team and working closely with RAs to help hone their personal and professional skills.
Any of the skills you have taken away from being an RA that still proves to be useful now that you’re an RAD?
One of most valuable skills I can apply now as an RAD is definitely relatability i.e the ability to view things from an RA’s perspective. I can relate to the challenges that an RA would encounter, as well as the stress in juggling their studies and RA duties concurrently. It puts me in a favorable position to empathize with them. Subsequently, I can even share my past experiences on how to overcome those challenges. I have observed that the RAs really do appreciate advice from someone who used to be in their shoes, someone who’s been there and done that 😀
Can you share with us the duties of an RAD? Maybe a short description of a typical day in an RAD life?
During office hours, I am not that much different from other full-time staff members in NUS and spend my time working at the office. After office hours, I put on my cape (laughs) and transform to RAD (superhero). I meet with RAs at the start of each semester to brainstorm and plan out events for the residents. It is always fun to vet the event proposals. RAs are free to showcase their creative ideas to engage the residents, as well as pull out all of the stops publicity stunts to ensure a high participation turnout. Apart from the regular meeting on the execution of the events planned, my RAs and I also attend to issues/complaints reported by residents occasionally.
What would you say are the key traits that a good RAD should possess?
The love of interacting with people and genuine care for others and interest in their life story!
Do you receive any support (friends, family or official school’s) to better fulfill RAD duties?
Indeed, the support from various parties, such as Residential Life Team, RADs/RAs, staff members of the Office of Housing Services, etc has significantly helped me to better fulfill my RAD duties. They constantly provide invaluable support and advice in building a healthy and vibrant residential life.
How do you manage your time juggling various commitments on top of RAD duties?
It has been a challenging yet fulfilling experience to juggle various commitments alongside my RAD duties. They really trained me to be more efficient in spending my time. Occasionally, I have to stay up late to handle some unforeseen circumstances at the residence. However, the satisfaction I gain from helping residents resolve their issues makes all the effort and time spent worth it. In short, being passionate about the work is what keeps me going strong always.
Are there any pitfalls that come with the title RAD?
As an RAD, I am one of the key contact points after office hours at the residence. In other words, I am always on stand-by mode to attend to any issue that might crop up at the residence. I have received calls from residents smack in the middle of the night and had to rush down with my RAs to help address their issues. Occasionally, I have to say ‘NO’ outings with family and friends due to conflicts with my RAD commitments. However, all these ‘pitfalls’ are countered by the immense satisfaction of being able to help my residents.
Best reward/lesson you think you take away from being an RAD?
The best reward from being an RAD has got to be the opportunity to live amongst diversity. It is often said that appreciating diversity is important, but how many of us truly get the opportunity to? I am fortunate to live amongst residents who come from all walks of life, nationalities and cultures. Being accepting, open-minded and respectful of each other are the keys to building a harmonious residential community. Plus, the experiences of working in teams with different personalities and dynamics has also helped to increase my adaptability to different types of team settings.
Know a professor, lecturer, or office admin staff who has always gone the extra mile for you, and would be a great RAD just like Kain Lu here? Send them our way! Persuade them to drop us a line at reslife@nus.edu.sg. Who knows – the next time you see them, they may be living next door to you!
