Welcome to the first installment of a two-part series Life After RL! Here we turn the spotlight on our RA Alumni (or should we say, AlumNUS) who have graduated from both NUS and the very nurturing and enriching environment that is Residential Life to embark on the next great phase of their lives: working. Still, they left a part of them back at the familiar rooms and corners of Residential Life where they used to call home, where memories were made, lifetime friendships were forged and invaluable lessons were learnt that changed them for the better. This week, we had the pleasure to speak to Alison Low and Le The Huy, two very awesome RA Alumni and hear more about how the RA journey has impacted them and what they have been up to so far. Alison will be reminiscing on the great memories throughout her time as an RA while Huy shares with us on how the event organizing skills he took away has greatly benefited him in his current work.
Alison Low: Memory
Alison (in black) during RA camp
What was the best memory of your RA journey? Any great memory of working with fellow RAs to organize events for the residents?
That would have to be successfully organizing all the events for Residence 5, hands down! My RADs, who have been nothing but ultra-supportive and on-the-balls, have been our pillars of support in all the new (and most of the times crazy) ideas that we have proposed for R5 events. I also owe it to my awesome RA team. All of us have different strengths and weaknesses but somehow, we complemented one another perfectly. They’re not just my fellow RAs; they are like my family who never failed to be there for me through all the ups and downs!
Was there any moment when you felt burned out having to juggle many commitments? How did you overcome it?
Certainly there was. In fact, a year into being an RA, I nearly wanted to quit. The many commitments proved to be too much for me at times. However, with the help of my awesome RAD Madam Usa, I managed to push away those negative thoughts and get back up. She has been an RAD for many years and I really admire her passion and dedication for the well-being of students and residents. She taught me that in addition to being task-oriented, as an RA I need to learn to also be people-oriented. The reason why RAs might feel burnt out is due to lack of understanding, communication and connection with the residents. So instead of treating the RA job as adding a few more items on our neverending to-do lists, RAs need to be able to find joy in knowing more about our residents and truly caring for them. Thanks to her advice and encouragement, I had managed to change for the better: to be both people and task oriented.
Of all the camps that you have gone through as an RA, which one was your favorite and why?
To be honest, it’s hard for me to pick just one. All of the camps I have attended are equally and immensely enjoyable. To me, beside the camps’ programs and venues, the great company is the main factor that allowed me to enjoy myself very much in every single camp. Like Mark Twain said “To get the full value of joy, you must have someone to divide it with”, the great friendships and unforgettable memories that I forged and gained through every camp were something I’m so thankful for and will forever keep close to my heart.
Can you tell us a little bit more about your experience being an RA representative to APSSA 2012? What did you do there and what’s your biggest takeaway?
In 2012, I joined the APSSA (Asia Pacific Student Services Association) conference held in Manila, Philippines. It has provided me with precious opportunities to not only attend enriching leadership talks but also to befriend and learn from student leaders around the world. The theme of APSSA for that year was “Global Citizenship – Challenges, Opportunities and Responses”. Our conference team discussed at length on how we, as youths living in an increasingly borderless world, have the choice to be global citizens rather than identifying ourselves as citizens of a particular nation. We also expounded on the opportunities as well as the repercussions that choice might bring about. Furthermore, with the boom of social media which serves as a great tool in raising awareness, we, as student leaders, must also take the lead in using it to find initiatives to give back to society.
My biggest takeaway from the conference was the friendship gained through the conference with student leaders from Japan, Thailand and Malaysia. The friendship built did not end in Manila. We still keep in touch through Facebook. Some of them have visited Singapore and I had fun bringing them around and being a tourist in my own city (laughs). Some have also invited me to Japan and very generously offered to be my tour guide.
Le The Huy (Event Management)
Huy (2nd from the right, first row) and the rest of the
organizing committee for Game de Janvier 2013
What was the very first event you have organized? Any valuable lesson (or lessons J) that you took away to apply to the subsequent events?
My first RA event was Welcome Fest 2011 – an event to welcome residents who were new to NUS residential life. I was the Sponsorship team leader. It was my first time assuming such a huge responsibility and looking back, I’m glad I did. The most valuable lesson I took away was to always have the fervent belief that I can overcome steep learning curves and emerge victorious as long as I put in sufficient effort and communicate well with my fellow RAs.
What was the biggest event you have organized? I hear that you were one of the co-chairs for Game de Janvier 2013. Any memorable stories (bonding with fellow RAs, brainstorming to come up with engaging events and successful publicity stunts, or even mishaps!) to share from that time?
I had the honor to serve as the Co-chair of Game de Janvier 2013, the first event of its kind and scale on campus. And I’m not going to lie, initially we faced difficulties getting sufficient residents to sign up for the event. Despite the tight deadlines and busy individual schedules of the Exco team (many of whom were in our final year), the team put together the best plan we had (in our opinion) to boost sign-up rate so more residents could enjoy the fun games we had worked so hard to plan. Eventually, the event turned out to be a success and the team was more than elated with the outcome.
Did you face any difficulties organizing RA events (time management, being unable to come up with creatives to attract residents, coordination with various parties)?
The challenge I faced at that time was similar to Alison’s: getting out of my usual task-oriented mode, i.e. focusing too much on completing the tasks at hand, and connecting more with the residents. The experience taught me that invaluable insights into residents’ interests and concerns can only be gained if an RA genuinely tries to connect with the residents. Also, talking to and connecting with residents makes the job more fun and less of a chore.
Does the event organizing skills that you gained during your time as an RA help you in your job now? How so?
The event organizing skills I’ve gained in my RA journey have allowed me to practice prioritizing critical elements of a project and knowing when to let go. Moreover, I learnt how to think from the perspectives of multiple stakeholders. Both of these skills have proved to be of immense value for me to better manage my tasks, as well as derive solutions that are beneficial to various stakeholders.
Any advice that you would like to give to current RAs or aspiring RAs with regard to the skills/knowledge needed to organize great events?
I would advise aspiring RAs to keep an open mind and eagerness to learn from the rest of the RL team. There are lots to learn on this role, and this mindset helps us progress faster and better as a whole. Other than that, just enjoy the experience as a fun part of student life and savour every moment because it will be over before you know it!
We cannot thank Alison and Huy more for taking time off their busy schedules to share more with us about their time as RAs. We wish them all the best in their future endeavors! Stay tuned for the second installment of Life After RL where our RA alumni dish on the less than glamourous aspects of being an RA that few know of!
