Summer with the Smart Kids

Ever drive a 17passenger van full of adolescent knowitalls? Think it could be fun? Then a resident adviser job at one of many summer school programs on college campuses might be right for you. Typically attended by academically talented high school students, summer programs like American Collegiate Adventures (Arizona State University and the University of Wisconsin at Madison), Excel (Amherst and Williams Colleges) and Exploration (Wellesley College) provide dozens of summer jobs to college students. Most of these jobs involve living in dorms with students, sharing their dining hall food and wandering halls at night with clipboards. Perks include all the recreation (with the kids, of course) you can stand and the chance to meet talented young people before they become jaded college students. Typical resident advisers are college juniors or seniors, supposedly mature enough to patrol for rule violations like oppositesex guests and smoking. RAs must drive, and they should be comfortable maneuvering enormous vans that don't move like cars at all. While students attend classes taught by professors, advanced degree candidates or working professionals, RAs are responsible for planning fun afternoon and evening extracurricular activities like movie trips, ultimate frisbee games and tiedye sessions. (RAs are often encouraged to attend classes when they have free time.) If big problems arise (i.e. suicidal students, alcohol or drug use, etc.) the program director will take over. RAs never deal with major issues beyond reporting them to bettertrained supervisors. Most RAs aren't paid much (between $800 and $1,500 for five to eight weeks' work), but housing and food are free. For the most part, the living is easy. To apply for a summer job as a resident adviser, you should send your resume, cover letter and 23 reference letters directly to the program directors. Peterson's Guide to Summer Programs can help you find their names and addresses. Hurry: Most programs are already polishing plans for this summer's sessions. Tara ArdenSmith taught journalism at Excel at Amherst College last summer.