About Our Staff

With over 12,000 students living on campus, our department operates on a massive scale. To make a large campus feel smaller, we’ve divided the Charles River residential community into seven neighborhoods—Lower Bay State Road, Upper Bay State Road, Warren Towers, South Campus, Upper Commonwealth Avenue, West Campus, and Graduate Housing. Each residential neighborhood has its own unique characteristics, which you can learn about from your Assistant Directors, Hall and Area Directors, Graduate Housing Advisors, and Resident Assistants! Reach out to your residential neighborhood staff to learn more about where you are living!

The seven Assistant Directors are full-time, live-in professional staff members who supervise the day-to-day operation of each of the residential neighborhoods. These professionals provide direct supervision to the Residence Hall Directors and Area Directors, and indirect supervision to the administrative secretaries and the Resident Assistant (RA), Graduate Housing Advisor (GHA) and Graduate Resident Assistant (GRA) staff in the neighborhood. They work in collaboration with offices across campus to provide students with a variety of services. The Assistant Directors each chair a committee that impacts the direction of Residence Life and serve in the on-call system. They are visible at on-campus events, volunteer to serve as student organization advisors, and chaperone off-campus trips and events.

Residence Hall Directors and Area Directors are full-time, live-in professional staff members who oversee the day-to-day operation of a specific residence hall or cluster of halls, providing direct supervision to their Resident Assistant (RA) and Graduate Resident Assistant (GRA) staff as well as to the administrative coordinator in their office. They are supervised by the Assistant Directors and serve on departmental committees to assist with annual projects and programs. They also serve as student conduct hearing officers and meet one-on-one with students who have allegedly violated the Boston University Code of Student Responsibilities, as well as provide crisis management in the on-call system. Residence Hall Directors and Area Directors can be contacted to help students with almost anything and are aware of all campus resources that students have access to.

For more information about our full-time staff’s qualifications and accomplishments, see our departmental resume.

Resident Assistants (RAs) are sophomores, juniors, seniors, and graduate students at the University who serve as role models, peer advisors, resources, and friends to students. As student staff members, RAs play a unique role in guiding, encouraging, directing, and helping other students. They are chosen for their leadership and community-building skills and are extensively trained before the beginning of each academic year. Every student who lives on campus has an RA who lives nearby and RAs are on-call when the offices are closed. RAs can be contacted for almost anything. They are often the best source of information about anything relating to campus life.