Community Assistant (CA)

We value a variety of applicants to serve our diverse population of residents. However, preference will be given to candidates enrolled in related fields, or who have transferable experiences for, building and maintaining community for our residents.

Right now we are expecting one opening for the full position agreement. There may be an additional opening starting in Winter Quarter 2027 due to graduation timelines for our current team.

In almost all cases, CAs are Graduate/Professional students and we encourage folks who will still be undegrads next year to look into other student leader opportunities that focus on the undergrad experience. Given the nuances of our community, and since this is not an undergrad residential hall, we will only consider non-graduate/ professional applicants if we do not have enough qualified candidates who are current/incoming Graduate/Professional students. Folks who will be undergrads next year may still apply, but we want to be transparent about the likelihood of making it through the process.

Most, but not all, of the work and responsibilities of a CA occurs in the evening hours when residents are home. At a basic functional level, CAs must be available to attend a weekly 2-hour staff meeting on Mondays from 7pm-9pm and serve on an on-call rotation, which requires staff to be present in the community from 5pm-8am during the week (and 5pm-10am on weekends). So, if someone has night classes most (or every) weeknight the CA role would not work due to the on-call requirements and due to being on such a small staff. Likewise, if folks have to be at work by 8am during the work week, it is unlikely that this role will work for that schedule. For details about on-call, please see below.

Applicants do not need to have previous RA or student leadership experience, but candidates with these experiences are highly encourage to apply. We also value transferrable skills that can be applied to this role however, and plenty of folks without previous student leadership experience have excelled in the role.

During a typical week, CAs will:

-Have a team meeting (7pm-9pm on Mondays by default).
-Meet with their supervisor for an in-person 30-minute 1on1.
-Complete a weekly report.
-Be on-call 2-3 times during the week and submit documentation while on-call.
-Connect with residents throughout their floors and log connections with their residents
-Put up posters around the community and take down old posters.
-Work on collateral assignments such as Team Development, Team Recognition, Residential Advisory Council, On-Call Resources, etc.
-Other duties as assigned.

During a typical quarter, CAs will:

-Create doordecs for new/incoming residents.
-Create at least one new informational bulletin board for their assigned floors.
-Connect with each apartment to complete an apartmentmate agreement (once per apartment per year unless there is a new resident who moves in).
-Host both active and passive events for residents. This includes planning the programs, putting in program/purchase proposal forms, and creating the marketing for the programs which includes flyers, emails, and digital screen designs.
-Send bi-weekly emails to their residents about upcoming events and resources.
-Connect with each resident at least once during the quarter.
-Support move-out efforts and complete move-out inspections at the end of the quarter.
-Support recruitment and other centralized initiatives as needed/requested.
-Other duties as assigned.

During a typical year, CAs will:

-Complete centralized trainings including Student Leader training in September and other trainings/in-service events throughout the year.
-Set up community listserves to use for the year.
-Create a “meet your CA” bulletin board.
-Support CA recruitment as needed.
-Support the Annual Residential Survey in Mercer D/E.

The CA position is listed as 19.5 hours per week; however, it is difficult to quantify the experience since it can vary based on resident and operational needs. A CA’s primary responsibilities are to provide individualized support to students, work with a student leader team to coordinate and host regular community events, and assist with routine building operations.

That said, all CAs must be available for Student Leader Training (Tuesday, September 2, 2025 – Friday, September 19, 2025) and to assist with 12-month move-in (Monday, September 8, 2025) and 9-month move-in (Tuesday, September 23, 2025 – Friday, September 26, 2025). While we are usually able to work around folks’ required orientation schedules for incoming grad students, we are not able to excuse folks from large portions of these days due to operational needs.

Each Grad CA serves on an on-call rotation of 4 Student Leaders. CAs must check in and be present in their community no later than 5pm and must remain in the community until they conclude their on-call shift at 8am the following day (or 10am on weekends). The CA On-Call responds to needs from the community which can include, but are not limited to: facilities concerns, lockouts, policy violations and noise disturbances. The staff member on-call also conducts nightly rounds of the community to ensure the safety of residents.

During a typical quarter, there are around 55 weeknights, and 22 weekend nights which are split between a rotation of 4 CAs. On average, that comes out to about 20 total nights of on-call responsibilities per quarter.

While our Student Leader team directly serves the graduate and professional community, we operate within a larger apartments area and within the unit of Residential Life. As the only graduate and professional community on campus, we lean on our other team members who are undergraduate students and staff to work collaboratively when appropriate. Autumn Training is for all paraprofessional staff including RAs and CAs, so is largely an undergraduate larger group. Mercer Court Apartments has five total buildings with two buildings designated for graduate students (though there may sometimes be undergrads in the buildings depending on specific housing needs). The Graduate CAs provide leadership and support of the two graduate housing buildings.

Mercer Court D and E house 285 graduate and professional students ranging all programs of study, ages, and backgrounds. We also have a high international student population. Depending on occupancy needs, it is possible that there may be some undergrads in building E during the 2026-2027 academic year.

Unfortunately, all housing on campus at the University of Washington is pet-free (with the exception of fish). Additionally, all Student Leader spaces are for the Student Leader and cannot accommodate partners/roommates.

Graduate CAs are compensated with room and board. CAs receive a single studio apartment that is partially furnished. Parking is available to all residents, including staff, at the rates set by Transportation Services, who manage the Mercer parking garage. The meal plan included is a Level 4 dining plan, and can be used in any dining hall, restaurant, coffee shop, or market on campus.

CAs receive additional compensation for any 24-hour on-call shifts covered during break periods.

The CA position is a 12-month commitment, beginning the week of Labor Day through the end of August.

Pending Student Leader transitions, opportunities may be available for an early start date. Please inquire if you have interest in beginning the position early and note that in your application.