I started working as a Lead Program Assistant the month before my freshman year of college and I worked all the way up until the beginning of my senior year, when I had to leave to focus on other responsibilities.
As a Lead PA, I supervised intramural sports, organized player paperwork, and managed scheduling software. This job required me to coordinate many dimensions of player, referee, and programmatic needs. I used problem solving and communication skills on a daily basis to put forth a seamless intramural sports experience. During the last season of my time as a Lead PA, I co-lead a program-wide switch to three new software systems that included transferring information, training new employees, and creating an extensive Lead PA handbook.
Below is a Student Spotlight feature from the February 2017 UW Recreational Sports Newsletter.
Carolyn Birkenfeld is a junior from Seattle, Washington studying Urban Planning. When she’s not working with Intramurals, she sprints for the University of Washington Track and Field team. Carolyn likes taking Yoga classes at the IMA in her downtime and says they provide a peaceful balance to her busy schedule.
What is your favorite part of your job? Connecting with the intramural sports community. People come to have fun and play sports and I get to be the one making that happen. I’m very detail oriented, and I enjoy doing the organizational work on the back end to make that possible. This is a wonderful community to be a part of.
How do you see the work you’re doing now connect to your future work? Being Lead PA means I have to organize the crowds and make decisions that support the functionality of the program, which are skills that make me an effective administrator. My position also helps me practice time management and I’ve learned how to communicate with people and address all sorts of needs.
Do you have any tips or advice for student employees? Talk to the people around you and learn about why they are here. It’s so interesting to learn about what motivates each person to be involved in the IMA and it’s fun to discover common interests that can bring us closer.