Job Description Memo (Final Draft)

Student Worker

My official title is Student Worker, but I usually go by Office Assistant or Receptionist because I think it sounds more professional. It makes sense that my title is Student Worker, because I am a student who works. However, I feel that it annoyingly places all student worker positions under the same job description, despite the fact that I have vastly different responsibilities compared to students working in other departments.

I work at the Office of Student Services in the School of Cinematic Arts at USC. Unlike student jobs in other offices like the Ticket Office or the Campus Center, my responsibilities specifically relate to the School of Cinematic Arts. As Office Assistant, as I like to call myself, I have a number of responsibilities which include:

• responding to phone calls
• packaging admissions decisions
• tending to the front desk
• facilitating admissions events

These may seem like pretty simple tasks, and that is true. Whenever business is slow, I usually get to work on homework and chat with my fellow student workers. It's really nice to have a job that pays, while giving me a generous amount of down time to focus on my school work. That being said, I still face my fair share of challenges.

Sometimes, I will get a phone call during which a caller will ask a very difficult question and I'll have to be able to answer it with professionalism and accuracy. Callers will sometimes even yell when they are frustrated about a problem and want immediate assistance. One time, I answered a call and the caller immediately started yelling about the fact that she hadn't yet been offered any solutions to her dilemma. She asked a complicated question about something that I had not been trained to know. I kindly put her on hold so that I could research her issue and try to solve it. I took her off hold once I found information and she yelled "two minutes??? You kept me on hold for two minutes??" I gave her the answer she was looking for as quick as I could, but she was still not satisfied. After that call, I knew that all I could do was keep my cool and always do my very best to give accurate information, even if that requires putting them on hold.

I can understand why people get so angry, though. Education is important and even one phone call can sometimes dictate a decision a person might make about their future. There is a lot to know about the film school, and I play a very important role in passing on correct information to students interested in applying. It is crucial for me to understand each of the different divisions in the school so that I can help prospective students to decide which program to apply to.

When I am not juggling phone calls, I am usually tasked with other responsibilities which include the following:

• creating labels for mail
• creating excel spreadsheets
• organizing random merchandise
• delivering paperwork to other offices

I often get excited when I get to visit other offices and interact with staff members I probably would not otherwise get to meet outside of work. I do really value having a job that gives me a level of physical activity and change of scenery. I don't usually enjoy work that involves doing the same thing repeatedly, or having to sit for long periods of time.

The last main responsibility that I have is helping to facilitate admissions events. Whenever families travel to USC for events, I get to help direct them to their informational activities and engage in conversation about their academic and personal interests. This gives me an opportunity to talk about my own experience as a student in the film school at USC. It is interesting to me to hear about where people come from and what interests them about SCA. I get satisfaction out of representing my school, and getting students intrigued and excited about it.

I have been working this job for almost a year now, and it has been a transformative experience especially in relation to my overall college experience. It has allowed me to feel more connected to my school, because I get to interact more with other students and staff. It also helps to have to be in the loop about my school, because I am the first to be notified about cool upcoming events. This job has also given me a great appreciation for people who work in customer service and administration. There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes in any business or institution. When on the phone, people often forget that there is a human behind it. It can be very easy for people to get frustrated or act unkindly because they don't see the person who is giving them information. There is a lot of trust that has to exist between the caller and the person responding, so I definitely am more conscious about how I act toward customer service workers.