We are recruiting START Leaders for Summer 2024!

Applications are due January 15, 2024!

Important Information

  • Serve as an expert orientation resource for incoming students and their families, as well as campus partners and officials
  • Serve as a role model and mentor for all new students encountered
  • Facilitate small group sessions of new students to introduce them to Oregon State culture
  • Share your Oregon State story with small groups to support student connection to their new institution
  • Communicate with students via email and phone regarding their transition to Oregon State
  • Host social events for new students, helping students to connect with one another

Good news... there's no right answer!  We want our staff to look, feel, and sound like our incoming students, so EVERYONE is welcome to apply.

Past START Leaders have been:

  • Introverts AND extroverts!!
  • Students from all of our 9 academic colleges
  • LGBTQ+ students, students of color, and first-generation college students
  • Students from all across the United States and International students
  • Undergraduate and graduate students, including Masters and PhD students 
  • Sorority and Fraternity affiliated students and many who were not
  • Small town and rural students, as well as those from the greater-Portland area
  • Sophomores, Juniors, and Seniors
  • Honors students and many who were not
  • Student-athletes

 

Apart from the joy of helping incoming students transition to their new school, there are many benefits of being a START leader.

  • START Leaders earn $15.90 an hour with opportunities to work up to 40 hours per week in the summer.
  • START Leaders gain valuable experience as facilitators, content developers, group engagement experts, and problem solvers.
  • START Leaders learn more about their own Oregon State community, make connections with students and staff outside of their college, and about resources available to students.
  • START Leaders make new friends as they work with other leaders on the START team.
  • START Leaders get to learn or practice customer service, time management, peer accountability, and self-motivation skills.
  • START Leaders gain valuable office skills like using Microsoft word/excel/outlook, making phone calls, and composing professional emails.

START Leaders are required to attend all spring training dates, which will consist of weekly in-person trainings throughout spring term. This will amount to around 5-6 hours/week.  June training then begins on June 18, 2024 and we anticipate 40 hours of work that week, followed by 20-40 hour weeks until fall term begins. 

  1. Complete the application on jobs.oregonstate.edu by January 15, 2024
  2. Attend an interview with our staff in January or February.
  3. Selections and job offers will be made by the end of February. 
  4. Successful candidates will need to complete their hiring paperwork in early March.
  5. Training begins at the beginning of Spring term. 

what was your favorite part of being a START Leader?

  • "I loved being able to connect with family and students. I enjoy being able to give them resources that most students do not know about, but are incredibly helpful in making their time at OSU successful." -Ashleigh Mifsud, START Leader 2022, Senior START Leader 2023
  • "My favorite part was when we got to do team bonding and just sit down and talk about our days. It made us feel acknowledged that we were doing a good job, we had some laughs and it also relieved stress. The entire community of people was really tight nit which I can appreciate." -Maggie Moore, START Leader 2023
  • "Being a senior at OSU, it was such cool feeling to know that I was helping new students to make OSU their new home and love it as much as I do."-Hope Lorentzen, START Leader 2021

What did you learn by being a start leader?

  • “Being a START Leader helped me feel more confident in public speaking. We had to run small groups for 30 minutes which helped me feel confident in speaking to a group for 30 minutes." -Savannah Fitts, START Leader 2023, Senior START Leader 2024
  • "As a START leader I learned many skills relating to facilitation, student outreach, inclusion and advising. I definitely improved my public speaking skills over the course of the summer. Whether I am in a big meeting, presenting to students in a small group or on the phone I now feel a lot more confident in communicating information to others. I was also able to improve my collaboration/organizational skills through all of the smaller group events planned in teams and the fact that we were able to come up with our own schedules." - Grace Fetherstonhaugh, START Leader 2020/2021
  • “I feel like START made me a lot more confident for both public speaking and student leadership, especially for working with other students!” -Riley Callahan, START Leader 2023
  • "I learned that I actually have a lot more knowledge than I give myself credit for (as will you)! The students look up to you a lot, and you'll see what a difference your work really makes." - Hayley Wightsil, START Leader 2021, Senior START Leader 2022

why would you recommend this job to other students?

  • “I would recommend working as a START leader not just for a summer job but also because of the experiences, skills, and memories you will make! After working START I gained confidence when it comes to public speaking or needing to lead or guiding others. I met wonderful incoming students whom I hope to have left a welcoming impact on! I also made amazing friends within my coworkers!” -Julia Adesida, START Leader 2023, Senior START Leader 2024 
  • "I would recommend this job to other students because of the connections and knowledge you gain on campus. Being a student in a leadership role at OSU allows you to grow your network and work on multiple skill areas that will help you with future careers!" -Ashleigh Mifsud, START Leader 2022, Senior START Leader 2023
  • "It's a learning opportunity just like others except everything that you get trained to do, you see results from during the summer. It can start out a bit rough but you get better and better and it's really fulfilling and rewarding seeing the change happen before your eyes." -Maggie Moore, START Leader 2023

what advice or pointers would you give to new members of the team?

  • "Don't let the job description scare you. Yes, it's a lot, but you have team members who have gone through this at least once and we have your back. You don't have to be the loudest most extroverted person out there, I certainly know my social battery drains and sometimes I need a little pick me up from others. It's honestly hard work,  but very rewarding and a great experience even if you only do it once." -Maggie Moore, START Leader 2023