Caught with beer by RA
piranhavator
195 replies38 discussionsRegistered User Posts: 233 Junior Member
in College Life
Hello,
Last night, I had a few guys over in my dorm at USC before the game and we were quietly drinking a few light beers. I had invited a few other kids in my residence hall to stop by earlier that week and they told a lot of their friends. Before I knew it, 15ish people were in my room drinking beer and playing beer pong. Someone propped the door open though, so my RA came in and made us dump it, took our names, took pictures as evidence, and said we will be contacted soon by the residential college coordinator. My RA said it was an “excessive” amount of alcohol which was honestly ridiculous as all I had was a 12 pack of light beer. It probably looked bad as we had a lot of hardly filled cups because of beer pong. I also had NO hard liquor or marijuana in the room.
I got the beer from my house in San Diego and brought it up. No one else who got caught drinking knows where it came from. As long as I tell them the truth, nothing catastrophic will happen to me, right? I doubt they’ll take away my scholarship, but I’m a little worried about my student government position and my overall relationship with my RA. Any advice for what to tell the residential college coordinator and my RA?
I know a lot of you on this site would say I should be kicked out of the school or I should lose my scholarship but I believe what I did was relatively harmless and the RA overreacted. This is college after all, at least we weren’t binge drinking on frat row.
22 replies Last night, I had a few guys over in my dorm at USC before the game and we were quietly drinking a few light beers. I had invited a few other kids in my residence hall to stop by earlier that week and they told a lot of their friends. Before I knew it, 15ish people were in my room drinking beer and playing beer pong. Someone propped the door open though, so my RA came in and made us dump it, took our names, took pictures as evidence, and said we will be contacted soon by the residential college coordinator. My RA said it was an “excessive” amount of alcohol which was honestly ridiculous as all I had was a 12 pack of light beer. It probably looked bad as we had a lot of hardly filled cups because of beer pong. I also had NO hard liquor or marijuana in the room.
I got the beer from my house in San Diego and brought it up. No one else who got caught drinking knows where it came from. As long as I tell them the truth, nothing catastrophic will happen to me, right? I doubt they’ll take away my scholarship, but I’m a little worried about my student government position and my overall relationship with my RA. Any advice for what to tell the residential college coordinator and my RA?
I know a lot of you on this site would say I should be kicked out of the school or I should lose my scholarship but I believe what I did was relatively harmless and the RA overreacted. This is college after all, at least we weren’t binge drinking on frat row.
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Replies to: Caught with beer by RA
Just don't get defensive when you meet with the RA and coordinator (like saying it's harmless or that the RA overreacted). The RA is just doing what they're supposed to be doing, and honestly you made your room a very easy target—most RAs won't go out of their way to investigate unless it's glaringly obvious someone is drinking.
Apologize, make it clear you've learned your lesson, say you won't do it again, and be overall contrite. Since I'm assuming this is your first offense, I doubt they'll do much.
We were being very discreet at first but way too many people started showing up and I didn’t want to turn them away as they were my friends. I have a suite and I was in my bedroom but I had no idea someone propped the door open from the hall to the common room. Either way, I should’ve been more cautious.
Now that you've been caught and reported once, you've got to be clean from now on. I would imagine that second chances are ok but not much after that.
But as to your problem...
Where my son goes to college the first offense is just a warning and nothing happens. Hope the same is true for you.
R.4. Alcohol-Games: Possession of alcohol paraphernalia used for games, such as beer bongs and beer pong tables, or replication of alcohol games are not permitted anywhere in the Premises or Building. Residents violating this policy are subject to immediate eviction from the Premises and Contract cancellation
Do you guys think they’ll actually follow through on this? This would be devastating but I imagine that students get caught doing this kind of stuff all of the time.
I think I would not suggest to say "it was only beer"..or "I didn't mean for it to get out of hand" or "it was only light beer" as this is still against the law and the rules of USC.
I think I would be honest, take responsibility (as they saw you)...more like "I thought I was just going to have fun with a few friends but it got out of hand...and I realize that any amount of alcohol at this point is too much and I must take the law seriously and that I should enter into an alcohol education program."
I would not think that you would kicked out for a first violation (although you may be).
On an extra note, I don't like beer at all, but once I turn 21, then we'll see.
My scare was getting caught with alcohol in my dorm room after our spring formal when I was a senior. I was over legal age (it was 18 back then) but our dorm had strict rules. I remember the head of the dorm calling me in and pouring out the bottle in front of me. I was PETRIFIED she was going to call my parents, which would have been a disaster since they were teetotalers and would have been furious with me. I was so thankful she didn't. I learned my lesson!