Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

I was hired as the Grants Development Office front desk coordinator and was tasked with duties supporting the Research Administration staff. It was through this work through these years that I learned about pre-award research administration. I was promoted to non-exempt Analyst position after 4 years as coordinator, and when an Exempt Analyst II position became available in my department, I applied and was selected. I am seven months into that position and am learning so much. It was tough at first — I thought I knew more than it turns out I did –, but as I’m gaining experience, I am gaining confidence and competence. Colleagues have said that it takes at least two years in this job to really even begin to be knowledgeable and feel like you “know your own job.” It’s definitely a process, but I am proud to be doing this challenging and valuable work.

I started in the Sponsored Programs department in 2016 and it’s never been a dull moment! I never thought this is where my career would end up after being in accounting for 13 years but here I am and learning something new every day!

I was an RA without realizing it. I begin as an intern at a non-profit, working my way up to Conservation Director (aka Jaqueline of all trades). At that time, I was applying for grant funding while serving as Project Manager on all of our current projects, collecting hours and performing regular reporting, while also doing boots-on-the-ground field work. The most difficult task as PM was keeping personnel on target, especially those who had been around when reporting was less specific. One older man only wanted to go take photos, but we had no place to bill his work-hobby. At the time, I really thought I was an overwhelmed cat-hearder. I had no idea I was an RA until I held a job faire for friends in my home. I had several friends wanting different work, with others in jobs they liked. In networking, a friend reviewed my resume and suggested I look into being an RA at a nearby university. And here I am.. yep, still hearding cats! ^-^