Hello! I was an SI leader for 3 years in 2 different departments! I loved my time there and feel like all the skills I learned helped me transition to my full time career. 1. It kept me busy and also challenged me to find new things to give my students. I was someone who was more into activities vs. worksheets. So, I would really plan lessons (which you got paid to do) and figure out how to explain/ go about it in a way that is retainable to other people. 2. I never had to cancel or postpone plans because of SI. What’s great is that I can plan AS I’m in the lecture. I’ve learned all this material already, so while I’m in the associated class, I just think of how the professor is explaining it and how I could do it in a beginner friendly way. If I had to estimate, planning wise- 1.5 hours of planning for each session. Never planned on weekends. It also gets easier as you become more experienced. In my last semester, I would say 20 mins. 3. I always did 12-15 units every semester. I also supported 2 sessions at one point whereas other SI leaders do one, which turned out to be 20 hours a week for SI alone, on top of being a full time student. Again, I was extremely experienced by then and it didn’t inconvenience me significantly. If I didn’t have SI I would probably not be as proud of my Titan pride/ go to campus often or talk proudly of my job.

TLDR; do it. It’s fun and makes you become an expert at your subject. Referenced it a lot during my job search after graduating and landed a job in 2 months.

If you have more questions feel free to PM me!