How To Make Your Product The Ferrari Of Summer Camp Experience
If you love dealing with kids, have a confident attitude and love of the outside, crafts and games; being a summer day camp counselor may be the perfect job for you personally. Flexibility is a big plus in this sort of job, as you won’t ever know what your day will throw at you, and you’ll need an upbeat, can-do attitude. Whether you’re supervising lakeside activities, wearing a wacky outfit and doing the chicken dance or mediating a squabble between campers, you will have to bring on your best game. Here are a few tips for obtaining the summer job of one’s dreams.
What Do Camp Counselors Do?
Typically, counselors are hired to do something as recreational leaders supervising overall camp operations or teaching various special activities. Swimming, archery, horse riding, crafts and nature education are just a few of the myriad fun-filled outdoor activities you’ll enjoy right along with the kids at day camp. You’ll need plenty of patience, creativity, leadership skills and above all, a sense of humor.
Apply Early!
This is vitally important as camps often begin looking for staff in the winter months. If you’re a little late, don’t worry; many programs still have openings in May and June. Have good references readily available and note that some sites will ask you to make a YouTube video to accompany the application.
Looking Locally
If you’re looking for a job near your geographical area, contact local day camps, YMCAs, town recreation departments along with other youth organizations to see if they’re searching for summer camp staff. You may know others who work there and also use these connections.
Look On-Line
There are a variety of websites listing summer camp jobs including Camp Channel, Camp Depot and Camp Page. Cool Works, a summer job site, also has some interesting opportunities.
Are There Educational Requirements?
While you can find not specific educational requirements for summer camp counselors, it helps to possess CPR and MEDICAL certification and it could even give you an advantage over other applicants.
Be Creative with Previous Experience
OK, maybe you haven’t been a camp counselor, but perhaps you have been a camper. On your application, emphasize your summer camp experience s and how you need to carry the fun forward by becoming a counselor yourself. If you’ve spent a summer or two at a camp as a counselor-in-training, you have actual on-the-job experience dealing with campers from the counselor role.
Use Your Camp Connections
Many counselors were once campers at the very same camp to which they’re applying. Naturally, this would give you a leg up in the hiring process as you already know the camp culture, traditions and songs, and on top of that; you have a real and infectious love of the camp itself.
Get Experience DEALING WITH Kids
Though you may not have specifically worked at a summer camp, you can accumulate other experience working with youngsters. Tutoring younger kids, volunteering at afterschool programs, assistant coaching on kids’ teams and babysitting are invaluable experience with children. Ask guidance counselors, coaches or teachers for suggestions.
Emphasize Your Positives
Even if you’ve never set foot in a summer camp, your personal characteristics may position you nicely for employment. Approachability, empathy, leadership ability, creativity and enthusiasm are traits that directors are searching for in their staff… and a little goofiness doesn’t hurt! If you are responsible, caring and have the ability to put others before yourself, you will be a good candidate.
Do You Have a particular Talent?
If you have a specific talent or specialization that fits in with the camp’s programs, be sure you highlight this on your own resume. Camps that emphasize the arts, for instance, may be thrilled together with your expertise on the violin or experience with musical theater production, while wilderness camps may zone right in on the truth that you spend years in Boy Scouts or spent summers camping together with your family. Any certifications in camp-related areas may also be important.
So, get working on that resume! Be sure you emphasize the positive, list all related experience volunteer or paid and put your enthusiasm and love of kids’ front and center.