So, you’ve paid your first fee to Wild Packs and signed up for the summer experience of a lifetime. You’ve done your research, filled in a detailed application, added some funky photos and your profile is ready to be sent to Camps all over the USA. What happens next?!
This is where the process gets exciting. We at Wild Packs work with hundreds of camps all over America and they are actively looking to hire awesome staff. Camps will email us daily looking to fill positions, and we will look to send your application out to camps that match your needs, if you also fit their criteria. If a camp shows interest in your application we will ask that they contact you via email to arrange an interview. So, first piece of advice- regularly check your emails and respond to any and all camp directors as soon as you see an email from them!! A lot of emails from camp directors can go straight into a junk/spam folder, so make sure you check there too.
Once you have received an email from a camp director we recommend that you read it carefully, and do some research on the camp. If, at first glance, you don’t think the camp will be the best fit for you for whatever reason we would always ask that you interview with the camp. Reason being, you can find out so much more about a camp just by having a conversation with a director. It could be the opportunity you have been waiting for! It’s hard to judge a camp just based off their website, so make sure you spare some time to speak with any interested camps.
Next steps- now that you have responded to the camps’ email and arranged a time to interview you need to prep. Being realistic, you are not interviewing for an internship at Google, Bank of America or Apple here, but you are interviewing for the best job you’ll ever have! Camp interviews tend to be fairly casual. Remember, camp directors already know what skills you have to offer and the experience you have with kids- they read it in your application. The interview with a camp director will be a conversation where you can elaborate on your skills and experiences and impress them with your enthusiasm and dedication.
During the interview it is highly likely that you will be asked “Why do you want to work at our camp”. Now, everyone has their own reasons for signing up to work at a camp in the USA, but camp directors want to know why you want to work at their camp. For this reason, it is always best to do some research on the camp. Find out more about their program, facilities, staff and activities on offer. You can also try to research the particular area of camp that you hope to work at. Any research you do will help you answer this question, but camp directors want to hear you say that you enjoy working with children, and are looking forward to giving campers a wonderful camp experience!! This is very important, as camp directors want to know that you are signing up to camp for the right reasons, so be sure to mention how much you enjoy working with kids.
The interview is all about allowing the camp director to see a bit of your personality, it’s your time to shine! Try not to be nervous, as camp directors tend to be happy, personable people. Sell yourself and talk confidently about the skills and experience you have gained. Go into detail about experience you have working with kids, qualifications and why you feel you would be a great camp counsellor. Also, think of questions you want to ask the camp director. If you have prepared some questions about the camp and your potential job role then it shows directors that you are interested in their camp. Lastly…. Smile!! Show them how fun and enthusiastic you are!!
Once you have nailed the interview the camp will follow their recruitment procedure. They may ask for a second interview or even offer you the position there and then. Feel free to take some time to think things over, but communication is key. We at Wild Packs really appreciate it when you drop us a quick email/ Whatsapp message just to let us know what stage of the process you are at.
Good luck, and always feel free to contact us. All of us here in the WP office have interviewed with camp directors in the past, and some of us have even been the ones doing the interviewing so we would be happy to help you.
You’ve made a great decision by choosing to go to camp next summer, it’ll change your life!
