AmeriCamp Glossary
Visa Sponsor: An approved person, employer, or school that supports your visa application. They vouch for you to live or work in the US. They give you formal proof of visa eligibility and ensure you follow local immigration laws. As a J-1 Visa Sponsor, AmeriCamp connects you with a Camp employer and provides sponsorship for your temporary work exchange Visa.
Camp Counsellor: The staff at summer Camps that look after the children and support or run activities. AmeriCamp uses the term “Camp Counsellor” to describe the entire range of roles we hire for, including General Counsellors and Activity Leaders.
Co-Counsellor: Your partner staff member/s who shares the responsibility of leading, caring for, and supervising the same cabin group of campers as you. You work together as a team to manage daily routines, run activities, and ensure children stay safe and happy.
Unit/Village: A sub-grouping of campers, usually organized by age, grade, or specific program. It groups several individual cabins or bunks together into a smaller community within the larger Camp to make activities, supervision, and scheduling easier.
Matchio: Our purpose-designed application portal where you will upload documents, complete application questions, and receive interview requests from Camps. It is unique to AmeriCamp and is the one stop shop for everything application and placement.
Brand Ambassador: The alumni of the AmeriCamp program who are hired to support us with AmeriCamp interviews and at events such as Camp Fairs and Orientations. As an applicant you will meet and interact with Brand Ambassadors throughout your application process who can help you learn more about Camp through their experience.
Camp Fairs: Our in-person hiring events hosted across the UK for AmeriCamp participants. Camp directors will fly in from the US to hire AmeriCamp applicants in a huge range of roles, in person.
Orientation: Mandatory events for all First Timer applicants. These are presentation sessions at lecture theatres across the UK, where we will go through all essential information you need to know prior to your program. It is a Visa sponsorship requirement that we ensure all of our applicants are fully informed with everything covered in these orientations.
J-1 Visa: A non-immigrant, work or study-based exchange visitor Visa offered by the US for cultural understanding, training, and knowledge sharing. The Camp Counsellor program is a J-1 program as it requires a temporary working visitor Visa and is a cultural exchange program.
DS-2019: A US work authorisation document issued by an approved program sponsor like AmeriCamp. It allows a foreign national to apply for a J-1 Visa, enter the US, and prove legal status for study, work, or cultural exchange. AmeriCamp pays for and generates a DS-2019 for you, to confirm you are eligible to apply for a J-1 Visa.
SEVIS: Stands for the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System. It is an online database used by the US government to track international exchange visitors. It monitors participants on J-1 Visas, as well as several other temporary Visa types, from the time they are issued their paperwork until their program finishes.
DS-160: The online portion of the Non-immigrant Visa Application process for the US government. It is required for people traveling to the US temporarily for an exchange visitor program including the J-1 Camp Counsellor Visa.