Camp Roles
Camp Counsellors are the staff at summer Camps that look after the children and support or run activities. We use the term “Camp Counsellor” to describe the entire range of roles that AmeriCamp hires for so it is an umbrella term for the roles explored below.
There are a variety of roles on Camp that you might be hired for through AmeriCamp. Every Camp runs slightly differently, so they will be able to provide a full breakdown of the roles during the interview process.
To summarise what you might expect from your role as a Camp Counsellor, we tend to categorise it under 2 umbrellas - General Counsellor and Activity Leader. These are not the only options though, as every Camp runs completely differently and your role may involve an overlap of these roles or be something slightly different, like a lifeguard.
The best thing to do is to be open minded - Camps know who suits which roles best and you might be surprised by the offers that come your way!
General counsellors will usually be living in cabins with the children, looking after them at meals and downtime and taking them from activity to activity. As a general counsellor, you might get to take part in the activities yourself or try your hand at teaching/running a range of activities throughout the day.
You don't need to be skilled in any particular activity to be a general counsellor, but you should have experience working with children. Camps are looking for people who are bubbly, friendly, great communicators and jacks of all trades, so you are ready to get stuck in with a little bit of everything. If you enjoy working with children and getting involved in all aspects of Camp, a general counselor role is a great fit.
This type of role tends to be the most sought after by applicants to the Camp Counsellor program, so these positions can get filled up earlier in the season. We recommend making sure you have experience working with children to stand out as a candidate for a general counsellor position and showing your interest in a wide range of activities in your application.
The Camp types most likely to hire for this role are YMCA’s, Girl Scouts and other Non-Profit organizations, so look out for these Camps hiring at our Camp Fairs if you think a general counselor role is right for you.
Activity leaders are responsible for running activities on Camp, usually in a particular skill or set of skills, such as a sport, performing art, or watersport. As an activity leader, you will plan activities and run sessions with the children to teach them your skill throughout the day.
You will also most likely still be living in a cabin with children as an activity leader, but may not stay with them the entire day. This means you could get the chance to live with one age group, but then teach a lot of other age groups throughout the day.
Your required level of experience will depend on the Camp, as some are looking to hire more highly qualified specialists than others. In general, you should have been doing your particular skill for at least a year on a relatively regular basis, and ideally would have some experience in teaching or coaching it, whether in a formal or informal setting.
This will also depend on the particular skill - some examples include:
- For activities like gymnastics, horse riding or woodworking - these are higher risk and require more safety precautions, so more experience will be required.
- For activities like high ropes, archery and lifeguarding - these skills are trainable and can be developed through a course during your Camps staff training period, but you should have some experience that you can build upon.
- For activities like arts and crafts, dance and theatre - these are low risk, so having done these at school or in your spare time might be sufficient.
- For activities like photography, videography and digital media - and other skilled creative activities, you may need to be able to provide a portfolio of your work.
No, AmeriCamp does not hire for Camp support roles such as maintenance, custodial, kitchen or office based staff.