Ask not what you can do for camp, find out what camp can do for you!

So you’ve just returned from one of the best summers of your life or maybe you’re thinking of heading out to summer camp this summer. But you’ve got this sudden thought, what do/did I actually get out of working at summer camp??

Well not to worry, though it may look like it’s just all fun and games, working at summer camp will help you develop several skills that you can list on your CV and assist you in moving forward in your career.

This covers both ‘soft and hard skills’, which will be developed through your time at camp.

One of the key skills is Time Management.

Camp runs to a schedule and it is your responsibility to make sure your group sticks to it. Now how you do this might vary in how it looks, depending on what age group you’re working with.

From ensuring the youngest campers are focused on what’s coming next, or getting those older campers motivated to get moving, either way you’ll learn what works best for different groups.

Translating this to the ‘real world’, almost every job will have you working to deadlines at one point or another, fine tuning this skill in the ever changing pace of summer camp, will help set you up for success in future endeavours.?

Some other soft skills you can talk about having developed at camp are; working in a team, project management and problem solving.

All of these translate directly into the workplace though they might look a little bit different at summer camp.

To use an example, organising a theme day at camp, uses all of those skills, but how do you sell it? ‘As part of a smaller task force within the staffing team, we designed and implemented a successful one off project allowing us to depart from regular day-to-day programming and create a memorable experience for our campers.’

As a part of the ‘Theme Team’ you’ve had to design an entire day of programming essentially from scratch, communicate that to the wider staff team, including specific roles you may need them to take, and solve any issues that will arise through the planning and carrying out of the day: essential skills employers will look for.

Career paths

Looking more specifically now, if you’re considering a childcare based career whether that be social working, teaching or coaching, the time spent at summer camp will directly benefit you.

You will spend all day surrounded by campers and will gain experience in dealing with so many situations that no textbook could teach you.

Who knew that having High Ropes scheduled tomorrow instead of today, could ruin someone's life so dramatically? From de-escalation through to communicating in different scenarios you’ll learn so many different ways to interact with children and how to manage expectations and behaviour.

From one of my summers at camp, half of our staff team were teachers; and they all said the same thing, ‘summer camp was the best thing for them in enhancing their career’.?

So if you are thinking about working with children in any capacity in the future, or even considering it; then camp is the perfect place for you!

Even if you’re not considering a childcare focused career, the benefits from working at camp will enhance your CV versus other applicants.?

And just remember, you’ll learn all this whilst making friends for life and living the most memorable summer of your life, a win-win situation right?

If you want to experience working at summer camp, apply here to start your Canadian Adventure.