Camp Counselor Review

Working at a Camp was so much fun, I don't think I have ever laughed so much in my life! Camp is a really positive and uplifting environment.

The children I was working with certainly valued me and that felt great. I felt valued by the leadership team most of the time I was at Camp, on occasions I felt my contributions were ignored.

Wild Packs were really supportive through the application process and they guided me through every step of the application process. Once at Camp my supervisors were a great resource and really helpful.

I was responsible for 12 campers. That's 12 teenage boys! I was busy everyday with different things, but it was never stressful. It was a fun job and I learned so many useful skills.

Being responsible for the welfare of children for 8 weeks was a huge responsibility. I was dealing with bullying and homesickness, making sure campers got places on time, that they were eating properly and cleaning up after themselves. I was essentially a parent for the summer.

As a teacher i developed so many great skills. There were lots of American teachers at camp so it was great to witness how they interacted with children. I learned how to manage children's behavior, how to motivate young people, I developed strategies to help children cope with bullying, to overcome social pressures and I played a part in boosting the self esteem of young people. It was a really worthwhile experience.

Camp is such an uplifting and positive environment! Its just like the movies. The campers just want to have fun and the whole job of the staff is to ensure it happens! At Camp I wore silly costumes, played silly games and was covered in mud more times than I care to remember. The whole experience was great, its difficult to describe just how great the atmosphere at Camp is. It feels like you're in a bubble, you lose track of everything that is happening in the outside world

The application process through Wild Packs was really straight forward. A few phone calls and emails over a few weeks and I was placed at a great Camp. Wild Packs provided me with all the information I needed to apply for my visa and checked in with me at every step of the process. I always felt clued in as to what I was doing. It was intimidating applying for a Visa as I had never been through a similar process, but it was much simpler than I imagined.

In my role at Camp I participated in a week long orientation before the children arrived. I felt really prepared for the summer. There were ice breakers and team building excessive as well at large group lectures and smaller seminars focusing on different genders and age groups. The orientation was very thorough and taught me a lot. I didn't gain any qualifications from the orientation, but it certainly prepared me for the summer and gave me some really useful skills that I will use in my future teaching career.

If I were able to return to Camp there would be opportunities to climb the leadership ladder and to take on more responsibility. I could become a group leader and be responsible for a division of campers and staff. Some of the leadership team at my Camp were from the UK and have been attending Camp for 7+ years so there would be an opportunity to grow at Camp if I chose to.

Camp is such a cultural melting pot! I made friends with, and worked alongside, people from all over the world, the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Spain, China it was such a great part of my experience. The majority of the staff are aged 19-21 so there was a really fun atmosphere and so many memorable trips on nights and days off. The friends I made and the time I spent with them at Camp, and during our post Camp travels, were probably the highlight of my experience.

I paid fees to Wild Packs to cover my Visa and Medical insurance, I also had to book my own flights but once I was at Camp everything was included. I paid no additional fees for accommodation or food for the duration of my time in the USA. My Camp was in a rural part of New York, I couldn't believe how cheap it was. The movies cost about $7, a beer was only about $2. It was very difficult to spend a lot of money during my time off from Camp.

When you're with such a large group of fun, young people, the nightlife was always going to be great. The Camp I was at was about 25 minutes from the nearest town which had plenty of restaurants, a movie theater and a big mall. There was always something to do. My personal favorite was the mini golf and go karting center

I was essentially working solidly for 8 weeks. I had one day off per week and 2 additional evening off. There wasn't a lot of 'outside of work' time. Since I have left Camp I have been to a few reunions in the UK with Camp friends and hope to attend a Camp reunion early in 2017.