The Best Places To Find A Summer Camp Job

Top Pick – Cool Works

A smooth user interface and lots of options for a customizable search, Coolworks is the best place to find summer camp jobs, as well as other seasonal work.

What We Love

• Coolworks has a fantastic user experience and offers up a clean, readable, and easy to use website without any barriers to entry. Job-seekers don’t need to make an account or dig for the job board, everything you need is available right from the main page.
• The information that seasonal workers are looking for is unique and Coolworks does a fantastic job at presenting an informative snapshot of each gig to its seasonal job-seekers. Housing, wifi, and cell-signal are all presented crystal clear. 
• Coolworks has special search functions just for camps. Search broadly using CoolWork’s entire camp job category or search for your dream job using the many criteria within the find-a-job search functions.

Things To Keep In Mind

• Coolworks doesn’t have an internal system of accepting applications – every apply button leads to the individual company’s website. You may end up spending more time on individual applications, so prioritize quality over quantity when searching within Coolworks. The website also won’t track which jobs you’ve applied to.
• Coolworks is, well, cool. Part of being cool can sometimes mean being fringe, or not widely known. At the time of this post, there are less than 150 posts for all camp jobs and only 80 that specifically mention “camp counselor”. Almost certainly, you can find an amazing place to work within those postings, but with thousands of camps that operate within the United States, just know Coolworks isn’t the largest pool.
• There is no option to post a profile and let camps come to you. The burden of finding camps and applying is completely up to you.

Honorable Mentions

Backdoor Jobs

Another seasonal job site with a bit more of a crunchy/outdoorsy bend to it. It might not be the most incredible job site for camps, but summer adventure is alive and well on this job board.

What we love

• Backdoor Jobs isn’t pretending to be something it’s not and the outdated look of the website kind of works for it – it sends the message, “we are just here to get you back outside”. So yes, the website looks (and sometimes functions) like a website from about ten years ago, but it’s got charm.
• This site actually gives camps quite a bit of freedom, allowing businesses to add hyperlinks, videos, and bolded text to their descriptions. There is a very loose structure to each camp’s profile, so while you might need to search in a different place every time to find the information you’re looking for, the tradeoff is the camps have more freedom to show job-seekers their individuality. 
• Backdoor Jobs is a pathway to industries that often fly under the radar. Wilderness Therapy, Organic Farms, and Spiritual Retreats are offered up right next to traditional YMCA summer camps. Browsing is easy, inspiring, and may even spark a desire for a new sort of adventure within you.

Things to keep in mind

• Backdoor Job’s user interface isn’t always the clearest. Searching jobs by camps will show you camps in alphabetical-state order. There isn’t a way to further filter these camps and clicking the wrong hyperlink can easily take you away from the camp page.
• Backdoor Jobs has summer camps lumped in with ranch jobs. An odd pairing, but camps take up the bulk of the section and if you do stumble upon a ranch posting, the presence of horse logos/pictures is enough to clue you in to the nature of the job.
• Outdoorsy-focused programs like outdoor schools and wilderness therapy programs have a stronger presence than summer camps on this site. That being said, it’s far from slim-pickings and definitely worth a browse.

Camp Channel

Primarily a resource for parents to find out more about camps, Camp Channel has a solid job board and filtering options for those looking for their next camp experience.

What we love

• Despite the site looking a little dated, Camp Channel knows its audience and offers all the necessary filters and at-a-glance information that someone applying to a summer camp would want to know.
• The job postings have pictures and videos, which are a definite must for camp-browsing. They even include a link to Google Maps to show exactly where the camp is. All-in-all, you get a good feel for the camp’s culture while staying on the job site.
• The option to email camps through the website is super handy for making a first contact. You might still need to do a full application later, but it gets the ball rolling on programs you are interested in.

Things to keep in mind

• Camp Channel is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades – it doesn’t do anything wrong, it also doesn’t do anything the best. The website is a little funky sometimes and the aesthetics, filtering, applications, and profiles are all done better individually on other sites. 

American Camp Association (ACA)

As a household name in camping, the ACA juggles being a resource for parents, camps, and people seeking both part-time and seasonal jobs. While their summer-season job board may not be the strongest, the ACA does have it’s benefits.

What we love

• The ACA makes an effort to connect people to find full-time jobs within the camping industry. For those looking for a job past the summer season, the ACA is a great resource.
  
• Camps are able to authorize different ways to apply. Some will still only want you to apply through their own system, while others are happy to accept a resume or profile that you upload. You don’t need an account to browse jobs, but you do need an account to utilize some of the more-efficient application processes.
• The ACA appears to be making an effort for camps seeking LGBTQ+ and BIPOC staff to signal their interest by allowing some posts to carry a “Diversity Focus” tag, although job-seekers need to read the camp’s profile for more information (some of which provide none). The camp world can sometimes be an old fashioned place, so this might be a start for those looking for more intentionally inclusive settings.

Things to keep in mind

• The seasonal job board is a bit buried within the ACA’s website and is not the most scroll-friendly. 
• The filtering functions are pretty limited. If you’re looking for a counselor job and have a preference beyond sleep-away camp or not, you need to open up each job post to learn more about the camp. 
• The ACA, frankly, has bigger fish to fry than optimizing a job board. However, because it is a household name within the industry, a lot of camps post there. At the time of this posting, there were just under 200 posts for “counselor” alone. The burden to dig for more information rests squarely on the job-seeker.  

Ready to start finding your perfect summer camp job?

We hope our list of the best places to find a summer camp job help you on your search for the perfect job. Camps across the country are ready to offer the summer of a lifetime. Wherever you end up, you are nearly guaranteed to emerge from the season tired, happy, and wearing tie-dye. All camps have something wonderful to offer and when it comes time to interview and apply, be sure to check out our other resources to help land you the job. Until then, check out some of our tips to make job hunting even easier.

How To Find Your Next Camp Job: Browse Smarter

• Check the dates FIRST. Know your school dates or other summer commitments before you apply to a camp, all programs should have their staff training and season dates right in the posting. Most camps have a hard-line policy for you to be there by the very first day of staff training.
• Watch the video. Better yet, watch the video at 2x speed! Camps are going to put their best foot forward in promotional videos, which is a great way to get a quick snapshot of the camp’s program and culture. 
• Consider the type of camp. There isn’t a wrong type of program – people have had amazing, life-changing experiences at day, residential, co-ed, single-gender, special needs and single-focus camps alike. Take some time to think about what type of program you will get the most out of – SCCJ has your guide to different types of camps right here!
• FILTER FILTER FILTER. There is no room for FOMO in job browsing. If you don’t think a day camp in Minnesota is for you, then filter it out. You can always widen your searches if you aren’t finding your perfect match.
• Search by special skills. If you have a special skill or talent, it is worth searching for camps that are seeking you out. Skills like High Ropes Facilitation and Horseback Riding are skills that camps are looking for! Check out job pages for those skills, and then search for camps – examples below!
  • Yard & Groom – Premier job site for all things Equestrian.
  • Association For Challenge Course Technology – Their job board will feature camps with impressive and high-skilled challenge courses.

How did you find your camp job?

Let us know where you found your summer camp counselor job by getting in touch with us here! We’d love to know your story.