Camp Counselor resume examples & templates

If you’re looking for seasonal work, spending summer days ensuring campers stay safe and have a wonderful experience is a great way to go. A camp counselor resume that shows off your fun and creative side while also highlighting your safety experience will help get you there.

But a lackluster resume won’t earn you any participation ribbons. Start your summer job search strong with a camp counselor resume that wins first place!

You can do that by having a plan, knowing your goals, and identifying what makes you special.

Dealing with large groups of kids and making sure they have fun is not for everyone, so it’s important that your resume conveys your experience, skills, and joie de vivre for working as a camp counselor—clipboard optional.

Resume guide for a camp counselor resume

Whether it's a summer job or a full-time career, aim for success with resume.io. We offer resume guides and resume examples for more than 500 professions that you can use as inspiration. When you’re ready to create your camp counselor resume, consider trying our easy-to-use resume builder.

This resume guide and corresponding camp counselor resume example will cover the following:

• How to write a camp counselor resume
• Choosing the right resume format for camp counselors
• How to add your contact information
• Using summaries
• Adding your camp counselor experience
• Listing education and relevant experience
• Picking the right resume design/layout

How to write a camp counselor resume

Like making s’mores, what goes into your resume is simple, but each ingredient is essential.  Your resume should contain the following sections:

• The resume header
• The resume summary (aka profile or personal statement)
• The employment history section
• The resume skills section
• The education section

Campers often form a bond with counselors, so a warm, friendly personality goes a long way.

Your resume needs to convey this to the camp directors, so you need to write a great “fireside story” by doing your research and learning as much as you can about the camp’s history, its campers, and the camp’s values or mission statement. 

Not everyone is cut out to be a camp counselor, so it’s important to demonstrate to the camp that you have what it takes, and that your goals align with theirs. What makes you special is your unique selling proposition and that’s what is going to convince them that you’re the one they want to entrust with their campers.

This all starts with your resume. To tell your story effectively, follow this “list of activities:”

• Highlight accomplishments instead of day-to-day tasks you’ve had in previous summer work, even if it’s not camp-related. What did you accomplish in your past roles? What value did you bring? Weave these accomplishments all through your resume, like a verbal friendship bracelet.
• Adapt each version of the resume you send to each camp, adjusting the style and tone based on its mission and outlook, just like you adapt your activities to the needs and likes of your campers.
• Just because you’re looking to work in a fun environment doesn’t mean your resume can’t be professional. Keep it neat, clean, and to the point.
• While most summer camps probably don’t use ATS screening software, you should still use appropriate keywords so that it catches the eye of the hiring manager. Consider using an ATS resume template, just to be safe.

Choosing the right resume format for a camp counselor resume

If possible, use reverse chronological order. It’s the best resume format for most job hunters because it makes it easier for hiring managers to track your work history. Another option may be to list your school year work and your summer work separately to highlight your camp experience.

If you’re a student or a teacher who has summers off. For this reason, your camp counselor resume may be more suited to a hybrid format instead of the reverse chronological order format we usually recommend.

Fortunately, resume.io has a plethora of resume templates in our resume builder, so you can choose the format that’s best for your current status. There are multiple versions of the three formats available as resume examples, so you can find the one that speaks to you!

In terms of your resume’s “look,” a camp counselor resume should incorporate a streamlined, simple layout that is easy for a camp’s hiring director to read. Depending on the type of summer camp, you can also use a creative layout to show off a bit of your fun, outgoing personality.

Include your contact information

On the first day of camp, it’s important to introduce yourself to your campers so they know who you are and what they should call you. The header is your resume’s "name tag."

It’s important that your contact information be clear and easy to find. It also needs to be professionally presented. Don’t just scribble your name and phone number at the top!

• Full name & title. List your first and last name, and include a nickname if you regularly use one. Under your name, place the title of “camp counselor” so that the reader knows exactly what position you’re interested in.
• Professional email address. For a resume, have a simple username like firstname.lastname@gmail.com, not a casual one that your friends might use.
• Phone number. List a number where you can be easily reached, and change your outgoing message so that it sounds professional.
• Location. List only your city and state, not your full address. When the camp needs it, it will ask for it.

Don’t include:

• Date of birth. As long as you meet the age requirement, leave it off.
• Personal details. Marital status, religious affiliation, social security number, passport number, etc.
• Photo headshot. Unless the camp employment application specifically requires it, leave it off.

Make use of a summary

Personality plays a large part in your role as a summer leader and there’s one place to let it shine: the summary of your camp counselor resume. The message you need to deliver is that not only are you reliable, but you know how to make camp fun. 

You have about three lines of text to explain why you want the job and why you’ll be great at it. Use strong action verbs, such as managed, directed, achieved, facilitated, or encouraged, and relate a successful activity or social event you created or led. Talk about your love of children and teens or your expertise in the area in which you wish to specialize. 

Consider using an anecdote that shows how you connect with youths or coworkers since the camp is a very collegial environment.

Check out our  adaptable camp counselor resume examples summary below:

Outline your camp counselor work experience: highlight the “fun” in “fundamentals”

If you work as a teacher or other school-year employee, you have a great jump on your camp counselor resume. Your school experience is a perfect fit for a camp job, so use your employment history section to detail your successes with youth.

High school or college students looking for a first job experience, or first experience working with youths, can focus on volunteer activities, part-time work, or extracurriculars that show they have a sense of responsibility (and fun!).

Instead of recounting your work responsibilities, try to illustrate what you have accomplished or what you have added to the position since you began in the role. Employers want to know what you will bring to the role, not just that you can do the work. 

Here are some examples of accomplishments you can include in your camp counselor resume:

• “Led daily activities for a group of 15 campers ages six through nine, focusing on team building and communication skills.”
• “Created and facilitated creative activities for campers in all age groups.”
• “Oversaw campers during water activities and ensured all state, local, and camp-specific safety protocols were being followed.”

Take a look at the camp counselor employment history resume sample below:

How to write a camp counselor resume with no experience

If you’re a student applying for your first camp counselor job, that’s ok! Simply highlight your transferable skills and your passion for working with people, especially young people. 

Focus on your educational background in childhood education, child psychology, or any relevant coursework. Detail any previous jobs, workshops, or training programs (such as First Aid) you've attended that align with the needs of a working summer camp.

Showcase transferable skills that are crucial for a camp counselor. For instance, if your experience includes being a teaching assistant, highlight how this role helped develop your conflict resolution, child development, or teamwork skills, all of which are important for camp counselors who work with children.

Don’t discount the importance of your hobbies or personal interests when you’re just starting. Participation in team youth sports, volunteer work with at-risk students, or outdoor skills such as building a fire, knot-tying, or survival training all show your enthusiasm for working with children, which is something you’ll spend a lot of time doing as a camp counselor!

Even with no direct experience on your resume, you’ll still be able to show the camp directors that you’re committed, energetic, reliable, and ready to take on the role of camp counselor.

Include the relevant key skills that make you a great camp counselor

The skills section of your camp counselor resume is like a selfie of your top abilities. You want hiring managers to see at a glance what you will bring to the job and what you think are the most important qualities for a camp counselor to have.

While you certainly need expertise if applying for a specialist position, all camp workers need specific hard and soft skills. While being fun is a great quality, you also need to know some first aid, how to handle emergencies, and when to go to a superior if a problem arises.

Those skills are a must, as are dependability and responsibility, but the qualities that could make you a great counselor are great communication skills, curiosity, the desire to learn new things, resilience, problem-solving skills, and critical thinking.  

Choose a blend of hard and soft skills to give a well-rounded picture of yourself as a potential employee.

If you need help, the resume builder offers several pre-written key skills to choose from with proficiency ranges you can set. You can also enter them manually. 

Here’s what the skills box looks like in our camp counselor resume template. 

Don’t limit your skills to the skills section. Incorporate them throughout your resume by showing how you used those skills “on the job.” Give specific examples whenever you can.

For example, in your work history section and professional summary, highlight your 

• Leadership skills by describing your role leading a youth sports team, mentioning how many kids were on the team, and the growth they demonstrated throughout the season.
• Conflict resolution skills by illustrating how you handled physical or verbal conflicts between students or teammates.
• Sports skills by demonstrating the sports you’ve played or coached, and the things you achieved while doing them.

If you’re still at a loss as to what skills to include, examine the job description, which will give you a clearer picture of what key skills the camp is looking for. 

Detail your education & relevant camp counselor certifications

The education section of your camp counselor resume simply lists your academic achievements. If you are a high school student, you may list the school you are attending and your expected year of graduation. Add to that any classes you have taken that relate to the position at camp that you want.

For college students, the same applies, however, you should also list your completed high school diploma. You may also include your high school GPA if it is 3.0 or above.

For more experienced workers, you may leave off your high school diploma if you have earned higher than a bachelor’s degree.

In any case, be sure to include any 

• Training and certifications. Things like First Aid, CPR, or other certifications that enhance your application will give you an edge.
• Internships. School-sponsored training or internships. Training in other industries can be useful if you can relate it to skills needed by a camp counselor.
• Degree-related coursework. If you’re seeking a degree in education, sports training, child psychology, or anything related to kids, include it in this section.

If this is your first job, you may consider placing the education section above your employment history. This lets employers know that you are a student looking for a summer job experience.  This is known as a functional resume that emphasizes your qualifications and education and shows your commitment and enthusiasm for working with kids in a camp environment.

Pick the right resume layout and design for a camp counselor resume

The look of your camp counselor resume says a lot about you before anyone reads a single word. Visuals are powerful, so ask yourself: What am I trying to convey in that first impression? Camp counselors need to be energetic and creative, but also know how to set boundaries and follow rules.

Above all, your document needs to be easy to read. Choose fonts wisely for their legibility. This is not the place to get cute. Make sure your section headings stand out by choosing an opposing font style. For example, a sans serif for the text and a serif font for the headings.

Show off your style in your header with a small icon or design, but don’t let it get in the way of your contact information, and limit colors to give your camp counselor resume some visual “bang.”

The camp counselor resume sample here, for example, makes use of our Dublin template – an elegant, clean layout with small graphics and blue lines for an eye-catching visual statement.

You can’t “hack” your way to an effective resume, but our resume templates can make it easier, as the tough stuff like formatting is already done for you.  

Camp counselor text-only resume example

Key takeaways for building a camp counselor resume

Campers often think fondly of camp counselors years later, so your personality is a huge factor in your application—show it off in your summary and design. You need to be energetic and creative, but also add some practical qualities such as dependability and first-aid knowledge to your skills section. Move your education section to a place of prominence if you are still earning your high school or college degree. You can take the pain out of formatting and designing with an expertly-created template from resume.io.

Begin your job search with our resume builder, but take it to the next level with resume.io. 

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