Camp Counselor Resume: How-To Guide & Free Sample

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As a Camp Counselor, you’re used to supervising children and making sure everything goes according to plan, but do those skills translate to resume writing? Use our customized resume templates to make sure your application takes first place in a hiring manager’s employee search.

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Camp Counselors carry a lot of responsibility. Not only do they need to entertain kids but also provide for their safety and are seen as role models. This is why summer camp managers tend to do their due diligence when hiring someone they believe will be suitable for the job. 

Preparing a targeted Camp Counselor resume is key to your application. It needs to tell a story. For this, you need to have a strategy and use the right words. 

In this article, you’ll learn:

• How to craft a Camp Counselor resume that meets the job requirements
• How to use the job description to your advantage
• A list of highly sought-after soft and hard skills 
• How to tailor your Camp Counselor resume for the particular niche you’re looking to apply for
• A list of power words hiring managers just can’t resist
• Lots of examples you can copy and paste to write your own resume

If you feel confident already, take a look at some of our resume templates or go directly to our resume builder, where you can put your document together. Otherwise, read on for more advice!

Take a look at our camp counselor resume template below. It’s designed to show you the ideal structure, content, and organization for your document.

Resume Example

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[Steve Daley]

[Outdoor Camp Counselor]

[Bludhaven, NJ | 555-555-5555 | daley.steve@randomemail.com]

Summary

Proactive camp counselor with 7+ years of experience in summer camps leading, teaching, and motivating groups of teenagers and young adults. Capable of monitoring 30+ participants and preparing activities for four-week and longer programs. Seeking to leverage leadership, communication, and collaborative skills in the position of Senior Camp Counselor at the Camp Hoover Group.

Experience 

Outdoor Camp Counselor

Camp Bluelake, Bludhaven, NJ

2017 – 2023

• Maintained a safe and orderly environment for campers at both the campsite and surrounding area. 
• Supervised a group of over 25 campers ages 5-12 while motivating them to complete tasks with a fun and positive attitude.
• Administered first aid treatment to camp-goers as and when required.

Trip Leader

Whitaker Campsite, Bludhaven, NJ

2014-2017

• Planned hiking trips for local children’s organization on a monthly basis, facilitating healthy communication and exercise techniques.
• Hosted weekly music lessons for local neighborhood children along with monthly reports for parents on progress.
• Created over 20 different educational modules to be used to enrich the experience of local children as they explored nature.

Education 

Bachelor of Science in Recreation and Sport Management

Bludhaven University | Bludhaven, NJ

2015 – 2018

• Graduated magna cum laude with a 3.6 GPA
• Vice President, Events Club
• Relevant Coursework: Recreational Therapy, Leisure and Recreation Studies, Early Child Care, Music and Theater, Arts and Crafts

Skills

• Soft skills: Communication, Leadership, Counseling, Activity Planning, Storytelling, Sports Coaching
• Hard skills: First Aid, Swimming, Kayaking, Wilderness Survival, Cooking, Rock Climbing

Certifications

• CPR/AED Certification (American Red Cross, 2016)
• Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (American Camp Association, 2015)
• Crisis Management (State Camp Workshop, 2015)

We hope this model can guide you along as you draft or refine your own. You can even copy it and edit it to make your resume!

Let’s start by looking at how to format your resume.

Firstly, your camp counselor resume format will need to suit your level of experience.

If you have some experience or transferable skills, you should use a reverse-chronological structure. This means that the most recent of your work experience or achievements will be listed first, followed by the next most recent, and so on.

This way of organizing your resume is preferred by recruiters, and draws your reader in, focusing their attention on your most relevant (and likely strongest) qualities and experience right off the bat.

Nailing the right format and structure can be a difficult task, which is why we have lots of easy-to-use, interactive resume templates that you can pick and tweak according to your needs to make your perfect camp counselor resume.

Your camp counselor resume summary or objective serves as the “elevator pitch” of your document. It gives the recruiter an idea of what the rest of your resume has to offer.

• If you have experience you should include a resume summary highlighting your qualifications, responsibilities, and achievements.
• If you’re a less experienced Camp Counselor or a junior Camp Counselor, you should write an entry-level resume objective.

Whichever one you end up writing, remember to tailor your main credentials to the job description to demonstrate that you are the person the employer is looking for.

Camp Counselor Resume Summary Example

A strong resume summary will let your personality shine through.  It helps you to showcase your abilities and achievements in just a few lines.

This summer camp counselor resume summary briefly recaps the candidate’s experience but lacks some detail and a little energy.

What was better here? This camp counselor resume summary gives the recruiter a few more details, some official credentials, and uses stronger power words, such as ‘proactive’ and ‘capable’.

How to Write an Entry-Level Camp Counselor Resume Objective

If you don’t have a lot of job experience, a resume objective may be the better option for you.

Pay special attention to what is included in the job description, as this is what you need to cater your resume objective to.

Featured Content🌟: Spend some time identifying keywords from job descriptions. Including these keywords in your summary or objective might help you stand out from the crowd as they will catch the employer’s eye early on.

Entry-Level Camp Counselor Resume Objective

When you’re writing a camp counselor resume objective for your job application, highlight the relevant, particular skills, qualifications, and certifications you have.

First, let’s see a Camp Counselor’s resume objective that might not make it far in the recruitment process:

Unfortunately, the above example does not mention what the candidate can offer the employer, it just centers on what they want for themselves. Also, it doesn’t provide any specifics, such as skills or accomplishments.

Now, let’s see a better resume objective for a Camp Counselor:

Not only do they have relevant experience, but they can also connect with camp students and show their enthusiasm to really engage them in activities. Furthermore, they name-drop the employer, which shows attention to detail and personalization.

Ignite Your Resume with Action Words that Sparkle

Using strong action verbs and adjectives in your experience section can help recruiters understand your skill set and achievements more clearly.

The key to using action words is to highlight your skills, accomplishments, and experiences in a way that is specific, measurable, and easy to understand for recruiters. 

Review the following lists for some powerful action verbs and adjectives related to the Camp Counselor role that you can use in your resume experience section:

Action verbs

• Achieved
• Coordinated
• Developed
• Facilitated
• Led
• Managed

Action Adjectives

• Energetic
• Creative
• Detail-oriented
• Innovative
• Organized
• Strategic

Now, let’s take a look at an example of a wrong way and a right way to include action words in your experience section:

Here, the description lacks specificity and action verbs, failing to highlight the applicant’s accomplishments.

This example is very compelling because it uses action verbs like “coordinated” and “executed” while including specific details – such as metrics and results. 

It also does a lot more than simply listing tasks – it tells a compelling story, automatically making the candidate stand out to recruiters.

Employers want to know that all of your past expertise as a camp counselor, or other relevant positions, will translate into positive outcomes for their organization.

To present these skills in a way that increases your chances of getting an interview, you must focus on the specific skills and competences that a recruiter would appreciate.

Look carefully at the Camp Counselor job description.  Ideally, you should use the keywords contained in the role description. Not only will you be “speaking the same language” as the hiring manager, but it will also very likely prevent your resume from being discarded if the employer uses an Application Tracking System (ATS).

Let’s look at how you might describe your experience as a Camp Counselor.

This first example is succinct, bulleted correctly, and includes numbers, but it lacks details What tasks were completed exactly? What was achieved with the discovery walks?

Can you see the difference here? This example details the age of the campers and uses more powerful language, with words such as ‘confidently’, ‘competently’, ‘fun’, ‘safe’, and ‘positive’.

Entry-Level Camp Counselor Resume: Experience Section

You’ll be happy to know that it’s possible to create a strong resume for a camp counselor job with no experience. 

Use the skills and abilities you’ve gained along the way, even if they came from previous, unrelated positions, to showcase your entire skillset.

Look at the following examples of an entry-level camp counselor resume’s experience section.

This example is missing key information about the role and responsibilities, such as skills used and achievements.

This example connects the different elements of the job, gives more detail, and includes a nice statistic linked to an impressive sales achievement. Much better!

Although not all camp counselor jobs require educational qualifications like degrees, this section might help you establish your qualifications. Depending on your level of schooling, the formatting may differ.

List your school or college, graduation date, and any related activities or achievements as a current or former high school or college student.

You may cite academic accomplishments or participation in extracurricular activities outside the class on your camp counselor resume, especially if they are relevant to the job.

You might also want to include your GPA if it’s above 3.5.

Camp Counselor Resume Education Section

To continue with our illustrations, here is a detailed camp counselor resume education section. If you have more work experience, you don’t need to include all the bulleted information, just the degree title, name of institution, location, and dates.

Did you have a position of responsibility in a sorority or fraternity? You can include that on your resume too.

How important are good camp counselor skills for your resume? The answer is very!

Your summer camp counselor skills section will consist of both soft skills and hard skills. 

You might have gained some skills required for summer camp counselors from other jobs, such as working at a nursery, child-minding, working at a theme park, or being a tour guide.

Always look at the job description and match your skillset to the ones listed within it. However, make sure you are telling the truth, it’s never worth lying on a resume!

Below are some examples of soft and hard skills for camp counselor resumes that you might want to consider including in your own:

If you have less work experience you might decide to write a camp counselor skills resume. In this format, you list the skills section below the summary or objective, and before the work experience section.

Include Transferable Skills to Get an Edge

If you’ve ever asked yourself what skills are learned as a camp counselor, we have prepared the following list you might want to include too:

1. Communication
2. Problem-solving
3. Teamwork and Collaboration
4. Adaptability
5. Responsibility
6. Empathy and Conflict Resolution

These are all skills you might have learned in other seemingly unrelated positions. However, they are also highly valuable as a camp counselor. Don’t forget to use them.

As a camp counselor, the “Other” sections of your resume might help you stand out from the crowd. Finding methods like this to make your application more unique, whether you’re creating a senior camp counselor resume or an entry-level resume, may go a long way.

In addition to the essential sections like education or experience, there are a few other sections that can add value to your application. 

Consider including these:

• Certifications: If you have any relevant certifications such as First Aid/CPR, lifeguarding, or specific camp-related certifications, be sure to highlight them. These certifications demonstrate your commitment to safety and your readiness for the camp counselor role.

• Activities and interests: Share your involvement in activities or hobbies that align with the camp counselor position. Maybe you’re a passionate outdoor enthusiast, a talented artist, or a skilled musician. These interests can showcase your ability to connect with campers and contribute to the camp’s atmosphere.

• Volunteer work: Summer camps, youth organizations, or any other relevant volunteer experiences, include them in this section. It demonstrates your dedication to working with children and your ability to handle the responsibilities of a Camp Counselor.

Each section you add should reinforce your suitability for the Camp Counselor role.

Camp Counselor Resume Sample “Other” Sections

Review the example below to help guide you and inspire ideas of your own.

Don’t be afraid to branch out and include sections of your own beyond this list, as long as it’s relevant to the position of Camp Counselor.

In this guide, we’ve covered enough to get you going on your resume for camp counselor positions. To summarize, let’s take a look at the key pointers.

• Your resume should contain an eye-catching resume summary or a resume objective depending on the experience you have.
• Provide keyword-rich examples of your activities and experiences in the most straightforward and concise manner possible.
• It’s vital to demonstrate your relevant camp counselor skills on your resume.
• Including any other certificates, qualifications, and interests that can help your resume stand out from the other applicants.

We hope we guided you through the process of making the ideal camp counselor resume!

Should you ever need more inspiration, head over to our modern resume templates that are easy to tweak to your liking. It’s intuitive, easy to use, and will save you hours of clicking and typing!

If you are interested in a similar position working with kids or young people, why not check out our High School Coach resume guide? Good luck!