I went to Camp America again this summer, for the second time. If you’re looking for something to do during the summer that involves travelling a part of the world that (let’s be honest) is completely unaffordable for a uni student, start applying for 2025 now. It’s incredibly competitive to get a good camp, but once you’re all signed up it’s easily the most fun job you’ll ever have.
Okay, so waking up at 7am and coaxing ten tired children out of bed is bad, and having to deal with petty fights or homesickness in the early hours of the morning is even worse. Walking miles every day and having to replace your shoes every three weeks, or having to watch out for bears and mountain lions every time you went outside isn’t exactly fun either. But the bond you make with the children was unlike anything else. The impact that the councellors made on the children, many of which came from unhappy homes, made all the hours of hard work seem worth it. Outside of camp, I also got to experience the 4th July celebrations, go to a proper baseball game and learn what pickleball was. Yes, American accents are grating- but hanging out around people who sound straight out of High School Musical never gets boring.
Applying to Camp America isn’t the easiest process in the world. I had to apply for a DBS check and a working visa which involved a lot of impossible paperwork. The actual flight over to America is usually 7-10 hours and I was situated on the West Coast, meaning that there was an eight hour difference between California and the UK. But the visa allowed us to travel for thirty days before flying out of the States, meaning that we could use the money we made at camp to travel for the rest of the summer. Not to mention that there are bursaries from university that you can use to help fund the plane tickets out to America- there’s basically no excuse not to go. If you want to save money and work with some of the best people you’ll ever meet, Camp America isn’t a bad way to start exploring the world.
