You have completed your resume and are looking forward to finally being able to apply for some jobs. Ideally, you would like a job for the summer when school is out, so that you can focus on work and not worry about keeping your grades up at the same time. Thinking back to when you were younger, you remember attending summer camp and thinking that being a camp counselor would be pretty cool when you got older.

Since you don’t have experience as a camp counselor, you wonder if you will even be considered. As you prepare to submit your resume for a job as a camp counselor, you want to put together a cover letter that will help your resume get noticed.

This blog post will cover the following:

• Gathering information for your cover letter
• Consider how to sell yourself in the cover letter
• Putting the cover letter together

Gathering Information for your Cover Letter

As you get started on your cover letter, you will want to learn as much as possible about the camp you are applying to work at as well as what is expected in the role of one of their camp counselors. In some cases this will be easy; camps may post a long job description and have a lot of detail about their camp on their website.

Unfortunately, this won’t always be the case and you may have to embark on some investigating to learn more about the camp and their expectations for camp counselors.

Do your best to learn the following things before putting together your cover letter:

• What are the responsibilities of the job?
• What is the employer looking for (as far as skills and experience)?
• What is important to the camp where you are applying?

Having an idea of what the camp is looking for in a camp counselor will help you to write a cover letter that will reflect not only all that you can offer the camp and the kids who attend, but how what you contribute can meet their needs. The camp leaders will likely appreciate that you made the effort to learn about their camp and what is important to them in a camp counselor. This will help your resume and application stand apart from others.

Consider how to Sell Yourself in the Cover Letter

As you were looking into the position of camp counselor at the camp you are most interested in working at, you learned that the camp is looking for counselors who have had experience as campers, who are creative, and experienced working with multiple children. Take a few minutes to think about your experience as a camper, whether you feel you are creative (and how to best show this), and any experience that you have working with multiple children.

As you are thinking about this, you remember spending time at both day camps and overnight camps when you were younger. You have fond memories of these experiences and remember what was important to you in your camp counselor as a child.  As far as being creative, you love to draw and paint, and feel that you are creative in other ways as well. For example, you are never bored, always able to invent a new game or activity and encouraging others to participate. As far as working with multiple children, you have several families that you regularly babysit for; one of which has five kids. These experiences are perfect to talk about when preparing your cover letter.

You might find it helpful to make notes about the experiences and qualities that you have that you can refer to as you put your cover letter together. Ask yourself the following questions:

• What formal or informal experience or skills can I point out that show I would be successful at this job?
• What can I talk about in my cover letter that will help me stand out from other applicants?

Your cover letter will be the first impression the camp leadership has of you and you can utilize it to show why you should be interviewed for the role of camp counselor. A well-written cover letter can make a difference in your application, pointing out things about you that may not be reflected in your resume. Click here and here for more on selling yourself in your cover letter.

Putting the Cover Letter Together

Now that you know about the camp and what they are looking for in a counselor, and have thought about what it is that you can offer, it is time to put your cover letter together. Remember that the cover letter is the first thing that those hiring for the camp will see when they review your application. Your cover letter will make an impression and it is worth the effort to ensure the impression is a positive one.  The following things are important when creating your cover letter:

• Use proper format. For more information on format, click here.
• Don’t submit a generic cover letter; create a new one for each job you apply for. Employers are often turned off by cover letters that don’t focus on the particular job you are applying for. In the cover letter state the position you are seeking, how you heard about it, why you are qualified and what you can offer that makes you a fit for the position.
• Make sure to edit your cover letter. Mistakes on your cover letter will be noticed by those reviewing your application and will give the impression that you are not very detail oriented or applying for their job was not a priority to you.
• Be concise; your cover letter should not be more than one page and should clearly state what you have to offer and why you are a good candidate for the job.

Proper format includes a header, with the contact information of both the employer and yourself. You will want to address the cover letter to the specific contact person for the job, if there is one. Should you be unsure as to who the contact is for the job, you can start your cover letter with “Dear Hiring Manager”.

Then introduce yourself, stating the position you are applying for and how you learned about it. If you heard about the job from someone, make sure to mention that here. Often, having a personal referral alone will get your resume and application looked at.  If your friend Ann has been a camp counselor for two years at the camp you are applying to work at, and the camp leadership is happy with Ann’s work, they may be open to her referrals. You will then want to explain how your skills and/or experience are a fit for the position of camp counselor.

The next paragraph or two are where you will sell yourself. Pull out those notes you took earlier about your skills and experience and think about how they relate to the job. This is where you will let the employer know in more detail why you are the right person for the job and would make a great camp counselor.

You will use this part of the cover letter to inform the camp leadership of information about you and your experience that is not on your resume. Point out times where you have had to be creative, for example, and how those experiences have prepared you to be successful in the role of a camp counselor.

In your final paragraph, briefly restate what you wrote and why you should be considered for a camp counselor position. You will then sign the cover letter. For additional information regarding what to include in your cover letter, click here.

For examples of cover letters for a job as a camp counselor, click here and here.

It is important that you edit your cover letter. You might find it helpful to have a friend or relative review it as well and provide feedback.

Camps may get a lot of resumes for camp counselor positions. A good cover letter will help you to get noticed among the applicants as well as give you the chance to point out all that you have to offer.

Click here for more information on jobs for teens.

So, what do you think about a cover letter for camp counselor? Do you agree with what was said above?  Comment below to let us know!