Get set up for success at any camp job fair by following some simple guidelines:

Choosing the best camp fair for you!

  • Contact the placement office, before registering, and inquire about: student involvement/attendance, camp attendance, and private interview space availability. And, ask for the names of several directors from previous job fairs; call them to learn about their successes at particular colleges or universities.
  • Find out if the camp fair is being held in conjunction with another. Stand alone camp job fairs tend to bring in more students with a particular interest in camps.
  • Lower recruitment costs by attending several fairs in one area. Often colleges or universities in one region of the country will schedule job fairs on consecutive dates.
  • Review your staff over the last several years. Determine from which schools your best staff members have come.
  • Expand your search. Consider recruiting community college students. According to Kenneth C. Green of the Claremont Graduate School, students today are "unbundling" their education (e.g., taking classes first at a community college and then transferring to a private university).

Prepping for the big day . . .

  • Send camp literature to university degree programs in advance of the fair. Students will seek out camps whose programs and facilities they are familiar with.
  • Inform former and current staff that you will visit their university. Ask them to bring prospective staff to the fair.
  • Arrive a couple of hours before the fair begins to set up your display. Be sure you have job descriptions for positions available within your camp and brochures describing your program and facility. Check out ACA's sample job descriptions here.

Using your time wisely . . .

  • Allow time to interview the most qualified applicants. You may need to bring a second staff member with you to help with interviewing. This person could be a reliable student on your staff who attends that school.
  • Accept mini-applications, with simply a name, phone number, and why the student wants to work at camp.
  • Take notes to remember individuals who impressed you or who seemed very interested in your camp.

Common courtesy

  • Avoid talking with a director or staff member from another camp when it appears a job seeker is approaching to talk with that person.
  • Never say negative things about another camp.