The Student Room Group

CCUSA or BUNAC ? Summer Camps America

Hey,

I've been looking at working as a Camp Counsellor next summer, and can't decide who to do it with.

I've ruled out Camp America due to the extensive costs, and poor reward pay.

I'm now torn between using CCUSA or BUNAC both are really appealing.

Has anyone used these before and have any advice or is anyone using them this year?

Any help would be really appreciated, as I don't want to waste my money :smile:

Thanks in advance guys
(edited 11 years ago)
Reply 1
I've used BUNAC and they were fantastic :smile: I honestly wish I could go back now but I have a dissertation over the summer (MA student.)

They placed me in the perfect camp for me, didn't charge much, and my wages were decent. They also organise participants really well - I hadn't travelled alone much before, so the briefing in New York was very useful, and added to that the fact they got people working at my camp all on the same flight to Vermont, so we all met early on and could relax!

As they have a US office, they also come round at some point during camp to check up on you, and you can call them easily (and relatively cheaply) during camp if there are problems.
Reply 2
I'm using CCUSA this summer. So far they've been excellent and I would definitely reccomend them! The application is really easy to fill out and if I ever had a query then they'd respond within a day. The facebook page is also really good for getting in contact with them - they always reply to everyone's posts on Facebook really quickly!
Regarding finding a camp - I went to the Camp recruitment fair in January where I got my place. The fair was really well organised - I was given lots of information before hand about the different camps attending and who they were looking to hire. The actual fair was a success as well - I'll admit I was a little dubious having heard about Camp America's fairs and how people queue for literally hours but CCUSA is a lot better. I arrived about half an hour before the fair was starting and was third in the queue! In fact everyone that got there by the time the fair started got to go in at the same time - I saw lots of people walk away with jobs so it really was worth going!
They've given me a list of other people (and their email adresses) who are going to the same camp and orgainsed everything for my US visa. They were there when I went to the embassy in London for the visa interview - which was really quick and very easy!
So all in all I think they've been great!
Obviously they're also cheaper than most, but you've clearly researched this since you've narrowed it down to CCUSA and BUNAC :smile:
Anyway, I've waffled for far too long :P - If you have any other questions feel free to ask :smile:
Reply 3
Original post by charlesrose
I went to the Camp recruitment fair in January where I got my place. The fair was really well organised - I was given lots of information before hand about the different camps attending and who they were looking to hire.
QUOTE]

So did you get to choose which Camp you got to go to then?

Or at least narrow down which ones you would prefer to get a job at?
I've heard bad reports about certain types of camps so if this is the situation it would be great!!!

Thank you so much for your help!
Reply 4
Yep I got to decide :smile: Weeks before the fair they sent out a document with a list of the camps that would be attending. Each camp then had a list of people they were looking to hire (eg 18+/21+ only - photographer/media people, soccer, gymnastics, general counselor etc). So before I went I'd already selected the camps that I wanted to talk to.
The first camp I talked to said that they liked me but told me to go talk to the other camps and if no one else gave me anything then go back again later and see if they'd offer me anything then. So I went to another camp (for whom I wasn't really qualified so was turned down) then the third camp I went to offered me a job right there and then! He said I could go and talk to other camps if I wanted and then go back if I still wanted to accept their offer but I was positive that that was the camp for me so said yes straight away! I was in and out within an hour!

So yeah if you go to the camp recruitment fair then you can select your camp but remember that CCUSA only have 2 fairs (London and Leeds) both in January so that's your only opportunity to pick your own camp. Otherwise the office will pick your camp for you- you do get to rule out cetain types of camp in your application though if you're worried about being put in a specific type of camp eg religious/special needs/day camp etc.
Reply 5
Ahhh that sounds so good. Definitely something I would prefer than just going to America and not knowing a thing.

I think I'm going to choose CCUSA thank you so much :smile:
Hey, I have a small problem here.. I'd love to attend a summer camp in America as I love children, and would love working with them. It really does seem like a fantastic opportunity. However, I don't have skills in the areas they desire like tennis, gymnastics, archery, watersports.

I like playing football, but then again I'm not amazing at it...
I'm quite open minded and enthusiastic so i'm up for trying new things. What could I do? I'm interested in applying for the 2013 camp however, do you think my chances of being placed in a camp are slim? If so how could I increase my chances?
Reply 7
I am not a "specialist" in any time of sport so just dont apply for the specialist camps

Quick Reply

Latest