Summer Job - Avoiding Bureaucracy

So here's my situation.

I'm broke! However, I choose not to work during term time as to allow full concentration on University. This does work well for me, academically, but is financially taxing. Clearly, the solution is to work ferociously during summer!

However, I find it difficult to keep jobs that I'm not interested in. Or jobs that don't engage me personally. Or don't allow me to use myself as a tool in achieving goals. I have worked in a few places before... Argos... Morrisons... KFC... but my interest has weaned very quickly, and I haven't lasted very long in these positions.

Argos was the job I enjoyed most, but only for the first 6 weeks. In the first 6 weeks I was a 'picker'. Which means I stood with a few colleagues around a machine, and when a ticket came through I went to find the item. It was very free. You were running about, you were active, you were having a laugh with friends since it was all 'stockroom', and there was no image to uphold. The rules were few, and you were permitted to do the job in any way you liked, really. Then after 6 weeks I was moved to the front desk where dealing with customers became the primary concern. Normally I wouldn't have minded - social interaction is fun! But the way in which we were to interact was very much standardised by the company. How to smile, how to greet the customer, how to deal with transactions, how to deal with the customers money, how to advise them, how to say goodbye etc etc. I couldn't deal with it.

The one thing that all these jobs had in common was this bureaucracy. Everything was standardised. Your behaviour wasn't your own, and while you worked you adopted the faceless mask of the company. They company weren't interested in your personal skills and ambitions, your personality or anything about you. The application form and interview asked question that made it seem as though personal features were taken into account, but in fact it was merely a way to determine that you are mentally and physically capable meeting of the minimum requirement needed to perform the mundane and standardised tasks.

So my question is, what summer jobs can a non-graduate with no valuable work experience get that does not drive him to depression with bureaucratic practice?

PS: I'm an Engineering student in 2nd year, and I have an extremely impressive academic track record. Top of the class since I got there, all As, Dean's Honours list, cash prizes for academic excellence, etc.

If you don't like bureaucracy it sounds like you need to work for yourself! Do you have any computer skills or can you do anything that'll let you start up your own company (doesn't have to be as scary as it sounds!).

Delivery assistant at Argos. Or team leader if there's a vacancy. They employ more delivery assistants in the summer temporarily as the new catalogue comes out and sales increase (and thus deliveries). No customers to "impress" with the company image, might have to pick and man collection occasionally, but apart from that your in the stockroom, with your co-workers and if you've got a decent team leader, doing what you want and how you want to.