Preparing for Traineeship

 Once deciding I wanted to do Camp America, I had to go through a long application process which involved numerous steps. Firstly, I had to do an interview where I discussed my interests of what I wanted to work as and why I wanted to go to camp. After successfully completing the interview, my application was sent out to be viewed by camos. I received an offer from a camp in Wisconsin, but ultimately decided it was not the right fit for me. I wasn’t receiving offers from any other camps after this so I emailed Green Chimneys Summer Camps myself and they got back in touch asking if I could complete an interview with them. I received an offer at the end of the interview and immediately said yes. AJ and Landy, the two camp directors who interviewed me, were very friendly and explained the camps routine and values which made the decision to accept the position a no brainer.

The rest of the process involved background checks, medical evaluations and a trip to London for my working VISA interview. This process was very long and involved numerous steps to ensure I could legally come to the United States and work. Once I had booked my flight and packed I was all set to travel. I was very nervous as I’d never travelled by myself before but I met other people in the airport who were doing Camp America so I was able to have breakfast and socialise with them.

I was also able to apply for the Turing Scheme which allowed me to receive funds towards my traineeship. The process was very linear and straightforward. It involved filling out the application form online about my camp and what my role would be, where I received news shortly after that my application was successful. Then I completed a pre-departure session where we discussed cultural and intercultural competence. It was interesting to discuss this and hear about where other peoples traineeships would take them. Once i completed the traineeship form and had it signed by my camp and the international grants team, it was approved and I was ready to receive my first payment. The process was very easy to follow and I was always met with a quick email response to any of my queries.

The funding allowed me to cover some of the extra hidden costs that aren’t made entirely visible on the Camp America website. The application itself and the flights that they handle for you was expensive. But on top of that, you have to pay for other things such as a background check, medical evaluation and VISA. These add up to be a lot and increase the total cost of going to camp significantly. The funding scheme helped cover these costs and insured I was able to pay for everything I needed to to make sure I could come to camp.