Finding Cool Summer Jobs at Camps

2 Finding Cool Summer Jobs at Camps

When I was in school I typically started looking for a summer job a couple of days after my exams ended. I always wondered why some people found such terrific jobs while I seemed to have so much trouble.

The best summer jobs I ever had were places where I already had some kind of an in. The first was in my senior year of high school, at a local utility company where my aunt worked. There I earned much better than average income for my age and got some great accounting experience. During my university years I had a summer job with our local school board that I heard about from my next door neighbour who, again, worked for there

But what about when you do not have an in? Yes, I found jobs, but they were not always that great. Having a crummy, low-paying job can not only wreck your summer, but also lead to financial hardship during the school year, I often found myself working 2 or 3 part time jobs throughout the school year to make my rent and tuition payments, never mind having spending money for entertainment.

There are ways that one can avoid such pitfalls. The 3 things I never did, but should have: Plan, network, and start early.

Plan

Some people have terrific summer work experiences that help them in their permanent job search when school is over. While I had some ideas about what I wanted to do when I completed my post-secondary education, I always looked at summer work as a way to get through school, a means to an end, as opposed to a foot in the door when I finished my degree. When I received my BA, I found that most of the jobs I was interested in required some previous experience or credentials I had not managed to get while I was in school. Seems pretty stupid, but I never had a plan, aside from getting a degree, as to how to obtain the career I was interested in. This left me, and many others who graduated during the economic recession at that time, casting about just to get a job never mind a career.

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Network

Being in a school environment affords a student ample opportunity to get information about many career opportunities. Once the summer jobs I found through my aunt and neighbour had ended I felt as though my network of ins had pretty much been exhausted. What I should have been doing was building that network! Interviewing people who had the jobs I was interested in obtaining when I graduated and getting information on the experience and credentials that I would need would have been a giant step forward (this can sometimes even lead to internships or seasonal employment if you make a great impression). Networking with my friends, their parents, my parents’ friends and so on. Joining campus clubs or volunteering my time in areas related to my field of interest would also have been beneficial. High schools guidance departments and post-secondary employment service centres could, and should, be utilized. More than that, there are teachers and professors to speak to. Being shy and just a little bewildered by it all, I failed to develop any connection with my university professors or TAs who could have provided me with valuable resources, including summer work experiences which in turn could have advanced my career aspirations.

Networking can also work in reverse, that is, you might learn what jobs to avoid. The summer prior to my final year of university I opted not to move home because I didn’t want to lose my apartment. There were posters all over campus exclaiming “Work Outside on Boats!” Sounded great to me! Early in May I reported for work at a Toronto yacht club. The job was not that glamorous, it was cold, hard work scrubbing boats that had been stored outside for the winter. We were assured that things would get better as the weather warmed up and after the initial spring cleaning was out of the way. Indeed, it probably was for the young man who had subcontracted the work from the club and the 2 or 3 friends he kept on after laying the rest of us off! There I was, with a lease and no income. Complaining of my misfortune around campus I learned that others were aware of this shady outfit, it is a small world after all! If only I had taken some time to look into the job before committing to it, I would have saved myself a world of trouble.

START EARLY

Planning and networking needs to be happening all the time. As a student I operated under the misconception that I should be focussing solely on achieving good grades. In retrospect, I could and should have given some of my study time (and social time) over to career planning. A person can get so bogged down with their studies (and in my case juggling part-time jobs) that they neglect to do the work that will truly affect their career more than a high grade-point average.

Start early, plan early (understanding that a plan made early will also need to be flexible), network early, and look for summer work EARLY. It never occurred to me that I should be looking for my summer job during the dead of winter. Being fixated on my studies in February led to a great deal of frustration in the spring. The fact is, many summer jobs are advertised in the winter and early spring. Seasonal job fairs take place months before the summer work term and this is when the bulk of hiring will take place.

Does the early bird really catch the worm? While there may be an element of luck involved in job searching, starting early and applying the plan and network approach will improve your odds of landing a great summer job that might just launch your career.

Watch the video related to summer job search

Workforce Solutions Upper Rio Grande produces a weekly television show Career Connections on Time Warner Cable Ch15 in El Paso Texas. Every week we feature Employers, news for job seekers and information on our programs. For more information visit www.urgjobs.org or www.workintexas.com

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18 comments

  1. Lego says:

    There is an old saying "as long as you live under my roof, you will follow my rules." If you want her to cut the apron strings you will have to be on your own. You are 20 but in her eyes you havent matured enough to be fully independant because you still live at home. If your home life is going to make you miserable, it might be best to skip this job. Also you said it will cost you a fortune in gas. Thus defeating the point of working since you wont be making that much. if you want to do something humanitarian why dont you volunteer at the hospital or police station or church a few hours a week. Also having a crummy job is better than having no job, and it is a great reminder and motivator for doing well in school. She cant be that much of a witch if she is helping you by letting you use her car. good luck

  2. martinyrome says:

    Try looking around the surrounding Lehigh Valley area, like Allentown and Easton. Transportation between the 3 cities runs locally since you can't drive. I know the Baum School of Art offers art courses similarly to the Banana factory.

    Try contacting the Pennslyvania Youth Theater, it's the local theater in Bethlehem. I'm sure they offer summer acting courses.

    I know Dorney Park will hire you at 14, you could always call them and ask for a job. They hire lifeguards too, so if you don't want to work at a local pool you could try lifeguarding there.

    The Southside Film Festival is taking place in Bethlehem June 16th-19th, you might want to check that out as well. And if you like nature, theres a huge, 5 mile park in Allentown called the Lehigh Parkway, definitely worth a visit.

    Have a nice summer, hope I helped! :)

  3. getagreatjobfast says:

    I would like to invite you to get my FREE e-book “GET A GREAT JOB FAST!” It’s a new century and a new job hunting dynamic. Lots of free tools and tips to get you working quickly. Got a very good review last weekend. Best wishes in your search. We need to help each other out!

  4. guideyoutoeasymoney says:

    if any of you guys out of school for the summer need to make quick cash for the summer check out /watch?v=pVGGvHLjgT4

  5. anothersamchan says:

    @billytinkler i don’t think you’re old fashioned at all! I think you’re realistic and your thoughts are legitimate. The internet has provided a far easier forum for people to raise awareness about their own skills, but for people who didn’t have any skills to begin with and aren’t trying to improve on a daily basis, it doesn’t do a thing.

  6. lolerinslacks88 says:

    No, I think your feelings are genuine. But I think it's best to forget about this. Yes, he likes you but he sounds too complicated and like he could be trouble. I think he is a player.

  7. acceber14 says:

    Although you're not sure what career you want. It's a good idea to take a career that you'll be good at, or you can handle. For example if you're good in math take accounting, or teacher if you like children, or nurse if you like helping people, or computers if you like sitting in an office.

    Don't take jobs that you know you can't handle, for example I cant' handle children, so i won't work with them. I had a job working as a bus monitor and they were out of control. It was a bad school, even if I reported them nothing happened.

    Its depend on your personality and what you're good at. Please answer my question below.
    http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AvLPjXnUhFnn.ujXE_GHrHbsy6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20091219063934AAnxtqs

  8. Pookie says:

    This sounds like great fun!!!

    But wouldn't it be so much MORE fun if the girls got to dress up as Dads?

    Maybe "Dads BBQ night" (something men LOVE to do) where all the females dress up as boys, spit, talk about sports and brag about how great their meat flipping skills are….

  9. anothersamchan says:

    @nczuma one of my prof’s once said he couldn’t believe that there were so many communication students who didn’t know basic photoshop editing.

    I agree that there should definitely be a basic HANDS ON knowledge. Don’t just KNOW about the memes or twitter or the next greatest thing, Try it out, experience it, use it. It reminds me of MTV Hired, where a person was applying for a social media consulting role without ever having used twitter (but she advocated for it to her own clients)

  10. nczuma says:

    @SingleActionArmy1990 Making sure they know some meme’s is more of a way for me to weed out people who don’t spend enough time on the net. Honestly, if all he could say is Numa Numa guy, that wouldn’t help his case. I just want to know their exposure.

    But that’s just a small part, like you said good communication skills are at the heart of it. Our social media dept doesn’t need to know as much SEO as the link-builders and not as much HTML/CSS as the Dev Dept, but it helps to know a bit.

  11. trevorw11392 says:

    second , bit of wit. but the one you feel most comfortable with, whichever one you do make sure you know the character, have you heard of hot seating? and character preparation etc, be prepared at the audition for questions regarding the character and scene. i do like the second one though, did you have a choice to choose from or are they ones you've found yourself? i wish i was our mickey from bloodbrothers is a good one!

  12. billytinkler says:

    Call me old-fashioned, but a tonne of people I know can handle themselves on YouTube or Facebook but are nearly illiterate and incapable of expressing a clear idea. While the internet may promote networking, it does not substitute for basic writing skills and I would never go so far as to say that it helps with all jobs. Find me a lawyer who says he got accepted to his firm because someone saw him “tweet” about his knowledge of Charter rights.

  13. anothersamchan says:

    @billytinkler and about the lawyer situation:

    Let’s say there is a talented young lawyer in a firm who was let go due to cutbacks and the firm wanted to stick with their veteran lawyers – he now has a much easier time sharing his credibility online and show off the skills that got him hired in the first place. You have to be smart about it though, especially in law, as there’s a fine line with confidentiality. I’d love to hear some more of your thoughts!

  14. nczuma says:

    @TamerlanePNR Pretty much all of them, It’s an internet marketing company.

  15. anothersamchan says:

    @SingleActionArmy1990 you got it buddy, the tools have changed, but in my humble opinion and young experience so far, networking really hasn’t changed. Being authentic and letting my passion flow has led me to meet some terrific people. Twitter and Facebook have been the starting point for me, but hardly the end point. IMing, and more importantly discussions face to face have truly connected me to many opportunities.

  16. Hope says:

    i think 2 and 4 are WAY over done…dont do it too unless you can REALLY do something unique and different w/ it. #1 sounds like "secret life of bees" and #3 sounds like that one movie w/ joey lawrence and his little brother that was on disney…out of the 2 of them, though, id go w/ number 3…i think, again, if you put a unique spin on it, it can turn out really well.

    good luck!

  17. lolerinslacks88 says:

    Honestly if I were you i would just brush it aside because of the age difference and the fact you are in different places in your lives.

  18. *Ajidamoon* says:

    1st off you have to stop blaming him and look at your self 1st. You really shouldn't be asking for advice from the internet (and especially not from YA), but since you asked…. You sound very passive/aggressive. Not good for relationships. Also, it sounds like there is no meaningful communication between the two of you. He's always going to his "old friends" and you striking up a relationship with your "old friend". And you say you got over the past infidelities, but I think you are lying to yourself here.

    If you really want this to work out, get counseling. If he doesn't' want to go, go yourself. Turning to the internet is not the way to go, unless you are just looking for someone to agree with a decision you have already made (very passive/aggressive).

    It sounds like you guys were too young to start a family. I feel sorry for your kids.

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