A Summer of Purpose. A Lifetime of Skills.
Selfless. Committed. Joyful.
Those three words are how we measure success for every North Star staff member, whether you’re a cabin counselor, a trip leader, a nurse, or the person who makes sure the boats have gas. They’re simple to say and hard to live out every single day. Here’s what they look like in action at North Star Camp.
Selfless
At North Star Camp, kids come first. Being selfless means noticing the camper standing at the edge of the group and pulling him in. It means giving up your free period to sit on the dock with a homesick 9-year-old, reminding him for the third time to put on sunscreen, and celebrating his first time getting up on waterskis like it’s your own win. It means picking up the slack for a co-counselor who’s having a rough day without being asked. Not every job at camp works directly with campers, but every job at camp serves them. The pancakes, the clean washhouse, the folded laundry, and the photos parents wait for each night all exist because someone put the community ahead of themselves.
Committed
Camp asks a lot, and it asks for all of it. Being committed means bringing the same energy to week seven that you brought to the first day of staff training. It means showing up to your activity on time and prepared, following through on what you said you’d do, and holding yourself to our safety standards when no one is watching. It means being all-in with your cabin, your co-counselors, and your team for the entire summer, because the campers who arrive in July deserve the same counselor the June campers got. Commitment is what turns a summer job into a summer that matters.
Joyful
Joy is contagious, and at camp it’s part of the job. Being joyful means singing loudest at campfire, jumping into a skit you didn’t rehearse, and finding the fun when a thunderstorm cancels the plan you spent all afternoon on. It means sharing your hidden talents, laughing at yourself, and remembering that for many of our campers, these are the best weeks of their year. Joy isn’t the absence of hard days. It’s choosing to bring light to them anyway, and our campers notice every time you do.
Find Your Place and join the North Star family
Every summer, about 300 campers and a staff from all over the world come together in the Northwoods of Hayward, Wisconsin. We hire for a wide range of positions, and not all of them work directly with campers. Whatever role you’re interested in, you’ll be living in a close-knit, communal environment built around kids, and you’ll have a leadership team that works hand-in-hand with you to build skills you’ll carry into your career and beyond. Explore the job descriptions below to find the role that fits you best.
A Few Things to Know Before You Apply:
- The dates for 2027 are June 1 – August 6, with the opportunity extend earlier or later.
- North Star is a drug, tobacco, and alcohol free environment. These products are strictly forbidden on camp property.
- Staff over the age of 21 are allowed to consume alcohol outside of camp on time off, but never to excess.
- All staff will be required to pass a background check.
- Excessive tattoos or piercings must be disclosed to a director during the interview process.
- All behavior, clothing, and topics of conversation must be appropriate for a children’s summer camp.
Open Positions at North Star Camp
Counseling Staff
Most of the staff members that work at North Star Camp for Boys fulfill the role of cabin counselors. Each summer, we hire approximately 50 counselors to work directly with our campers. Counselors come in all shapes, sizes and personality types. If you want to spend your summer making a difference for kids, this may be the job for you.
Counselors fulfill two main responsibilities. The first is the cabin role. Each cabin or bunk at North Star Camp will have three counselors. The counselors will work together to create a fun, safe environment for the kids in their cabin. Counselors sleep in the cabins in their own “counselor quarters”. They also spend meal times with their cabin group, wake them up in the morning, put them to bed and spend other times during the day with their group. As a counselor, you will really get to know your campers, helping them have a meaningful summer. You will truly have the opportunity to serve as a mentor and role model.
The second role is as an activity instructor. We offer a diverse camp program and counselors serve as our instructors. During the day, when the campers in your cabin are out participating in their scheduled activities, you’ll be working as an instructor. As an activity instructor you don’t have to be an expert, you just need to have skills and a desire to help kids learn.
Click the job title below for the full Cabin Counselor & Activity Instructor job description.
Wilderness Staff
As part of our wilderness trip program, every cabin group at North Star Camp for Boys goes on either a canoeing or hiking trip. We hire Wilderness Trip Leaders to go on all of our trips. Trip Leaders are often known as those guys who spend most of the summer sleeping in tents. Being a trip leader is about canoeing and hiking with our campers, but it’s much more than that. Before each trip goes out, you’ll get to know the group that you’re leading. You’ll plan a menu, pack out food and equipment (all from our trip shack) and help your group get ready before heading out. Trippers also help care for and organize our equipment.
During the trip, your main responsibility is to create a safe and healthy experience and connect our campers to the outdoors. We are looking for mature people who have good decision making skills to help make sure that our campers and staff members are kept safe. Each Trip Leader is put through an eight day Wilderness First Responder (WFR) course to ensure that they can provide emergency care in the back country. We also put our trip leaders through a lifeguard course. North Star Camp for Boys covers the cost of these expensive certification courses.
Trip Leader candidates should have significant experience in outdoor tripping. The majority of our trips are canoe trips, but we also have hiking, climbing, and other trips. Trip Leaders should love the wilderness but also relish the opportunity to work with campers and staff in the outdoors. This is a great opportunity to impact young people and potentially turn them onto a lifelong love of camping and outdoor adventure. Out trip leaders have had a significant impact on our campers.
Click the job title below for the complete Wilderness Trip Leader job description.
Health Staff
One of the essential roles of our camp is attending to the health and safety of each of our campers and staff members. While prevention is essential, we also have a staff of individuals to provide medical care when necessary. We hire RNs and experienced LPN’s to run our health center. We also hire health aides, typically nursing students, pre-med students or individuals who are looking to go into the healthcare field.
Our Health Center is wellness-oriented and we have systems in place to deliver efficient services to our camp population. We work with an online pediatrician for virtual medical visits as needed, and have a close relationship with the hospital facility in Hayward. Many of our staff members are also trained in first aid and are able to respond in the event of an emergency. Our health staff live in private or semi-private housing at camp.
Our health staff hold health checks (office hours) three times a day for approximately an hour. During other times throughout the day, if there are no campers to see, our team is on call with a walkie talkie and free to enjoy the benefits of working at a summer camp. Camp nursing provides a fun and interesting way to work in pediatrics. Salary depends on experience.
Click on a job title below to learn more about a specific Health Staff job depending on your experience level.
Program Staff
Our Program team helps make the daily magic happen at North Star. At the beginning of the week, campers choose which activities they would like to attend. Our Program team takes that information and creates a customized schedule for each and every camper. Then, each day, the Program team makes a daily staff assignment schedule to create the strongest instruction possible at each activity, taking into account staff that are out of camp on time off or trips. Want to be in a role that solves puzzles and makes a huge impact on how much fun everyone has at camp? Join us on our Program team!
Support Staff
When people think of working at a camp, usually they think about the counselors, who work directly with the kids every day. There is a lot that goes into running a camp and to have a successful summer we need to hire great people to work in our kitchen, on our maintenance staff, and in other areas as well. If working at a camp sounds like fun, this may be the right job for you. While you will not be working directly with campers, everyone we hire needs to be willing to live in a communal environment, want to work as part of a team and also display behavior that is appropriate for a child centered environment. Here are some of the positions we offer:
Specialists
North Star Camp for Boys offers an abundance of activities and events, making it a truly remarkable and memorable childhood experience. We are in search of skilled professionals to help create and capture these moments. If you’re a skilled photographer or videographer looking for scenic locations and an entire summer’s worth of opportunities to expand your portfolio, this may be the job for you! Or, maybe you are a creative talent with a passion for the arts and teaching the next generations. Skilled tennis pro? We are in need of coaches and trainers to teach private tennis lessons. Expand below for details on our available specialist positions!
Administrative Staff
Our office staff help to ensure that camp is always running smoothly. Between being a point of contact for directors, staff, parents, and campers to planning fun activities for our day campers, administrative staff have the opportunity for a fun, and fulfilling summer job. Looking for a summer internship? Our office jobs allow you to enjoy the great outdoors, while gaining real-world experience and internship credit.
