Direct Placement and Returning Staff Applications

· Camp Information: Please fill this section in with the name of the camp employing you this summer, the name of the director, contact information, and the job type. You can also find this information in your camp contract if you are unsure or want to double check.

· Education: If you are an undergraduate or graduate student, please fill this section in accordingly. If you are not a student, please answer “No”.

· Work Experience: If you are currently employed at home, provide the name of the employer, your position, and for how long you have worked there for. If not, answer “No”.

· Camp Experience: If you have WORKED at camp prior to this year make sure this section is filled in with all necessary information.

·  If you were a camp counselor, lifeguard, horseback riding instructor, etc., then you must answer yes to the question of “Were you a camp counselor?”

·  If you were maintenance, kitchen staff, office staff, etc., then you must answer yes to the following question of “Were you a Support Staff Member?”

For name of sponsor, please put the name of the agency that was your visa sponsor. Your Summer Camp employer was not your sponsor. You can find the name of the agency on either you past DS 2019 forms or the previous visa(s) in your passport.
· Visa Information:  Please make sure your personal information is written EXACTLY as it’s PRINTED in your passport. We will also need your CITY of birth. Some passports go by County or State. In this case, please go with the city present on your birth certificate. If you have been to camp before and have had previous visas, please don’t skip over this section. Also note: as it relates to the International Camp Staff Program – Summer Work and Travel visas are only issued to those participants who have worked as a support staff while at camp.  If you have only ever worked as a camp counselor, the number of J-1 Summer Work and Travel visas would be entered as 0.

· Personal Statement: This is a very important part of your application. Please fill out this section completely and substantially, at least a paragraph for each question (Even if IENA was your sponsor last year!).

· Medical History & other Background info: Answer all questions in this section, and provide adequate details when describing any conditions or medications you may take.

· Reference: You are required to provide TWO professional references.These MUST be filled out using IENA’s online reference form; we do NOT accept letters of recommendation.

You can email the form directly to your professional reference through your online application. It must be completed by someone who knows you in a professional capacity, examples would be a professor, supervisor, employer, and/or teacher. It CANNOT be a reference from a coach, a colleague/coworker, a friend, and/or a family member. Your current summer camp employer (Camp Director or any other staff, past or present) cannot complete the reference as well. If you are going to a different camp this year, you will need a reference from your previous camp. Please note: All sections of the reference must be completed for it to be accepted.  If you are receiving a reference from a supervisor, they must fill out “If you have employed the applicant, in what capacity?” and “Dates of Employment”.
· Photograph: This can be any picture of you. Think of this as your profile picture for your application.

· Camp Contract/Offer Letter From Camp:  We will need a copy of the offer letter for you from the camp. You can upload the copy of the letter yourself, please make sure to upload the signed copy of this document. This is can be the last document you receive some camp after being hired, and can take some time for you to receive. We recommend that you have the rest of your application completed while you wait for this.

· Police Background Check: You will need to submit a recent Police Background Check to obtain your visa.  We ONLY accept background checks issued from September 1, 2018 onward.

If you are from the UK, please visit this LINK.

If you are not from the UK, please contact your local police department. Please keep in mind that this document can take up to 2-3 weeks to receive depending on country and region, so apply accordingly. It may be possible to request an expedited on with an addition charge.

· Proof of Student Status:  Only needed for SUPPORT STAFF, such as Kitchen Staff, Maintenance, Housekeeping Department, or Office Staff. (This is not required for Camp Counselors or Lifeguards)

Download the form here! 

Both the signature of the school official, and school seal are required. If the official cannot sign our form, they can provide their own if it has the dates of your summer holiday break clearly stated and provides the rest of the information requested on IENA’s proof of student status form. The dates on your contract must fall within the summer holiday break dates as stated on your proof of student status form.
· Copy of Passport: Upload a clear copy of your passport picture page for your application on our website.  Passports must be current and not due to expire while at Summer Camp. Once uploaded, please check to make sure all information can be easily read.

· Copy of Previous Visa(s):  If you worked at camp last summer or any previous summer, please upload ALL your previous visas to your account on our site. It can be the Visas in your passport or the previous DS2019 forms.

· Emergency Contact: Please provide someone in your home country that we may contact in case an emergency were to occur, such as a parent, legal guardian, or relative.