How To Become A Cabin Counselor: What It Is and Career Path

What is a cabin counselor and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Tommy Casarez Ph.D.

The average cabin counselor salary is $23,776. The most common degree is a bachelor's degree degree with an psychology major. It usually takes 2-4 years of experience to become a cabin counselor. Cabin counselors with a First Aid, CPR and AED Instructor certification earn more money. Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 10% and produce 28,100 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a cabin counselor?

Dr. Tommy Casarez Ph.D.

Dr., Assistant Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology, Vanguard University

Opportunities come in many different shapes and sizes, but they are still out there. Whether you are seeking to land a job in education or the non-profit sector, you will need to familiarize yourself and get used to all things digital, for the sake of communicating effectively. The younger your student or service partner's mindset, the more digitally savvy you will need to be, especially in the classroom and in the non-profit world.

ScoreCabin CounselorUS Average

Salary

1.9

Avg. Salary $23,776

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.1

Growth rate 10%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

9.9

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.67%

Asian 5.76%

Black or African American 11.84%

Hispanic or Latino 13.59%

Unknown 5.58%

White 62.55%

Gender

female 55.13%

male 44.87%

Age - 43

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43

Stress level

9.1

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.9

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.5

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a cabin counselor

Explore cabin counselor education requirements

Most common cabin counselor degrees

Bachelor's

71.4 %

High School Diploma

13.1 %

Associate

7.5 %

Start to develop specific cabin counselor skills

Skills	Percentages
Kids	20.38%
CPR	19.88%
Cleanliness	16.27%
Leadership	10.80%
Behavior Management	6.70%

Complete relevant cabin counselor training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 1-3 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New cabin counselors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a cabin counselor based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real cabin counselor resumes.

Research cabin counselor duties and responsibilities

Manage kayak and canoe instructors and ensure boating classes are always safe and constructive.
Manage a cabin of ten kids per week and serve as a resource for medical, behavioral and emotional needs.
Assist kids in creating new friendships, improving communication and empathy skills, achieving independence, and teaching important life skills.
Educate campers to manage their diabetes independently bypracticing in team excercises.

Get cabin counselor experience

Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a cabin counselor. The most common roles before becoming a cabin counselor include internship, volunteer team lead and cashier.

Prepare your cabin counselor resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your cabin counselor resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a cabin counselor resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable cabin counselor resume templates

Build a professional cabin counselor resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your cabin counselor resume.