# CIT (Counselor-In-Training) Application Essay **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 28, 2013, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577 "2013-01-28T02:01:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![R3d\_Anonymous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/aeb1de/32.png) [@R3d\_Anonymous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/R3d_Anonymous)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/1 "2013-01-28T02:01:06Z")
There’s a summer camp in our town that I attended as a child (meaning, when I was in 8th grade and younger), and I really liked that place. It’s a nice, relaxing, fun place to be. However, I grew out two years ago, and now if I wanted to attend the camp, I would have to submit an application for a CIT (or counselor-in-training) position. Last year, I really messed up and I filled out my application sloppily and with two inks. Then they didn’t like my essay and said it was too short and not in-depth. While I can fix how I fill out my application (and actually take some responsibility and ownership for my work), I am still puzzled as to how I should approach the essay. It says, “Please attach an essay explaining why you want to be in the program and what you hope to gain by being a Counselor-In-Training.” Now here’s last year’s (fail) essay: > [@](#): > > I was a camper here at (leaving out camp name due to privacy reasons on this message board) for three years and I took as many sessions as I could. I always attended at least three out of four sessions per season, and I really enjoyed the relaxing camp setting, nice counselors, and the great variety of activities that were offered. > > Now, I would like to experience this same camp setting, but with a different role: the position of a staff member. I observed the responsibilities of a CIT, and I am curious to actually become one myself. Becoming a counselor-in-training would also help me get more used to being around, and working with, kids. If I become a CIT, it will improve my social skills and the ability to work with smaller children. > > I also want to enhance my leadership skills. In group work, I often desire to take the leadership position, and when I do, I make strong attempts to know as much about the topic at hand as possible. In order to resolve conflicts, I make efforts to compromise so no one is left upset. Becoming a CIT will allow me to further understand the role of a leader in real life. Obviously, this is not a very good essay, and it is what caused me to get rejected. So how do I not fail this year? How should I approach/write this essay? What should I do? Tips and advice would be very helpful. Thank you for your time. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/2 "2013-01-28T02:37:07Z")
I recommend being more specific about what you hope to do this summer. For example: > [@](#): > > Dear Camp Wannabeeaseeyaitee: > > When I was a young camper, I greatly admired and looked up to the noble CITs who with great care and affection guided my young mind on its journey through the harrowing perils of Nature. Now that I am older and wiser I seek a counselor’s apprenticeship so that I may pass their wisdom onto the next generation of lucky campers. In order to emulate those who came before me, I plan to engage with great avidity in the following standard CIT rituals: > [ol] > [li] Sneaking off to the woods to make out with that girl from Bunk 16 with the giant boobs.[/li] > [li] Buying beer and reselling it to my loyal campers at a significant markup when we embark on nature hikes.[/li] > [li] Sneaking off to the woods to bugger that one boy from Bunk 13 who’s just asking for it, in the great tradition of summer camps the nation over.[/li] > [li] Stealing a canoe and putting it on the camp director’s roof, utilizing an ingenious system of pulleys designed by one of the “indoor kids.”[/li] > [li] Comparing the size of my dick to that of the prepubescent boys in my stead, so that they will be inspired to grow into strong, strapping young men.[/li] > [li] Not showering for six weeks.[/li] > [li] Throwing kids in the lake for not showering for six weeks.[/li] > [li] Sneaking off to the woods to make out with that female arts and crafts counselor who has a thing for underage boys and menthol cigarettes.[/li] > [li] Convincing a bunch of seven-year-olds to put out a campfire with the mighty power of their urinations, thus imparting a cruel but valuable lesson in fire safety.[/li] > [/ol] > > I hope you now understand how dedicated I am to the great traditions of campcraft, and am sure you will add me to your roster of CITs with unbridled alacrity. > > Sincerely, > > Anonymous Camper ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/3 "2013-01-28T12:24:57Z")
I don’t have any experience at CIT positions; but, hey, I went to camp 30 years ago. So here’s my 2 cents: Take a look at Friedo’s joke-post above, and follow his advice… (no, not the specifics…just the general idea):“be more specific”. Tell them what you experienced.—what you did at camp, and why you liked it. Then tell them how you think as a CIT you can provide the same experience for the kids. Be specific. For example, mention the singing around the bonfire with new friends… Or the tug-of-war rope pull and the rowboat races, where everybody pulled together, with the CIT calling out the cadence. Or the way the counselors were so friendly with everybody, and made sure that the shy kids felt comfortable, too. Mention a problem that occurred, and how the consellors made it seem easy to solve. ( Rainy weather?–that counselor with the guitar sure made us feel good that day. Lousy food in the cafeteria?—sharing cookies somebody brought from home was fun.) Then tell a little about yourself (but not too much), and how you think you can work as a team member with the older counsellors to give a good experience to the younger kids. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/4 "2013-01-28T15:34:02Z")
Your original essay speaks only to how the position would benefit you. You need to also speak to what you can do for the camp and kids. What skills do you have that would benefit the camp? These can be things you learned there or elsewhere, but it would be nice to note how the things you learned there as a camper will make you a good CIT. Write the essay from the viewpoint of what you would find important if you were hiring the CIT’s. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/5 "2013-01-28T15:48:02Z")
**Doctor Jackson** gives good advice here not just on an application like this but also on job interviews and cover letters - they don’t care about what they can do for you, they care about what you can do for them. ---
**Author:** ![pancakes3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ba9def/32.png) [@pancakes3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pancakes3)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2013, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/6 "2013-02-01T00:51:13Z")
Hm. Well in order to help you be more detailed, we need more details. - What kind of camp is it? (People seem to think it’s a summer camp but I’m assuming it’s more of a day camp involving a specialty like… instruments or computers…) - What about the camp made it nice, relaxing, and a fun place to be? - What qualifications are being considered for CIT’s? - What skills do you possess makes you think you actually would be a good counselor? Content aside, the format of your essay is severely lacking. Stick to what the public school system has beaten into you. 5 paragraphs. Intro, Body, Conclusion. What is your thesis? At the basest, it should attempt to answer the question posed. “explain why you want to be in the program and what you hope to gain by being a CIT”. You want to be in the CIT program because you bring reasons a,b, and c to the table. Furthermore, you hope that in participating in the program, you and the program can mutually benefit from reasons x, y, and z. Lay this out in a outline. Can you come up with 3 reasons why you should be in the program? Can you come up with 3 things you hope to gain from the program? Write that essay. Master those basic elements for a first draft before we start thinking about edits, critiques, resumes, CV’s, cover letters, personal statements, etc. with action verbs and results/goal-oriented entries… ---
**Author:** ![MikeG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikeg/32/4329_2.png) [@MikeG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeG)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2013, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/7 "2013-02-01T02:47:03Z")
Is this Camp Echo? ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2013, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/8 "2013-02-01T04:47:57Z")
We are the C I Ts so pity us. The kids are brats and the food is hideous. We like to smoke and drink and fool around we’re nookie bound We are the North Star C I Teeeees. That should get you in. ---
**Author:** ![HoneySwift](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ecae2f/32.png) [@HoneySwift](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneySwift)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/9 "2013-04-08T04:50:36Z")
Just like the last paragraph, if you say you want to paticipate the team work and make more friends, rather than to be a leader, that would be better as I think. ---
**Author:** ![Accidental\_Martyr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ce7236/32.png) [@Accidental\_Martyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Accidental_Martyr)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/10 "2013-04-08T05:10:53Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > We are the C I Ts so pity us. > The kids are brats and the food is hideous. > We like to smoke and drink and fool around > we’re nookie bound > We are the North Star C I Teeeees. > That should get you in. This is exactly what I thought of when I read the thread title. ---
**Author:** ![bobkitty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c67d28/32.png) [@bobkitty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobkitty)\ **Post date:** [April 8, 2013, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cit-counselor-in-training-application-essay/648577/11 "2013-04-08T12:04:07Z")
> [@Zebra](#): > > we’re nookie bound. OMG, is THAT what the line is??? I never knew!! Thanks for filling in that blank in my cultural history. 😃