UniWorld is a U.S. Department of State–designated BridgeUSA J-1 Exchange Visitor Program sponsor based in Missouri. We place international counselors at summer camps across the state — and we handle the screening, the DS-2019, the insurance, and the compliance that comes with them.
The J-1 Camp Counselor category exists for cultural exchange in both directions — your campers get the world, and your counselors get an American summer they carry home.
Campers spend the summer with counselors from other countries — learning about the world from someone their cabin already trusts, not from a classroom.
Waterfront and aquatics, sports and athletics, arts and performing arts, outdoor and adventure, and faith-based programming — matched to the roles you actually need.
Counselors come for the whole camp season, typically 9–16 weeks from June through August, and live on site for the duration of their program.
Most J-1 camp counselor sponsors run placements in Missouri from an office two time zones away. We are based here.
Site visits in person, not by video call. Same-day phone response during the season, and a team that can be on the ground when something needs attention.
Your counselors’ DS-2019 forms are issued by UniWorld and their SEVIS records are maintained by UniWorld. There is no third party between your camp and the sponsor.
Our team has personally served as PDSOs, DSOs, and AROs. Exchange visitor regulations are not new territory for us — they are what we have done for our whole careers.
A clear split, agreed in writing before the season starts.
Exact terms — compensation, dates, role definitions, and fees — are set out in the partnership agreement before either side commits.
From first conversation to counselors on your dock.
Your camp, the roles you need, and your season dates.
Terms, responsibilities, and fees in writing before anyone commits.
We send screened candidates. You interview and choose.
DS-2019, visa interview, insurance, orientation, arrival plan.
Arrival check-in, monitoring through the season, 24-hour line.
Missouri is our home state and our service region. We are building a camp network we can support properly — close enough to visit in person, small enough that your camp is not one account among hundreds.
If your camp is outside Missouri and you would like to talk, we would still like to hear from you.
If you are planning international staff for next season, now is the time to talk — placement and visa timelines start well before the summer.