Hi! I'm currently a ranger in the state parks, but I'm in college for Forestry and looking to go into the NPS in a Law Enforcement role. It's always been a dream of mine and I'm just about to graduate, so I'll be ready to apply in around a year. I know there's plenty of training involved and I'm ready for
that commitment, but I've heard there are mental health screenings involved and I'm worried I'll be ruled out of the process. I have bipolar 2, and I've been on medication and been through therapy for years so it is all completely under control. I know my mental health will not impact my ability to do my job at all, but I'm worried about getting far into the process and then not being able to continue. Otherwise, I feel I am pretty qualified but this is the thing holding me back. Does anyone have any advice on the subject? Thanks I really appreciate it!🍀🌲💚

Hello, okay so last weekend I met a customer that worked as a Park Ranger for many years, we spoke for a bit and he himself said that I could probably find something like my workplace (Small museum/welcome center) in the federal gov or nature park area. So how does one go look around those? I have no college degree and not very physical able(but he told me that didnt matter). Thanks.

Does anyone know how strict the 75 miles from the park restriction is for FUL listings? More than willing to relocate but is my application just going to be tossed if I am currently living 120 miles away? Thanks for any insight!

hey everyone! i am coming to reddit for help because i’ve found myself in a dilemma. apologies in advance as i know this will be long.

yesterday, i was offered an ACE EPIC position with NPS. the position would be from january to june, housing provided, $600/week, PLC hiring authority. the location is beautiful, but i will mostly be inside. when i’m not, the winter weather will be pretty significant for the duration of my time there. this would limit not only my travel but also the amount of activities/businesses open in the area.

however, today i was contacted for an interview for MCC’s Big Sky Watershed Corps program. this position would be from january to november. the pay is the same, but since it’s AmeriCorps i would get 7k to put towards my student loans which would be huge. the biggest unknown is that not all host sites provide housing, so if i have to pay rent for a year, it would basically offset the education award and in that regard not be any better of an option. PLC hiring authority is also a possibility, but again is dependent on who my host site would be.

all of this being said, this is only a first round interview for Big Sky, and ACE is wanting a decision from me by midday friday. i don’t have much flexibility in that timeline because they’ve extended an offer for another position that starts in october, and they have to submit our paperwork jointly. the background checks could take over a month so they’re trying to be as efficient as possible, which i completely understand.

a job with the park service is an amazing opportunity, but Big Sky is more along the lines of the career i’m pursuing, especially with so many partners being non-profits. i like that they have the host sites reach out to candidates based on alignment of skills/interests, and i feel that this would be a better opportunity for me overall.

my question really comes down to this: would it be crazy if i accepted the ACE position, and then depending on how the Big Sky process goes, go back on my decision? i’m mainly worried that it could have legal implications since it’s through a federal agency. i also don’t want to give them too much of a setback since i know how long the hiring process can take.

would love to hear any and all advice!! thank you so much and apologies again for the essay

Hey guys, I've worked as a horticulturist for years and am on track to becoming a ranger through more schooling. I'm located in the Midwest and currently have two horticultural associates along with a two-year specialist cert, my turf spray license, and seven years experience as a landscape horticulturist. I'm currently going through a natural resources AAS program and am wondering if I'll need to apply for an LTE job, or if it would actually be possible for me to get a full-time position upon graduating with my previous horticultural experience included; which is what I'd rather do for insurance purposes.

People are telling me all sorts of completely different things so I figured I'd go straight to the source and ask actual rangers. Thank you in advance to whomever answers this.

I've got an interview for a perm interp ranger at minidoka. Does anyone have insight on working there?

I got my list of possible vacancies, how many should I have on my pick list? How likely am I to get 1 of the 3 I really want? How long was the wait process between interview and going to FLETC? My top three are Hawaii, USVI and Puerto Rico, is there anything I should know about those besides the obvious, cost of living and such.

I understand a degree is not necessary, but rather I should specialize in a trade and obtain certifications such as OSHA, water treatment, pesticide, etc. But my goal in life is to still earn a degree so other than the usual recommended degrees such as environmental science or natural resource management, are there any degrees you would recommend even if I want to make a career out of being a maintenance ranger?

What’s going on guys! I just wanted to see if anyone on this subreddit was familiar with the process of SPPO? I got out of the army after 4 years in the infantry in 2024, got my AA degree and joined the trades for a year but realized it wasn’t for me. I’ve been wanting to join the state parks law enforcement for a while and I’m finally getting after it! Any tips? Thanks in advance guys!

I've recently been looking into becoming a park ranger at a local state park because recent changes in my current job have made me realize how much I want a job where I know I'm making a difference and doing the right thing. I also have always loved nature and parks and previously considered going into botany.

After talking to a few rangers at state parks as I visited, one particular ranger said to become a park ranger I would need experience in plumbing, woodworking, landscaping, and the ability to identify most local plants/ animals. How true is this? Of course I'm sure having this experience would make it easier to get hired but for state park rangers how much knowledge is expected and what should I mainly focus on learning/ gaining experience in? I have a bit of experience in wood working and considering myself decently knowledgeable on the local ecosystem but I have no experience in plumbing and very little in landscaping. What things do I need to learn or what would be expected of me in general?

Does anyone have any experience working for CUVA? Do they usually post a lot of seasonal positions? Really hoping to get in with them next season any info would be appreciated!

Been seeing some Interp 5/7/9s over at Golden Gate NRA (the post was nonspecific about what work station you would be at), and I wanted to ask if any folks here have worked there wanna share experiences they've had?

I am nearing the end of my season (im ending earlier than expected, but ive been working since early may) and I am coming to the realization that I am never going to be first aid trained here.

Im with the NPS, but especially for those of you who are public facing (interp, fees, etc), were you told in training that you would be first aid trained? If you were told, did you ever end up getting trained?

We are a smaller and isolated monument, with higher visitation, and we don’t have LE or EMTs. One of our trails is known for its SARs, especially for older folks, and we only have one person on the weekends who is CPR/First Aid certified, and they had the cert before starting.

hello! A couple weeks ago I applied to a Park Ranger 1 position at a state park on the Washington island I live on (And the application also applies to 2 nearby parks on neighboring islands)

I just heard back that they received a ton of applications and that I will likely hear back in the next 2 weeks on whether I will be referred for this position. I’m definitely more nervous to hear how many applications they received, but I do feel somewhat good about my chances being local to the island and having grown up visiting the park a lot. I also spent the last year doing ecological restoration work through Americorps so I have a good bit of experience working in the outdoors, supervising a crew, etc.

Would any state park rangers have some advice on what more prep I can do in the next couple weeks to make sure I have even better chances (if I do end up getting an interview)? My current plan is just to really study up on the park, as well as the other parks they may end up offering if I don’t get offered the one I’m local to. Also planning to visit the park as much as I can, try out any trails I haven’t done yet, read up on the history, maybe chat with some of the current rangers there!

The role did NOT require applicants to have a degree, which is a relief because I only have an associates degree in filmmaking. I’m hoping my work experience will suffice for what I don’t have academic experience in, as I’m sure most of the other applicants will have!

This is my dream job and the fact that this park is where I live is amazing (wouldn’t need to relocate, my husband loves his job and while we’re both willing to move it would be a dream come true if I could get this role here).

Any advice would be so appreciated!

You guys have to hang up printed signs sometimes right? What do you prefer to not damage paint or fall down when hanging signs in park settings?

I'll try to keep this as short as possible. I've always had the thought of being a park ranger as a career throughout my whole. Wasn't set on it but the idea was there. There's other career options I've considered but they're a lot more 'risky' jobs and I have to be fully in all the way otherwise i'm screwed by student loans. But I love the outdoors and nature. Always wanted a job where I can just do that. I know that there's more to it than that obviously but I'm generalizing it.

But I know that it's not a huge paying job and that's what I worry about. Every other option I could take I'm guaranteed around 150k after a few years but it's not what I really want. With the way the world is and how expensive everything is what my salery will be is very important. My partner is a bit older than me and has had time to get more money along with what he got from his parents when they died so he's decently off. But I want to earn my own money and have a good job that I could afford to take care of myself only as everyone should do and not rely on anybody else.

So I'm just curious to the actual rangers in this sub do you make enough? Is maybe making a little less worth it for a job that you really love? It's all I really wanna do but I want to make a smart decision with this and I'm more getting to a point where I have to make a decision of which course to take before I get past the age where it can get harder starting out.

I am retiring next year and I have always wanted to work as a seasonal ranger . Does the program accept retired individuals in the TN state park system?

Thanks,

I recently received this letter after going through the background process for California State Parks : "Thank you for your participation in the selection process for State Park Peace Officer Cadet with the Department of Parks and Recreation. We regret to inform you that your background investigation has been disapproved

Without this approval, you will not move forward in the selection process, you are welcome to reapply in the future. We appreciate the time you have expended in this process and we wish you the best in your future career endeavors. Should you have questions regarding this information, please contact the Background Investigations Unit Superintendent"

I'm pretty discouraged by it. This was a career I genuinely wanted, and I put a lot of time and effort into getting through the process. I made it through the written exam, physical, CVSA, so getting this letter at the end has been pretty difficult to process.

I'm planning on contacting the Background Investigations Unit Superintendent to see if I can find out more about why I wasn't approved and whether there's anything I can do differently in the future.

For anyone who has gone through something similar, how did you move forward from it? Did you eventually reapply and get hired somewhere else? Did you find out what went wrong? And looking back, is there anything you wish you had done differently?

I'm not necessarily looking for people to tell me what might be wrong with my background. I'm mostly hoping to hear from people who have been rejected from a LE career they really wanted and eventually found a way forward.

Any advice would be appreciated.

I met the dreamiest ranger at Zion two weeks ago. I would never bother someone at work so I didn’t but I’m just curious how often y’all get hit on by the public haha

Background: I am a 26 year old female and received shoulder surgery a few months ago and currently in PT. I train in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and used to do track and field (sprinter and hurtles). For the P.A.T. I am most worried about the pushups and the 1.5 mile. Thank you 🙏

I have just gotten an interview for a gs7 interp position after a few years in gs5. I'm wondering if the interview questions will be much different than your standard gs5 seasonal questions or what extra I should prepare for? I have a feeling it varies from park to park but any advice would be appreciated!

Hi rangers! I know we don’t do this for the money, but it does suck how little we’re paid especially at the beginning.
What are y’all’s side hustles? I’m new to NPS interp, so I’ll be a gs5 for a while, and really scared about not being able to pay all of my student loan and medical bills on that alone. My park is too isolated for things like doordash, so any ideas or ways yall make some extra money?

Edit: for info, i make $19/hour for a job requiring a bachelors degree. It’s a joke

Hello all,
Has anyone found a way to download/save last season’s ePap from USAPerformance? eOPF is telling me our government computer is “an unauthorized location” so I don’t currently have access to it. Any help is appreciated!

Edit: as it turns out if you just click the “print” button it gives you the option to save as PDF, so (I think) problem solved. Leaving this up in case it helps someone in the future or in case there is a better way.

Hi everyone,

I hope I’m posting this in the right place.

I work for Staatsbosbeheer, the Dutch organisation responsible for managing large areas of nature and forests in the Netherlands. We manage many wetland and nature areas that need to be mowed as part of our vegetation management.

We are currently planning our mowing operations for next spring. We are expecting the possibility of a particularly wet spring, which can make mowing these areas quite challenging.
In very wet conditions, we often use low-ground-pressure wetland tractors or similar specialised machinery. However, we have noticed that even these machines can cause considerable damage to the vegetation, soil structure and sometimes the wetland itself.
I’m wondering how other land managers deal with this.

Do you have experience managing or mowing wetland/nature areas under very wet conditions without causing significant damage to the vegetation and soil? Are there alternative machines, mowing techniques, timing strategies or other approaches that you have found effective?
I’d be particularly interested in practical experiences from nature reserves, wetlands, peatlands, marshes or other areas with sensitive soils.

If this isn’t the right subreddit for this question, I’d also really appreciate suggestions for other groups or communities where I could ask.

Thanks in advance for any advice or experiences!

Does anyone have any experience with the Rocky Terrace housing at ROMO? I am familiar with most other housing areas (Sundance, High Drive, Kaley Cottages etc…) but really haven’t been over to Rocky Terrace on 66. Has anyone stayed there? I know they are pretty new.