Seasonal National PS employment
I’m looking for some experienced insight regarding seasonal National Park employment. Being a retired geologist who still loves geology I figured that obtaining seasonal work as a geologist at one of ...
Forum Discussion
The NPS is a government agency, with all that that implies. Still, it's a better employer than Xanterra or other national park concessionaires, or God forbid, any one of those private outfits that want to hire slaves and give you a receipt instead of a paycheck (because all the deductions exceed the amount of your pay).
The trouble is, the applicant:opening ratio is about 15:1 for all types of NPS jobs. You qualifications or lack thereof have very little to do with whether you win that lottery. Being "juiced" in really helps (and may be essential), as many parks are in isolated areas and the locals depend on the NPS for seasonal work--thus, supervisors who are also local tend to steer what jobs there are in the direction of such people.
What can be frustrating is that the very long and tedious application process implies that the hiring process is merit-based, so you apply and apply and apply with the expectation of at least hearing from them, and you never do. This goes for all gummint jobs but especially the Forest Service and NPS. You have to have juice, you have to have personal contacts; otherwise, forget it, unless you're satisfied with an Assistant Toilet Maintenance position at Death Gulch National Monument.
It's pretty much established that NPS management is not only incompetent but also a competitive, back-stabbing environment that would make Game of Thrones look like Mayberry RFD (and if you understand both those references...). This doesn't really affect foot soldier hiring, but it does let you know the nature of the bureaucracy you'll be dealing with.
Of course, the ultimate reward is being able to live and work in someplace beautiful. But that reward may take a decade or more to attain, while you pay your dues as a Ditch Flushing Technician at Nuclear Waste Hills National Monument in eastern Nevada.
The trouble is, the applicant:opening ratio is about 15:1 for all types of NPS jobs. You qualifications or lack thereof have very little to do with whether you win that lottery. Being "juiced" in really helps (and may be essential), as many parks are in isolated areas and the locals depend on the NPS for seasonal work--thus, supervisors who are also local tend to steer what jobs there are in the direction of such people.
What can be frustrating is that the very long and tedious application process implies that the hiring process is merit-based, so you apply and apply and apply with the expectation of at least hearing from them, and you never do. This goes for all gummint jobs but especially the Forest Service and NPS. You have to have juice, you have to have personal contacts; otherwise, forget it, unless you're satisfied with an Assistant Toilet Maintenance position at Death Gulch National Monument.
It's pretty much established that NPS management is not only incompetent but also a competitive, back-stabbing environment that would make Game of Thrones look like Mayberry RFD (and if you understand both those references...). This doesn't really affect foot soldier hiring, but it does let you know the nature of the bureaucracy you'll be dealing with.
Of course, the ultimate reward is being able to live and work in someplace beautiful. But that reward may take a decade or more to attain, while you pay your dues as a Ditch Flushing Technician at Nuclear Waste Hills National Monument in eastern Nevada.
