Living & Working in Great Places

Volunteering with National Park Service

Hi everyone,

I'm planning on working in Glacier NP over the summer and was thinking of volunteering with National Park Service. How difficult is it to get a place with them? Is it necessary to apply long before the beginning of the season?

Which areas of the park are best for volunteering and learning more about the park (visitor centers, ranger programs, guided hikes, wildlife concentration, good hiking trails etc.)? I'll be doing my dissertation work about the park so will need as much information and research as possible.

Thanks for all your tips/suggestions/ideas! :)

Tags: glacier, national, park, volunteering

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Lewis on October 19, 2009 at 5:44pm: They actually don't have very many volunteer positions at all--just about every NP position is staffed by paid personnel. The lowest government grade is usually GS-5, which means you need at least a bachelor's degree (any discipline). The functions you mention are done by "Visitor Use Assistants", which theoretically have a grade classification of GS 3, 4, or 5, the first two not needing a college degree, but in reality, they get about 30 applications for every job opening, so they can cherry-pick the applicants. The only volunteer work available is set aside for college students, and involves stuff like trail-building.

If you want to work for the NPS, you should try to get hired to work in one of the less prestigious or more isolated parks, then use that as a springboard to get into someplace like Glacier. If you want to do this, you pretty much need a bachelor's degree, and then it will take 5-8 years to get a position as a Visitor Use Assistant, which can lead to Park Ranger/Naturalist (GS 6,7,8).

Since there are tens of thousands of people who would like to work in the National Parks, and only a few hundred NPS openings every year, competition is fierce.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Eva Busova on October 19, 2009 at 6:14pm: Kevin, I'm not sure if all that grade classification stuff works for me since I'm not an American citizen. I do have a bachelor's degree (in Environmental Science) though, so that could help. But since I'm not interested in Visitor Use Assistant position (I'm more into participating in projects, research etc), I think they might use my help.. I know the competition is fierce - I applied to be a volunteer with NPS when I worked in Yellowstone last year, but they said they had enough people back then. So I figured I'd need to apply really early in the season next year. I just wasn't sure if the situation with volunteers was the same in other parks, too.

Working for NPS is not an option for me, either. As a non-American, I can't be hired to work for NPS, however much I'd like to..:/; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kevin Lewis on October 20, 2009 at 12:39pm: You're still eligible to work temporary/seasonal positions with the NPS, although you probably don't stand any chance of getting in, as the competition is fierce.

Given your background and what you want to do, I would suggest you contact the various private organizations that teach environmental awareness in the parks. The one I am the most familiar with is the Glacier Institute, and there are also the Yellowstone Association, the Yosemite Institute, the North Cascades Institute, etc. They hire for both paid and volunteer positions, and as far as I know, if you can get a work visa, that's all you need. They will be hiring in November for the following summer, so apply early.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by jon youngblood on October 20, 2009 at 1:24pm: eva, i do not know much about glacier, but the nps definitely takes volunteers. kevin is wrong. it would be best if you became a interpretive ranger. while it doesn't pay, the nps will give you $100 a week stipend for food and such and they will provide you with housing. in the north cascades, the way it works is you work 4 days at 9 hr shifts, then you have a field day that you do hiking or some type of park exploration, then you have 2 days off. i am sure that glacier is very competitive, along with yellowstone, yosemite, mt rainer, and the olympics. i also know that they do accept international applicants, my neighbor this year was from mexico. apply as early as you can for the best chance. hope this helps.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kevin Lewis on October 20, 2009 at 6:04pm: I said that the NPS does not have VERY MANY volunteer positions, not that they don't take them at all. I have been told that there are between 40 and 70 applications for every volunteer position, depending on the park. The position you call "interpretive ranger" receives over 300 applicants for every opening.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by jon youngblood on November 9, 2009 at 7:05pm: my friend aaron called and got one at the last minute. i said that it was competitive at the popular parks, but there a lot of parks, rec areas, and monuments.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kathi on October 20, 2009 at 8:51pm: This might help: http://www.nps.gov/glac/supportyourpark/vip-international.htm; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kevin Lewis on October 21, 2009 at 6:40pm: I don't know why the NPS doesn't update its web pages more often, but there will be stricter--in some cases, MUCH stricter---J-1 visa requirements for 2010. Some of those restrictions have already been put in place, which is freaking out some of the ski resorts as those restrictions reduce their potential hiring pool.

You can blame the above on our esteemed Department of Homeland Stupidity, which evidently sees a grave threat in terrorists infiltrating our country and blowing up ski lifts.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jim on October 22, 2009 at 7:37pm: Probably won't reduce the hiring pool given the current US unemployment rate. It is rather dire.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Jim on October 22, 2009 at 7:47pm: Given the current rate of unemployment in the US, I don't think there's going to be a shortage of US citizens who will work the minimum wage ski resort jobs or even volunteer jobs that offer a stipend.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Kevin Lewis on October 22, 2009 at 10:09pm: Last year, when all this mess had just gotten under way, I went to the Heavenly Valley job fair. 15,000 people showed up for 300 jobs. I agree that this year will probably be even worse. The job pool will have more Americans in it, certainly. What I referred to as far as the resorts' "freaking out" is the widespread industry fear that the new visa rules will exclude many of the foreign seasonal employees, and when the economy gets better and they can no longer find Americans to clean rooms for minimum wage, they won't be able to get those foreign workers back.
Vail Resorts, for example, has, every season, hired large groups of workers from places like Argentina and Ecuador. They might have permanently lost the ability to do that--and the ultimate, horrifying specter of doom raises its head---THEY MIGHT HAVE TO PAY THEIR EMPLOYEES A DECENT WAGE.
For the time being, though, you're right--there are millions of desperate people out there who are pounding on doors, begging for the opportunity to work for $100 a month, a daily stale crust of bread, and hourly beatings. It's never been a better time to be an employer--you can do anything you want to your employees, and they won't dare complain.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Eva Busova on October 22, 2009 at 3:26am: Big thanks to you all. I'm going to try and apply for a volunteer position with NPS as well as Glacier Institute as Kevin suggested. I understand that those postitions are very competetive, but who knows I might get lucky..

What do you guys know of the Student Conservation Association (SCA)? I came across their website the other day and apparently they hire internationals for volunteer positions and internships in national parks and protected areas across the US. Do you think they might be worth a try?; ▶ Reply to This