Park Ranger (Interpretation)
What you'd do
You will serve as a Park Ranger (Interpretation) with the National Park Service. Career-Seasonal appointments are permanent positions and include the same benefits as Career appointments, but do not provide work on a year-round basis. You will work a maximum of 50 weeks, and you will be in a non-pay status for approximately 1 pay period (2 weeks) in the service year.
Major duties
At the full performance level (GS-09) the major duties of this position include but are not limited to the following: You will be the Volunteer program coordinator for Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park. Develop and present a variety of programs including guided walks, illustrated talks (PowerPoint amphitheater and campfire programs) and demonstrations. Develop programs using principles of the NPS thematic interpretation model through topic research, familiarity with and creative use of delivery techniques. Provide informal interpretation and orientation for park guests in visitor centers, ranger stations and while roving in the field. Perform cashier duties and assist with a variety of special projects to support park goals. Actively promote the safety of park visitors and stewardship of park resources in all interactions, and potentially serve as the initial contact for accident reporting and emergency assistance Duties will be developmental in nature when filled below the full performance level.
What you need to qualify
All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 09/01/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. To qualify for this position at the GS-05 grade level: Specialized Experience Requirement: you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-04 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience in technical, administrative, or scientific work, fish and wildlife management, recreation management, law enforcement, or other park related work. Examples of specialized experience include, but are not limited to, the following: Park Guide or tour leader; environmental educator or teacher; law enforcement or investigative work; archeological or historical preservation research work; forestry and/or fire management work in a park, recreation, or conservation area; management, assistant, or program specialist work involving the development and implementation of policy related to protection, conservation, or management of park areas or similar operations. Your resume must include hours worked per week to receive credit for your specialized experience, or you will be found not qualified and removed from consideration for this position. -OR- Education: Successful completion of at least a 4 year course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with 24 semester hours of related course work in a major study such as: natural resource management, natural sciences, earth sciences, history, archeology, anthropology, park and recreation management, law enforcement/police science, social sciences, museum sciences, business administration, public administration, behavioral sciences, sociology, or other closely related subjects pertinent to the management and protection of natural and cultural resources. PLEASE NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of courses with credit hours and grades listed if you are using education to qualify. Official transcripts will be required upon selection. -OR- Combination of education and experience. Only education in excess of the first 60 semester hours of a course of study leading to a bachelor's degree is creditable toward meeting the specialized experience requirements. Two full academic years of study, or 60 semester hours, beyond the second year is equivalent to 1 year of specialized experience. For example, I have 6 months of the specialized experience described in A above (50% of the experience requirement), and 3 years of college study from an accredited institution (50% of the qualifying education) which included at least 12 semester hours of related coursework as specified in B above (50% of the related coursework required). PLEASE NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of courses with credit hours and grades listed if you are using education to qualify. Official transcripts will be required upon selection. To qualify for this position at the GS-07 grade level: Specialized Experience Requirement: You must possess one year of specialized experience from the public or private sector, equivalent in level of difficulty and responsibility to that of at least the GS-05 grade level in the Federal service. Experience may have been in technical, administrative, or scientific work, fish and wildlife management, recreation management, law enforcement, or other park related work. Examples of specialized experience include, but are not limited to, the following: Park Guide or tour leader; environmental educator or teacher; law enforcement or investigative work; archeological or historical preservation research work; forestry and/or fire management work in a park, recreation, or conservation area; management, assistant, or program specialist work involving the development and implementation of policy related to protection, conservation, or management of park areas or similar operations. Your resume must include hours worked per week to receive credit for your specialized experience, or you will be found not qualified and removed from consideration for this position. -OR- Education: Successful completion of one full year of graduate study in one of the following fields: natural resource management, natural sciences, marine biology/sciences, earth sciences, history, archeology, anthropology, park and recreation management, law enforcement/police science, social sciences, wetlands ecology, or other closely related subjects pertinent to the management and protection of natural and cultural resources. (One year of graduate education is 18 semester hours or 27 quarter hours). PLEASE NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of courses with credit hours and grades listed if you are using education to qualify. Official transcripts will be required upon selection. -OR- Superior Academic Achievement: Grade point average of B (a G.P.A. 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all completed undergraduate courses, or those completed in the last 2 years of undergraduate study; A grade-point average of B+ (a G.P.A. of 3.5 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all courses in your major field of study, or those courses you completed in the last two years; Rank in the upper one-third of your class in the college, university, or major subdivision; or Membership in National Honor Societies. NOTE: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate coursework (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail or similar basis, your claim must be based on class standing or membership in an Honor Society. PLEASE NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of courses with credit hours and grades listed if you are using education to qualify. Official transcripts will be required upon selection. -OR- Combination of education and experience: To combine education and experience, first determine the percentage of experience held by dividing the number of months of qualifying full-time experience possessed by 12 and then multiplying by 100. Then determine the percentage of qualifying graduate level education completed by dividing the number of credits completed by 18, then multiply by 100. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. PLEASE NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts or a list of courses with credit hours and grades listed if you are using education to qualify. Official transcripts will be required upon selection.
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