Seasonal Park Ranger (Wilderness-Permits)

Summary These Park Ranger (Wilderness-Permits) positions are located at Zion National Park in Springdale, Utah, in a busy Wilderness Permit office issuing permits, collecting fees, and assisting visitors with trip planning. Field patrols and project time will be spent in highly visited Wilderness locations. These are Temporary, Seasonal appointments not to exceed 1,039 hours. Anticipated Entry on Duty (EOD): Mid-April 2026. Duties Major Duties: Operates a busy visitor contact station and/or Wilderness permit desk. Oversees day to day functions of the Wilderness permit system at the Zion Canyon or Kolob Canyons Visitor Centers. Frequently patrols the park's wilderness trails, routes, and campsites. Performs remote technical canyoneering patrols, rappelling, and technical rope rescue techniques including self-rescue. Issues wilderness permits to the public, explains wilderness rules and regulations, makes personal contacts in the field, and supplies information on resource conditions along the trails and canyons. Performs visitor contacts on front-country trails, as well as numerous projects to protect and manage park resources. Other Important Duty Details: Performs patrols of slot canyons and other vertical environments. Employee must independently complete and lead canyoneering and climbing routes, ascend and descend ropes, and build and evaluate rappelling anchors. Performs as a member of an in-Park Incident Management Team to be called upon to provide emergency services such as medical, Search & Rescue, civil disturbances, special events, large-scale commemorations, ceremonies, or wildland fires, within the scope of training and certifications. Physical Demands: The work requires regular and recurring physical exertion such as long periods of standing, walking, driving, bending, and the incumbent must have the ability to routinely carry backpacks up to 50 pounds in steep terrain and in adverse weather conditions. TECHNICAL ROPE SKILLS are required: Employee performs patrols of slot canyons and other vertical environments. Employee must independently complete and lead canyoneering and climbing routes, ascend and descend ropes, as well as build and evaluate rappelling anchors. Work Environment: The work is performed in a setting in which there is regular and recurring exposure to moderate discomforts and unpleasantness e.g. high or low temperatures, confined spaces, or adverse weather conditions. Requirements Conditions of employment U.S. Citizenship required. Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication. Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males. DIRECT DEPOSIT: Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program. TECHNICAL ROPE SKILLS are required: Employee performs patrols of slot canyons and other vertical environments. Employee must independently complete and lead canyoneering and climbing routes, ascend and descend ropes, as well as build and evaluate rappelling anchors. See Selective Factor information in 'Qualifications' section. Performs as a member of an In-Park Incident Management Team to be called upon to provide emergency services. HOUSING: Park/Government housing may be available. UNIFORM: You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided. WORK SCHEDULE: You may be required to work evenings, weekends, holidays, & overtime. TRAVEL: Occasional overnight wilderness camping is required. You may be required to travel overnight away from home occasionally. You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority. DRUG TESTING: You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use. DRIVER'S LICENSE: You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you. Applicants must be at least 18 years old. Qualifications All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-12/22/2025-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount of qualified specialized experience. SELECTIVE FACTOR: This position performs technical rope skills used in canyoneering, climbing or mountaineering. Incumbent must have the skills to independently: complete and lead canyoneering or climbing routes, ascend and descend ropes, create and evaluate anchors. Sufficient experience must be clearly demonstrated in your resume, or other supporting documentation, to evaluate this requirement. Candidates who do not meet this requirement by close of this announcement will receive no further consideration for this position. - AND - SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: To qualify for this position at the GS-05 grade level, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-04 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). 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 qualifying specialized experience include, but are not limited to, the following: Park Guide or tour leader; Law enforcement or investigative work; Archeological or historical preservation research work; Forestry and/or fire management work in a park, recreation, or conservation area; and/or 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. Note: Your experience descriptions must include hours per week worked. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least a 4-year (120 semester/180 quarter credits) course of study above high school leading to a bachelor's degree with 24 semester/36 quarter hours of related course work in: 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. You must include transcripts. -OR- COMBINATION: Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. For example, I have six months of specialized experience (50% of the experience requirement), and three years of college study from an accredited institution (50% of the qualifying education) that equals 100% of the total requirement. You must include transcripts. You must include months, years and hours per week worked to receive credit for your work and/or volunteer experience. One year of specialized experience is equivalent to 12 months at 40 hours per week. Part-time hours are prorated. You will not receive any credit for experience that does not indicate exact hours per week or is listed as "varies" or "summer" etc.. Volunteer Experience: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. ICTAP/CTAP Statement: Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special prior­ity selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level on all competencies. Education To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work. If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. Additional information Zion National Park is located in southwestern Utah. The climate is generally hot with daytime high temperatures ranging from 95 to 110 degrees in the summer, and 55 to 10 degrees in the winter. Nighttime lows range from 65 degrees in the summer to 10 degrees in the winter. Minimal shopping is available in Springdale, Utah, located two (2) miles from Park Headquarters. A full range of shopping, medical, dental, religious, and recreational facilities are available in Hurricane (25 miles), St. George, (45 miles), and in Cedar City, (63 miles), Utah. Elementary school (grades K-5) is available in Springdale, with bus service provided. Junior high and high school is available in Hurricane, with bus service provided. Utah Tech University is located in St. George, and Southern Utah University is located in Cedar City. **Due to the desirable nature of the area surrounding Zion National Park, please be sure to research and understand the limited housing options and the area's cost-of-living.** Park/Government housing may be available for this position. A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected. The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay. This job opportunity announcement will be used to fill one or more additional selections at any time without notification. Non-Competitive Rehire Eligibility: Temporary seasonal employees can only maintain their non-competitive rehire eligibility if they work no more than a combined total of Temporary NTE less than 1040 hours anywhere in the National Park Service (NPS) within their established service year. Accordingly, non-competitive rehire eligibility allows for re-appointment to the same position or another position appropriate for temporary appointment with the same qualification requirements (5 CFR 316.402[b][7]), based on series and grade, anywhere in the major subdivision (NPS). If you have held a temporary seasonal appointment in the past 12 months and have already worked the maximum temporary appointment less than 1040 hours during that period, you are still welcome to apply. However, please be aware that exceeding the limit of 1040 hours in your established service year will result in the loss of your non-competitive rehire eligibility. The limit can be exceeded by working multiple temporary seasonal positions that result in a combined total greater than 1040 hours. The limit also can be exceeded by working a single temporary seasonal appointment that exceeds 1040 hours, unless granted an exception by OPM. Employment may be terminated at any time due to fluctuations in funding levels, project needs, employee performance, or other considerations. The National Park Service has determined that most temporary positions are suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster. Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution. Benefits A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits. Review our benefits Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.