Department of the Interior

Park Ranger (Mountaineering) (Seasonal)

Talkeetna, Alaska Full time

Park Ranger (Mountaineering) (Seasonal)

Department: Department of the Interior

Location(s): Talkeetna, Alaska

Salary Range: $27.07 - $35.19 Per Hour

Job Summary: Failure to submit any of the required documents/information will result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents/information has been submitted. These positions are temporary and may not exceed 1039 hours (six months) in a service year.

Major Duties:

  • These positions are located in Denali National Park and Preserve in the Ranger Division. The typical season for these positions is March through September, but may vary during these months due to weather conditions, project needs, or funding. The duties of this position include, but are not limited to the following: Leads extended, high altitude mountain patrols on Denali and elsewhere in the Alaska Range, accompanied by appropriately trained Volunteers in Parks (VIPs). Performs or directs search and rescue operations involving high altitude technical climbing, use of emergency medical techniques, coordination of helicopter and fixed wing aircraft, coordination of other resources from numerous agencies and sources. Performs aerial and ground backcountry patrols to enforce park regulations. Ground patrols involve backpacking in winter and summer. Winter travel also may involve use of skis, snow machine, or dog sled. The summer travel involves small river craft such as packraft and raft. Operates a visitor contact station and provides information and interpretation of the park to the general public, issues park use permits and provides expert advice and assistance to mountaineers heading into the park from Talkeetna. Provides liaison between the NPS and park concessionaires and business use licensees. Participates in the planning of district operations by providing input to supervisor regarding park operations, needs, requirements, etc. Gathers, compiles, and reports mountaineering and resource management data. Drafts replies to mountaineering related correspondence and maintains patrol reports. Investigates accidents and prepares accident and incident reports. Physical Demands: Work requires standing, backpacking, mountaineering, expert skiing, and 5.9/WI 4 climbing, on and over a variety of rough, uneven, rocky, hazardous surfaces for days at a time; driving vehicles and snow-machines, operating rafts and packrafts; and lifting (150 pounds) and carrying moderate to heavy loads (in excess of 50 pounds) while hiking or climbing at altitudes of up to 20,310 feet. Incumbent must have the agility, mental alertness, physical strength and stamina typically associated with the aforementioned tasks in wilderness survival and travel and with high altitude mountaineering. Working Conditions: Most work is performed outdoors, at high altitudes (20,310 feet), in a wide range of weather conditions (from 70 degrees to -40). Regular and recurring exposure to moderate and sometimes severe discomfort is experienced. Work may be performed at various hours of the day and night and for prolonged periods during emergency situations. The incumbent is frequently exposed to high risk and potentially dangerous situations, with the possibility of serious injury or accidental death. Selectees may be moved between duty stations within park boundaries. Government housing is available. Please visit find a park for additional park information.

Qualifications: All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-11/28/2025-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 number of hours worked per week, full-time, or part-time. If you indicate part-time, you MUST indicate the number of hours worked per week so that your qualifying experience can be prorated for credit. You must meet the following Selective Factors/Screen Outs. Candidates who do not meet these requirements AND support them in their applications, as described below, by close of this announcement (unless otherwise stated), will receive no further consideration for this position. Mountaineering and Climbing (screen out): You must have experience in high altitude mountaineering and technical climbing that includes having led or guided a minimum of two (2) mountaineering expeditions that reached 17,200 ft, or higher, one of which must have been on Denali (Mt. McKinley). This experience must have been gained as a guide, assistant guide, trip leader, or search and rescue member and cannot have been obtained by being a trip participant or client on a guided expedition. You must list previous climbs that you have led, and your climbing/mountaineering experience and altitudes reached in your application package, or you will be rated ineligible. -AND- Wilderness First Responder (WFR) or higher-level medication certification (screen out): You must have a Wilderness First Responder (WFR), Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), Paramedic (EMTP), or higher-level, medical certification and training by entrance on duty. (If EMT/EMTP level, must be national registry.) Include a copy of your certificate showing the level and expiration date or list your medical certification AND expiration date in your resume, or the level AND date you anticipate completing your course for certification. Proof of certification will be required before entrance on duty. If you do not include this information in your application, you will be rated ineligible. -AND- Avalanche certification (screen out): You must have an Avalanche Professional Level 1, or higher-level, Avalanche certification and training by entrance on duty. Include a copy of your certificate showing the level and completion date or list your Avalanche certification level AND completion date in your resume, or the level AND date you anticipate completing your course for certification. Proof of certification will be required before entrance on duty. If you do not include this information in your application, you will be rated ineligible. -AND- To qualify for this position at the GS-07 grade level, you must possess at least one of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: One year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-5 level in the federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Examples of specialized experience include high-altitude technical climbing; gathering, compiling, and reporting mountaineering and resource management data; and visitor assistance in a park or recreation area. You must include hours worked per week in your resume. -OR- EDUCATION: One full year of graduate study in one of the following fields: 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. Coursework in fields other than those specified may be accepted if it clearly provides applicants with the background of knowledge and skills necessary for successful job performance in the position to be filled. (One year of graduate education is 18 semester hours or 27 quarter hours.) You must include a copy of your transcripts with your application and the hours worked per week in your resume. -OR- COMBINATION OF SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: To combine education and experience, first take the number of semester hours, or equivalent, earned towards a graduate degree and divide by 18 semester hours, or equivalent. Then take the number of months of full-time experience and divide by 12 months. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must include a copy of your transcripts with your application and the hours worked per week in your resume. Volunteer 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.

How to Apply: To apply for this position: You must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 11/28/2025. You must provide documentation to support your claim for each eligibility selected. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibilities language to ensure you submit the appropriate information. Note: You will only be marked eligible for those eligibilities that you selected and provided the appropriate supporting documentation. WE DO NOT ACCEPT HARD-COPY OR E-MAIL APPLICATION PACKAGES. Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to login or create an account. Prompted to Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application." Click here for USAJobs Help with "How to create an application" To PREVIEW the application questionnaire, select the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12832867 Select or add the resume you want to use for this application. Click here on how to build a resume in USAJOBS. Select documents you want included in this application. Review package to acknowledge your documents were reviewed. Select if you want to include your demographic information. After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site." Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application. Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown. Upload any missing required documents or optional documents. Review and Submit Application. While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position. You can review or revise your application at any point during the open period of the announcement. To update an application, you should log into your USAJOBS account and select "+" next to the job title for this position. Select "Update Application" for this job. Note: When you click Update Application, you will be prompted to re-select your documents from USAJOBS. Documents submitted with the first application will no longer be associated with the applicant record. So it is important that you select all documents you want to use in the re-application.

Application Deadline: 2025-11-28