Why not... State Park ranger here.
Though an Associates Degree is all that's required, the competitive nature of the job demands a four-year degree. Anything mildly related to the job works.
Everything. Maintenance work may include cutting down a tree, fixing a fence, emptying garbage. The amount of law enforcement you'll do varies by park. Always some administrative stuff. Maybe going to a training. One aspect I love about the job is that there's a lot of just "Find some work and do it."
Nonsense. Nonsense takes up most of my time.
Common sense and thinking on your feet is probably the best skill to have. You'll never run into the exact same situation twice, so there's a need to think fast and come up with a good solution, or at least an adequate one. Rules can be bent and not everybody enforces the same things, but really you just have to do whatever leads to people being safe and sometimes also happy. Usually "Just don't fuck it up" is a good motto to go by.
My co-workers are awesome. The visitors can be so-so, but my co-workers have my back and I've got theirs.
Idiots and assholes. There's a surprising number of people who think the world revolves around them, and that leads to actions which interfere with the enjoyment of other visitors.
It brightens my day when I hear people tell me that they've had a good time in my park. I like talking to people and hearing them tell me about the good time they're having.
A rotating shift schedule stinks as far as making friends, because you usually don't have weekends free, plus you can't commit to a weekly event like a bowling or billiards league. We work when everyone else has off, and we have off when everyone else is working.
If I'm to demand respect, I must dress respectably.
Certainly do.
There's a lot of advancement if you want it. It's easy for the first couple rungs and then difficult the rest of the way.
If Park Rangers left there'd be anarchy and nice families wouldn't come to the park anymore. There will always be a need for rangers.
Government website.
Experience doing Ranger-type stuff. Working seasonally.
There's a balance between work and home life. You have to earn enough at work to be happy enough at home; and you have to enjoy your work enough to be happy there. Pick something that makes enough money and isn't impossible to break into, but also work where you don't shudder at the thought of a Monday approaching. I don't like every aspect of my job, but I like my job. I won't be able to buy that vacation home in Aruba, but I also don't have to eat Ramen every night and can afford to go out. Do your research and find out what's in demand. And oftentimes it's not the type of work you do but the work environment you're in which makes the day enjoyable. Also do some work to figure out what you're good at. Right now is too early for you to be picking an exact career, so take your time to examine your skills, and go ahead and talk to professionals to see what they do if that might interest you. Don't ever rely on others to tell you what's good for you--they probably have a special interest. Decide for yourself. Think big and start narrowing it down in the years to come. Scheduling informational interviews with people in various fields is something more people should do.
I hire a lot of young people, and what's important to me is the desire to do a good job. Not everybody has that. Work ethic will get you a very long way. No matter what you're being paid, take ownership of your work and work as if your job is the most important position in the company. Take ownership of your mistakes because everybody makes them. Ask for questions and advice. And if the tools aren't available to complete a task 100%, it's still better to do it 75% than not do it at all.
no.