What Kind of College Degree Do I Need to be a Park Ranger?
This is probably the most common question from Park Ranger Wanna-bees. What kind of degree do I need? What should I major in?
Bottom line . . . Most federal jobs don’t require a college degree as long as you have sufficient experience to meet the qualification standards. Park Ranger jobs are no different — with the exception of Law Enforcement rangers. If you want to carry a gun, you’ll need to complete the Seasonal Law Enforcement Training Program at one of the nine colleges that offer it.
In addition, your college experience and work experience can be combined to meet qualification standards. So, if you’ve completed some college it will be counted as long as it is relevant to the position.
The OPM qualification standards are pretty lenient when it comes to what kind of courses are considered relevant for park ranger jobs: 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.
Course work in fields other than those specified may be accepted if it clearly provides applicants with the back-ground of knowledge and skills necessary for successful job perform-ance in the position to be filled.
So, according to the OPM qualification standards, in order to a qualify for a GS-05 park ranger position, you need a 4-year degree OR one year of experience working in a park setting OR a combination of the two.
Article Index
A Word About Law Enforcement Training
What Kind of College Degree Do I Need for a Park Ranger Job?
Requirements for Entry-Level Park Ranger Jobs
Health Insurance for Seasonal Park Employees
Maximum Entry Age for Law Enforcement Park Rangers
3000 New Seasonal Park Ranger Jobs!
Remembering Park Ranger Kris Eggle
