Remote Backcountry Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Summary
This is a permanent Park Ranger (PSAR), GS-0025-11 position located at Missouri National Recreational River, duty stationed in Yankton, South Dakota.
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Duties
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At the full performance level (GS-11) the major duties of this position include, but are not limited to the following:

1. Conduct regularly scheduled Preventative Search and Rescue (PSAR) patrols of various park resources such as backcountry and/or wilderness areas, park trails, campgrounds, parking lots, shorelines, rivers, docks, roads, etc., in accordance with established procedures and precedents, and using rescue techniques and threat assessments.
2. In the field, provide visitors with information and education to ensure their safety, obtain their cooperation, and facilitate safe visitor use of park resources.
3. Provide administrative, operational, and logistic support to PSAR-related educational activities conducted by the organization in accordance with established practices and precedents.
4. Serve as a member of a Search and Rescue (SAR) Team on events that may require trail response, ground/hasty searches, helicopter evacuations, river rescues, body recoveries, and/or litter carries.
5. Administer first aid and provide out-of-hospital emergency medical care for critical and emergent patients. Respond to and return safely from Emergency Medical Service (EMS) assistance/calls.

Physical Demands: The work requires considerable and strenuous physical exertion such as climbing, hiking, and lifting heavy objects. Work may be performed on uneven, steep, rough, slippery, and/or rugged terrain. EMS and search and rescue involve walking long distances over rough terrain, carrying heavy loads, and using technical rescue equipment. Going without sleep for long periods of time is a common occurrence.
Work Environment: Work is performed in an office setting, classroom, in the field, on trails, and in remote backcountry or wilderness settings. Search and Rescue and EMS work involves frequent exposure to potentially dangerous situations and/or hazardous environments to include hazardous flight landings and takeoffs, extreme outdoor weather conditions, and/or exposure to communicable diseases. Various levels of personal protective clothing are required to perform functions safely.
Requirements
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Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
• Complete the initial online assessment and USAHire Assessment, if required.
• Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
• 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.

Additional Requirements located under Qualifications -
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated.
This probationary or trial period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated.
Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.
Qualifications
Requirements Continued...

• Any individual who is currently holding, or has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet time-in-grade requirements (must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent in the Federal service); with few exceptions as outlined in 5 CFR 300.603(b). Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal civilian employees applying for reinstatement who have had a break in service of less than one year, as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointments. Time-in-grade does not apply to new excepted service appointments and must be met by the closing date of this announcement.
• Maintain current EMS certification(s) for providing emergency medical care as an Emergency Medical Responder (Basic First Aid, EMR, EMT, AEMT, or Paramedic).
• You may be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties. Prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year thereafter (or more frequently if management determines such need exists), you will be required to sign an affidavit certifying to your possession of a valid State issued driver's license that is current and has not been revoked, suspended, canceled, or otherwise disqualified in any way to prohibit your operation of a motor vehicle. You will also submit a photocopy of your valid State issued driver's license prior to your first official motor vehicle operation, and again every year, or more frequently if management determines such need exists. Lastly, you may be required to 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 discloses all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you. Please indicate in your application whether you possess a valid State driver's license.
• You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
• Operation of a small water craft less than 26 feet in length. Operation includes transport of personnel (including visitors), tools, and materials/supplies to job/work sites. In performing this duty, the incumbent may be required to have a current Department of Interior Motorboat Operator Certification Course (DOI-MOCC) certificate.
• Applicants must be at least (1)18 years old or (2) at least 16 years old and: (a) Have graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or (b) Have completed a formal vocational training program; or (c) Have received a statement from school authorities agreeing with their preference for employment rather than continuing their education; or (d) Be currently enrolled in a secondary school and either work only during school vacation periods or work part-time during the school year under a formal student employment program.

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-08/07/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.
Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 for each federal position listed as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of qualifying 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 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. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience.
For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.
To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must possess at least one full year of Specialized Experience or Education by close of the announcement:
EXPERIENCE: One full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized Experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include duties such as: planning, coordinating, and conducting search and rescue (SAR) and preventative search and rescue (PSAR) operations in remote or high-risk environments; coordinating, evaluating or directing wilderness programs and projects; assisting with developing long-range program plans related to PSAR; developing educational or interpretive programs related to wilderness; coaching and mentoring wilderness, preventive search and rescue, or similar, staff.
OR
EDUCATION: 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education, or a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree related to the occupation. Related fields of study include but are not limited to: park and recreation management, law enforcement/police science, emergency management, behavioral sciences, or other closely related subjects pertinent to the field of search and rescue. Course work 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.
OR
A COMBINATION of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take the number of semester hours or equivalent earned towards a graduate degree, in excess of 36 semester hours, and divide by 18 semester hours or equivalent. Then, take the number of months of experience and divide by 12 months. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. IMPORTANT NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts as proof of any claimed education.
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.
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
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 announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.
The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster.
Documentation for the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) eligibility, You must submit ALL SF-50s and performance information for each period of temporary/term employment that qualifies for LMWFA. Performance documentation can be obtained by contacting the supervisors for the positions you served in during your 24 months. If they did not complete performance appraisals, ask them to provide a statement of performance for each period of service. The statement must specify the dates for each employment period and your level of performance consistent with your SF-50s.
Reasonable Accommodation Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended and Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a reasonable accommodation in your online application. Requests for Reasonable Accommodations for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting document